Veteran American rapper, Fat Joe is facing an explosive lawsuit filed by his former hypeman in federal court
Terrance “T.A.” Dixon is alleging that his former boss, whose real name is Joseph Antonio Cartagena, engaged in “coercive labor exploitation, financial fraud, s£xual manipulation, violent intimidation, and psychological coercion.”
Dixon adds that the hip-hop star behind such chart-toppers as “What’s Luv?” got rich and famous while he and his associates deliberately suppressed, silenced, and erased Dixon’s substantial creative, artistic, and commercial contributions, which were foundational to Fat Joe’s professional success and personal brand. He is seeking up to $20 million in damages.
The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court Southern District of New York, details so many disturbing claims about Fat Joe’s alleged sexual relations with women including minors that it contains a trigger warning on the first page of the 157-page document.
For 16 years, Dixon served as Fat Joe’s so-called hypeman, a common figure in hip-hop who supports the artist by energizing the crowd and enhancing the overall performance. He also contributed as a lyricist and background vocalist on such hits as “Congratulations,” “Ice Cream,” and “Money Over Bitches.”
According to the complaint, he had an unrivaled vantage point to observe the rapper’s off-stage lifestyle and behavior.
Dixon is represented by Tyrone Blackburn, who is also the lead counsel in a high-profile case against Sean “Diddy” Combs.
In February 2024, Blackburn filed a lawsuit on behalf of Diddy accuser Lil Rodney, alleging s£xual ass@ult, s£xual harassment, and failure to pay his underling. One month later, Department of Homeland Security agents conducted raids at Combs’ mansions in Los Angeles and Miami.
Dixon states in the complaint that Fat Joe forced him “into humiliating situations, including s£x acts performed under duress and surveillance, accompanied by threats of abandonment in foreign countries if [he] refused compliance.” By his own estimation, Dixon states in the suit that “he was coerced into more than 4,000 sexual acts to maintain his standing within the Enterprise.”
Most shockingly, the suit claims that Dixon “personally witnessed [Fat Joe] engage in s£xual relations with children who were fifteen and sixteen years old” and lists three such Jane Does including a 16-year-old Dominican girl in New York, who “in exchange for cash, clothing, and payment of her cell phone bill … would [perform] oral sex and other s£xual acts” on the rapper. Minor Doe 2 is a Caucasian female and not a United States citizen.
“[Fat Joe] began having s£xual relations with Minor Doe 2 when she was 15 years old after a concert overseas. Defendant flew Minor Doe 2 to New York City and Miami, Florida, on multiple occasions. Due to Minor Doe 2’s body being adolescent and not fully formed, Defendant paid for her to get a Brazilian Butt Lift. Minor Doe 2 eventually left Defendant and is now married to a professional athlete,” the complaint says.
Minor Doe 3 is a Latina female who “met the defendant when she was 15 years old, turning 16.”
According to Dixon, “Defendant was in love with Minor Doe 3. He even contemplated leaving his wife. The Defendant paid all Minor Doe 3’s bills and even took her overseas to his tour stops. He brought her to Florida and would put her up in a condo he rented a few blocks from his house with his wife,” the lawsuit states.
“In a recorded conversation, Minor Doe 3 and her 15-year-old cousin describe in detail to Plaintiff how ‘inappropriate’ it was for Defendant, who was in his late 30s at the time, to be fawning over children.”
Fat Joe is represented by celebrity criminal attorney Joe Tacopina, who has defended everyone from A$AP Rocky and Donald Trump in high-profile cases.
Tacopina responded to the lawsuit, saying in a statement to Variety, “The lawsuit filed by Tyrone Blackburn and Terrance Dixon is a blatant act of retaliation, a desperate attempt to deflect attention from the civil suit we filed first, which exposed their coordinated scheme to extort Mr. Cartagena through lies, threats, and manufactured allegations.
“Law enforcement is aware of the extortionate demand at the heart of this scheme. The allegations against Mr. Cartagena are complete fabrications — lies intended to damage his reputation and force a settlement through public pressure. Mr. Cartagena will not be intimidated. We have taken legal action to expose this fraudulent campaign and hold everyone involved accountable,” the statement continued.
Defendants in the suit also include Pete “Pistol Pete” Torres and Richard “Rich Player” Jospitre, who the complaint refers to as key associates in Fat Joe’s “criminal enterprise,” asserting civil claims for violations of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (also known as civil RICO) as well as related violations under New York and Florida law including “unjust enrichment, quantum meruit, fraudulent concealment, fraud, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and money laundering.”
The suit additionally names Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, claiming that the company, which represents Fat Joe, knowingly participated in “concealing, transferring, and manipulating” Dixon’s authorship rights and royalty interests and sought to intimidate, harass and obstruct the hype man’s legitimate claims against Fat Joe, Torres, and Jospitre.
According to the lawsuit, the defendants “engaged in deliberate tax fraud schemes” in an effort to conceal their extensive wage theft, artificially inflate Dixon’s tax liabilities, expose him to unwarranted tax audits and penalties, and systematically obscure the exploited labor.
The complaint cites a whistleblower accountant who came forward last year as well as recorded phone calls that helped paint the picture of the alleged misdeeds.
The move comes after Fat Joe sued Dixon in April for slandering him on social media by claiming that the Bronx-born rapper who enjoys high-level political connections flew a 16-year-old girl across state lines for s£x.
That suit also named Dixon’s lawyer Tyrone Blackburn, claiming the pair tried to shake him down for a settlement.
