Suge Knight, Kanye West: Lawsuit, Guns and Money

It appears that Kanye West and the infamous Marion "Suge" Knight are getting together to work out legal troubles. Suge, who's been rumored to be having financial problems, is pushing for legal remedies for a shooting that took place at a Miami Beach party held by West. Knight argues that West didn't provide enough security at the party.

Knight said that he was disappointed that the two couldn't settle the issue in their first face-to-face encounter. "I figured I could sit him down, man to man, and get this resolved," Knight said after a six-hour meeting. "I'm disappointed."

West claims that he wasn't involved in the security arrangements, according to his attorney Marc Brumer. No one was arrested in the shooting. The party was attended by a pack of A-list celebs, including Eddie Murphy, Jessica Alba, the Black Eyed Peas and Paris Hilton (who seems to be at every party).

The shooting took place in 2005 and at least six shots were fired, according to police. In the shooting, Knight broke his femur and was forced to pay $200,000 in medical bills, according to his attorney.

"My whole thing is: I'm not here to put nobody behind bars," said Knight.

"It's time for more positive now," he added.

Knight is asking for more than $1 million from the lawsuit and claims that he would have to share the proceeds with bankruptcy lawyers and the IRS if he wins. Here are some of my thoughts after reading about the shooting and lawsuit between Knight and West:

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The Business of Black Music

It's like the old saying goes: there no show without the business. Check out 40 people who have contributed greatly to the industry of black music.

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The Business of Black Music

It's like the old saying goes: there no show without the business. Check out 40 people who have contributed greatly to the industry of black music.

The Business of Black Music

Russell Simmons
When you look up the term "hip-hop" in the dictionary, a photo of Russell Simmons should accompany the art form's definition. As the co-founder of Def Jam Records, the former artists' manager made history with the most storied rap record label whose stable of talent included the biggest and the best, including Public Enemy, The Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, Method Man, Redman, Foxy Brown and countless others. Simmons' innovative and entrepreneurial spirit took hip-hop beyond the realms of making records into the fashion, television, film and finance arenas. The Queens, NY native even brought the brand to Broadway and garnered raves. Nowadays, he's using the power of hip-hop in politics with the Hip-Hop Action Network.

The Business of Black Music

Bob Johnson
Hailing from Hickory, Mississippi, Bob Johnson (born Robert L. Johnson is a force to be reckon with in the entertainment and sports world. The founder and former Black Entertainment Television CEO banked a cool $1billion once he sold the company to media giant Viacom in 2000, making him the first African-American billionaire. Since stepping down as BET chairman in 2005, Johnson is currently the chairman of RLJ Development and part-owner of the Charlotte Bobcats NBA team alongside Michael Jordan and rapper Nelly.

The Business of Black Music

Ashford & Simpson
The New York City-based duo made history as a songwriting duo behind songs for Ray Charles, Diana Ross, Gladys Knight & The Pips, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, and many others. Nikolas Ashford and his wife Valerie Simpson also recorded hits of their own, including 'Solid,' 'Count Your Blessings' and 'Is It Still Good To Ya.' Their publishing catalog is worth gold nowadays and they keep the music alive every week as the proprietors of their own New York City nightclub, The Sugar Bar.

The Business of Black Music

Tony Gray
When record companies need to make an impact at black radio, the one man to call is Tony Gray, a world-class radio programming expert based out of Chicago. Hailing from a small town near St. Louis, Gray started out as an intern at St. Louis' KSLQ and worked his way up to working his magic at New York City's WRKS, Philadelphia's WUSL and Detroit's WDRQ -- all stations that went to #1 during his tenure as programming executive. Via his Gray Communications shingle, the dapper mover and shaker provides market monitoring, talent critiques, media analysis and programming evaluation.

The Business of Black Music

Sylvia Rhone
As the president of Motown Records, the former radio promotions expert oversees the careers of Lil' Wayne, India.Arie, Marques Houston, Ja Rule and music legend Stevie Wonder. Before taking on her current post, the Wharton School of Business graduate made history as the highest ranking black woman in the record business, as chief of The Elektra Entertainment Group, where she molded the careers of EnVogue, Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott, Gerald Levert, Keith Sweat and Busta Rhymes.

The Business of Black Music

Swizz Beatz
Crafting tracks for the likes of Whitney Houston, Mary J. Blige, Jay-Z, Lil Wayne and Jay-Z is a long way from being the resident track master at the edgy rap label, Ruff Ryders, in the 1990s. Legally known as Kasseem Dean, the Bronx, NY native is not only a sought-after, award-winning producer, he's also tried his hand at rapping via his Full Surface imprint.

The Business of Black Music

Don Cornelius
With his groundbreaking variety show, 'Soul Train,' the Chicago native will go down in history for having produced the longest running show of its kind in the history of television. Images of beautiful black people enjoying the sounds of soul is what the visionary was able to put out to the masses way before booty-shaking music videos became commonplace on black entertainment networks.

The Business of Black Music

Stephen Hill
Considered one of the most influential executives in the music industry, Stephen Hill has been President of Music Programming & Specials for BET Networks since November 2008. His responsibilities include managing and directing the creation, development and production of all music programming and specials including '106 & Park,' 'The BET Honors,' 'Spring Bling,' 'Rip The Runway,' 'The BET Awards' and 'The BET Hip-Hop Awards.'Born in Southeast Washington, D.C., Hill got his start in college radio-- then going on to transform Boston's WILD-AM. He also executive produced the nationally-syndicated 'Tom Joyner Morning Show.'

The Business of Black Music

Dr. Dre
As a member of the seminal gangsta rap group N.W.A. , Dr. Dre (along with Ice Cube and the late Eazy-E) helped put west coast hip-hop on the map. From those wild times, the Compton, CA native (born Andre Romelle Young) morphed into his own brand when he released the best-selling album, 'The Chronic,' in 1992. Known as one of the co-founders of Deathrow Records, Dr. Dre crafted hits for Snoop Dogg and Tupac Shakur before launching his own Aftermath Entertainment. Though he's not rapping as much as he used to, he's still making hits for artists such as Eminem, Eve, Mary J. Blige, Gwen Stefani, Nas, Busta Rhymes and 50 Cent.

The Business of Black Music

1) Can we grow up please? Didn't all this stupidity end in the 1990s? Are the old rappers also shooting at each other as much as the young ones? Can't hip-hop be a simple and safe industry, like pop music? While I fully expect that Suge and Kanye weren't the ones carrying guns, we all know that both of these men have been responsible for some ridiculous behavior in the past. Maybe we can all chill out and leave the stupid stuff to the 18-year-olds.

2) Deep pockets always get swiped: It's no surprise that Kanye would be sued, even if he did little to cause the shooting. People always go after the deepest pockets.

3) Is Suge Knight really working to be positive? I sincerely hope so. There was a time when Suge had more power in the industry than Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, Tupac and Dr. Dre. It was incredibly unfortunate that he chose to muddle his natural genius and business sense by mixing it with craziness and nonsense. Suge Knight should be at the top of the hip-hop industry right now.

4) When will hip-hop become normal? I understand carrying a certain degree of swag with creative performance, but hip-hop is crippled by a need for the artist to maintain a superhuman amount machismo, a high propensity toward violence, an embrace of drugs and alcohol, and promiscuous sexual behavior. I long for the day when a rapper can be a normal, educated and empowered black man, and we can still buy his records. It is for that reason that I cheer for artists like Drake, who might be hyper-commercialized, but at least he's not bragging about being strapped.

Personally, I'm tired of reading about rappers shooting each other. It's time to move into the 21st century.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce's commentary delivered to your e-mail, please click here.

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