Hindustan Times (Lucknow) - Hindustan Times (Lucknow) - Live
JAYZ SUMMONED OVER BIZ DEALINGS
Rap star JayZ had sold his clothing line for a huge sum more than a decade ago, but he is now required to testify in a probe into the buyer company’s financial results
Rap superstar and music producer Jay-Z must explain why he’s dodging a subpoena (a writ ordering a person to attend a court) rather than answering questions related to a financial investigation of a consumer brand company that bought his Rocawear clothing line, a judge has said.
The rapper must say next week why he’s ignoring a February subpoena from the Securities and Exchange Commission, US District Judge Paul G Gardephe said in an order publicly filed on Thursday. Without a sufficient excuse, Jay-Z will be ordered to appear before the Commission in Washington on May 11 and will be required to answer questions for as many days as it takes, the judge said.
A statement issued on behalf of Jay-Z by one of his representatives said that the entertainer had no role in the financial reporting for the Iconix Brand Group or its other actions as a public company. Jay-Z sold his Rocawear apparel brand and other assets to Iconix for $204 million more than a decade ago. The statement said that the singer was a private citizen “who should not be involved in this matter”.
In its court papers, the Securities and Exchange Commission said that Jay-Z and Iconix had continued some business partnerships even after the sale of Rocawear. The Commission said that it was investigating Iconix to learn if federal securities laws were violated when the company reported financial results, including for its Rocawearrelated assets.
The Commission described Jay-Z, whose hits include 99 Problems and Empire State of Mind, as an “important witness” who has “defied two lawful subpoenas”.
The Commission said that it wanted Jay-Z to reveal the value of the Rocawear trademark and his involvement with the brand after the sale to Iconix. It also said that it wanted to learn about Jay-Z’s other companies that did business with Iconix and his awareness of the knowledge and intent of other people who knew of transactions involving Jay-Z, his affiliated companies and Iconix.