The tone appears to have shifted in the brief feud between rapper and actor Xzibit and ViacomCBS after the host of the popular reality series “Pimp My Ride” claimed the network edited his music out of several episodes to avoid paying the “My Name” rapper.
The “Best of Things” emcee told TMZ he’s “willing to have a conversation” with the network and that he respects the company and hopes to do more things with the brand “in the future.”
He told reporters, “They didn’t pay me a lot in order to actually host the show—I didn’t own the IP. But they did build a show off my back, and people when they talk about ‘Pimp My Ride,’ they associate it with me.”
Xzibit claimed that he was told he’d get a certain percentage once the series started to show progress and that the company would use his music and pay him for the usage, but this reportedly never happened. The rapper also said fine print later revealed that his name and likeness also were included in the deal.
“Never in a million never did I think that they would go back and being as petty as taking my music out—editing out my music out of every episode that went into syndication.”
The rapper also told TMZ that his music was removed from episodes beyond season one, and his face was also removed from DVD boxes after season one.
Earlier this week, the “Get Your Walk On” rapper did not hold his tongue when addressing his former employer. The rapper attached two documents of the station, revealing the franchise had made over $16 million since it premiered in 2004. The show ran for six seasons before it was canceled. The host was subsequently forced to file for bankruptcy.
“While I’m at it, hey @viacom_intl why is it you’ve made millions off the show #PimpMyRide I carried on my back and and found ways to cut me out?” he wrote in an Instagram post.
The 47-year-old entertainer continued, “Like saying I would get percentages of all merch sold let alone streaming(which wasn’t even in the contract) and putting in the fine print ‘with my name and likeness.’ ”
The “Front to Back” emcee alleged ViacomCBC then proceeded “to take my ‘name and likeness’ off of ALL the merchandise including dvd sales after season 1?” He added, “To top that you guys went back and EDITED all of my music out of ALL entire seasons in order to avoid paying me for my publishing. Let’s talk about worldwide syndication!!!! Wow.”
Xzibit noted that his “number is still the same. Hit me up. Or…… Can anybody hit me with a law firm who isn’t afraid of Viacom to get me right.”
Fans appeared to side with the Hollywood star, including one supporter who wrote, “That’s bullsh-t. You single handedly are the ONLY reason anybody even watched that damn show,” before adding, “Damn these corporations get on my last effin nerve.”
