Drake Fires Back at "Marvins Room" Suit, Says He Owes Self-Proclaimed Cowriter Nothing

E! Online

Mar. 20, 2012

By Natalie Finn

The rapper has fired back at a woman he admits to having a “personal relationship” with that was neither “romantic” nor business,” who claims she helped cut the tune “Marvins Room” and received squat for her efforts.

In court documents filed in response to her lawsuit and obtained by E! News, Drake insists that he did give her what she deserved…

He mentioned her name in the liner notes for Take Care!

Ericka Lee sued Drake on Feb. 2 for a cut of the royalties from the popular song, insisting she helped write and compose “Marvins Room,” and recorded both the hook and a spoken-word monologue that can be heard on the track.

Drake “denies that [Lee] ever had any rights to co-writer royalties, and denies the characterization that [Lee] was ‘excluded' from something she had no right to,” states the rapper's nine-page response. Lee is “not a co-writer of the song and…she is not entailed to writer credit and money.”

View Drake's response

Lee's attorney, Douglas Johnson, tells E! News that Drake's response is “total nonsense.”

“It's just not true and I am very surprised by his statements,” he said, adding, “This will all be taken care of in court.”

Johnson said that the case is still in the discovery, evidence-gathering  phase and that depositions will be taken eventually.

—Reporting by Baker Machado