2Pac Producer Sues Over "Dear Mama" Royalties

Master Tee, one of the producers of 2Pac's 1995 single "Dear Mama", has filed a lawsuit over unpaid royalties generated by the song. The suit names fellow producer Tony Pizarro as the primary defendant. However, it also names Disney and the Hughes Brothers for their recent 2Pac docuseries of the same name. Master Tee claims that he did not realize he was owed publishing royalties until the series premiered in April.

“Master Tee was never properly and fully credited with his publishing copyright from the writing and creation of the music of ‘Dear Mama'. Instead, a self-serving group, led by an upstart music producer, Tony D. Pizarro, conspired with executives at Interscope Records and Universal Music Group, misappropriated Master Tee’s publishing copyright and Master Recording Copyright and assumed the identity of writer/publisher of ‘Dear Mama’s’ music,” Tee's attorneys wrote.

Dear Mama Gets Perfect Score, Award Nods

Dear Mama was a cultural phenomenon when it was released on FX earlier this year. Directed by Allen Hughes, the series explored the separate lives of and deep relationship between Pac and his mother, Afeni. It broke a premiere record when it was first released, with over 300,000 tuning in to watch the first episode. Furthermore, it would go on to achieve a perfect rating on Rotten Tomatoes. TIME's Judy Berman called the series, "One of the most thorough, sensitive portraits I’ve seen of an artist who has by now been eulogized for longer than he was alive. And of the remarkable woman who created him."

Now, as the musical awards season rolls around, Dear Mama is once again back in the conversation. 2Pac could win his first-ever Grammy nearly 30 years after his death thanks to the documentary. Pac is nominated for the 2024 Grammy for "Best Must Film Category". He will compete against David Bowie and Little Richard for the award. Pac had been previously nominated six times for various Grammys but has never won.

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