In the last decade or so, Trey Songz has been attached to one lawsuit or the other. The R&B singer has found himself caught in an endless series of legal battles over the past few years. It won’t be a stretch to say that these allegations have all but overshadowed his music career. The most recent of these, a lawsuit from two years ago was recently settled out of court and probably cost Trey Songz an ample sum of money.
What Did Trey Songz Do?
News of the lawsuit against Trey Songz first broke in February 2022. A woman, identified in court documents as “Jane Doe,” stepped forward with allegations against the “I Invented Sex” singer. She claimed that Trey Songz had allegedly sexually assaulted her at a party in 2016. This reportedly set off a chain of events that would unfold over the next few years before she eventually decided to sue.
In the lawsuit, she admitted having a consensual relationship with Trey Songz before the incident. According to her report, Songz invited her to his room upstairs at a house party in Los Angeles. Soon after, he allegedly proceeded to coerce her into having anal sex with him. However, when she kept turning him down, Songz allegedly became angry and got physically aggressive. Specifically, she alleged that Songz pinned her to the ground, tore off her clothes, and committed the act even as she pleaded with him to stop. The suit also included reports of a sexual assault exam conducted on the woman at an Emergency Care Unit in Burbank.
But his abuse didn't end there that night. Jane Doe also revealed that she had crossed paths with Trey Songz again in New York. She insists that she was subjected to further humiliation from the singer. According to her, Songz had resorted to name-calling and had even sicced his security guards on her.
The Lawsuit Against Trey Songz
At first, it seemed as if Trey Songz would be left off scot-free as Jane Doe's initial $20 million civil lawsuit hit a snag. His legal team argued that the claim had exceeded the statute of limitations. However, the woman in question refused to back down. She came back swinging again in 2023, upping the settlement costs to $25 million, and doubling down on her accusations. Additionally, she filed a lawsuit against Trey Songz's manager Kevin Liles.
As the news emerged, the public couldn't help but weigh in. Trey's fans, loyal to the core, struggled to reconcile the image of their favorite heartthrob with the troubling allegations swirling around him. Meanwhile, skeptics and gossip mongers had a field day dissecting every detail of the scandal, and how the allegations tie in so well with other assault allegations brought against him in the past.
Other Allegations
Trey Songz has been accused of sexual and physical assault on and off since at least 2012. In fact, at the time of the first lawsuit in 2022, Trey Songz was facing allegations from two different women. One of the allegations was from a woman identified as Jahaura Jeffries. This concerned a 2018 New Years Eve party incident that took place at rapper Diddy's home on Star Island.
Some of these allegations have also come from women in the public eye. The popular actress Keke Palmer has been vocal about her run-in with Songz in the past. She accused him of sexual harassment and intimidation in 2017 after he used a video clip she did not consent to recording in his music video for “Pick Up The Phone.” Palmer also claimed that she had to hide in a closet when his attempts allegedly began to get aggressive. WNBA player Dylan Gonzalez also came out in January 2022 to accuse Songz of allegedly assaulting her in a Las Vegas hotel.
The Settlement
Trey Songz’s legal team reached out to the courts not long after conditionally settling the lawsuit out of court. This occurred in April for an undisclosed amount. The legal document, as reported by Radar Online, read: “The settlement agreement conditions dismissal of this matter on the satisfactory completion of specified terms that are not to be performed within 45 days of the date of the settlement. A request for dismissal will be filed no later than June 10, 2024.” This means that the trial date which had previously been set for September 16, 2024 will now be vacated.
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