Usher Files suit Against Producer Bryan-Michael Cox, Alleging $700,000 Unreturned Loan
ATLANTA – R&B superstar Usher has filed a lawsuit in Fulton County Superior Court against music producer Bryan-Michael Cox and two others, claiming $700,000 remains unpaid from a $1.7 million loan provided for a planned Atlanta restaurant and lounge.
According to the complaint, Usher wired the full $1.7 million in January into a trust account held by attorney Alcide Honoré.The funds were intended to assist Cox, along with partners Keith Thomas and Charles Hughes, in acquiring a $6.3 million property on piedmont Road for a venture named ”Homage ATL.”
Usher’s legal team states that Cox’s group repaid $1 million later that summer, but the remaining $700,000 was never returned. The suit alleges Honoré “all but admitted” the funds were used for other purposes, quoting him as saying repayment “was not that easy” because the money had been “deployed for ‘other purposes.'”
The lawsuit includes seven counts – four against Honoré and three against Cox, Thomas, and Hughes – seeking at least $700,000 in damages each, plus interest, attorney fees, and punitive relief. Usher is demanding a total of $4.9 million.
Cox responded to the lawsuit Monday with a statement, describing himself as a “passive minority shareholder” in the business venture and stating, “I was not a participant in the business transaction and have no involvement in the ongoing legal process.” He also emphasized his long-standing friendship with Usher, adding, “my 27-year friendship with Usher remains fully intact.”
Honoré told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution he had not yet reviewed the complaint and deemed it “premature for him to comment on specific claims.” Efforts to reach Thomas and Hughes for comment were unsuccessful.
Usher and Cox have a decades-long professional relationship, co-writing hits such as ”Burn” and “U got It Bad.” Court papers indicate Usher declined to become a formal investor in the project,rather offering financial backing as a loan through the trust account.
As of today, no formal response has been filed publicly by the defendants. The outcome of the case coudl possibly influence the structuring of future business ventures between celebrities and their collaborators.
