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TEDDY RILEY SUES BLACKSTREET BANDMATE FOR $1MILLION


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I've heard that Chancey is difficult to work with.  Teddy, on the other hand seems to have difficulty of keeping his legendary groups consistently together.  Teddy seems to always have his heart in the right place though.  I think it's silly that he's the best known group member, but has been touring under BS2 since he can't use the name BLACKstreet.  Chancey may be the true vocalist, but only legit BLACKstreet fans are trying to see his version of BLACKstreet.

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Teddy Riley sues Blackstreet bandmate for $1M

March 18, 2015 | 2:28pm

 
 
Teddy Riley sues Blackstreet bandmate for $1M
Chauncey Hannibal and Teddy Riley Photo: Getty

He says it was a stone-cold double-cross — “No Diggity.”

​R​&B legend Teddy Riley claims his former bandmate stole the trademark for their group “Blackstreet” and commingled company funds to squirm out of child support and tax obligations, according to a scathing $1 million Brooklyn federal lawsuit.

Riley, 48, who has worked with music megastars from Robin Thicke to Snoop Dogg, accuses ​former partner ​Chauncey Hannibal of sneakily allowing a trademark renewal application to lapse so he could reapply for it on his own and reap financial benefits.

The case claims that Hannibal knowingly failed to alert Riley that the trademark for “Blackstreet” was due for renewal so he could pull off the theft.

Once the trademark expired, Hannibal secretly applied for it on his own, papers state. “Hannibal trademarked Blackstreet to gain economic advantage for himself,” the suit states.

“Defendant Hannibal told Plaintiff Riley that he was going to add him to the illegal and fraudulently filed trademark registration but never did as evidenced by the second trademark registration filed by defendant Hannibal,” court papers state.

Riley claims that he even forked over $90,000 to Hannibal to sort out the trademark fiasco but was never repaid. The loss of the documentation will cost Riley more than $1 million, he claims in the suit.

In addition, Hannibal also sought to get out of IRS and child support obligations by commingling personal and company cash, the suit states.

“Hannibal was using the V​i​rginia corporate entity to commingle funds and secrete assets away from the purview of state child support authorities and tax officials from the IRS, which he was legally obligated for,” court papers state.

The former partners, who founded Blackstreet together in 1992, have been warring for years over claims to the band that still performs across the country. Hannibal has blasted Riley in the past for performing as Blackstreet with other bandmates.

​They had a huge hit with “No Diggity” in 1996, reaching No. 1 on the Billboard charts​.

The group is slated to perform at the refurbished Kings Theater in Brooklyn on March 28.

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it's a shame that so many legendary groups have conflict like this

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