Hip-hop mogul Damon Dash is learning that filing for personal insolvency doesn’t automatically shield business holdings from creditors, as a federal judge ruled this week that the public sale of his company’s intellectual property can proceed despite his September declaration of more than $25 million in liabilities.
Dash Has To Sell Assets
Magistrate Judge Robert Lehrburger determined Wednesday that while Dash’s individual enforcement proceedings remain paused following his Sept. 4 filing, assets belonging to his company, Poppington LLC—including film rights, copyrights, and various business holdings—are fair game for auction, according to AllHipHop.com.
The distinction proves crucial: corporate property previously transferred to U.S. Marshals falls outside the protective umbrella of personal insolvency proceedings, leaving Dash’s creative catalog vulnerable to the highest bidder.
“Enforcement proceedings are not stayed as to Defendant Poppington LLC,” Judge Lehrburger wrote in his decision. “Public auction of Poppington’s films and copyrights may proceed. Further, public auction of Dash’s assets that were assigned to the U.S. Marshal before September 4, may proceed. Assignment is a transfer of ownership.”
The ruling represents the latest chapter in a protracted legal battle between Dash and entertainment financier Christopher Brown, who has secured multiple judgments against the entrepreneur.
Brown won an $850,000 verdict in one case involving Muddy Waters Pictures LLC, which alleged Dash hijacked the film project “Dear Frank/The List.”
A separate $4 million defamation default judgment arose from comments Dash made about Brown during an episode of “Earn Your Leisure.” Brown has been instrumental in orchestrating two separate auctions targeting Dash’s holdings, including the recent focus on Poppington’s catalog and a 2024 sale involving Roc-A-Fella Records assets.
The Roc-A-Fella situation illustrates how deep Dash’s financial troubles run.
The legendary hip-hop label he co-founded with Jay-Z and Kareem “Biggs” Burke in 1996 was sold to partner Def Jam Music Group in 2004 for $10 million. When forced to liquidate his remaining 33% stake to satisfy a separate $823,000 judgment owed to filmmaker Josh Webber, Dash lost his final connection to the empire he helped build. The Webber case stemmed from a 2016 dispute over “Dear Frank,” where the producer accused Dash of seizing footage and remarketing the project without permission.
Court documents require Dash to submit updates on his insolvency case every six months and immediately notify the court if circumstances change that might lift enforcement protections.
His financial obligations reportedly include hundreds of thousands in unpaid child support across multiple cases—one judge ordered him to pay over $800,000 in 2019—plus tax liens from both state and federal authorities.
Even assets held in his wife’s name aren’t safe from creditors.
Raquel Horn is listed as sole owner of Dame Dash Studios, which oversees streaming service America Nu, children’s brand Dusko Goes to Space, and lifestyle website CEOByDash. Yet a court-appointed receiver can liquidate these holdings due to Dash’s control through The Dash Group. Author and filmmaker Edwyna Brooks, who won a $78,289 judgment against Dash in 2020 for unauthorized distribution of her book adaptation “Mafietta,” claims the debt has ballooned to nearly $100,000 with interest.
Adding to his mounting legal challenges, Dash escalated his friction with The Breakfast Club in 2025 by publicly declaring he would sue the show and its hosts — including Charlamagne Tha God — for defamation following his most recent interview.
Dash contends that during a heated on-air exchange, remarks were made implying he wore “dirty sneakers,” which he asserts are false and damaging to his reputation. He reportedly sent demand letters seeking $200 million, a staggering figure given his current financial circumstances.
Dash’s trajectory from a reported $50 million net worth in 2013 to current estimates around $100,000 serves as a cautionary tale about how quickly fortunes can reverse. The irony of threatening a nine-figure lawsuit while owing tens of millions hasn’t been lost on social media observers, where reactions range from sympathy for a fallen mogul to skepticism about his legal strategy moving forward.
