R&B crooner Tyrese is still dealing with the fallout from his supercharged interview on “The Breakfast Club,” particularly as it relates to the falling out with co-host DJ Envy. Now, Tyrese’s potential problems could multiply due to an outburst on the syndicated morning radio show about an acclaimed director.
Prolific director Bryan Barber has filed a $10 million lawsuit against the Baby Boy and Fast & Furious star for assailing his “character and reputation.” In legal documents obtained by The Blast, Barber says Tyrese falsely stated that “Barber took Gibson’s [interview] footage and refused to give it back; Gibson paid [Barber] $35,000 total to film the interview footage; and [said] Barber also stole footage from two other public figures — [including] Big Boi and Dallas Austin.”
Tyrese said on the radio show he hired Barber to film a “Barbara Walters” type interview that was going to be conducted by Charlamagne Tha God at Tyrese’s house. Afterward, the plan was for Tyrese and Barber to “split [on a 50/50 basis] the revenue derived from the streaming and/or other distribution,” the legal documents read.
Tyrese said Barber kept the footage and refused to give it to the singer. However, Barber vehemently counters that claim, saying that Tyrese asked Barber not to release the footage in order to protect his reputation.
Barber also stated in the documents that “Gibson refused to adhere to the previous 50/50 revenue split that he and Barber previously negotiated for the CTG Interview.”
Barber rose to Hollywood prominence when he wrote and directed OutKast, Terrence Howard and Paula Patton in the film Idlewild. Prior to that, the Grammy-nominated Barber directed visually spectacular videos such as OutKast’s “Hey Ya!” and “The Way You Move” and worked with musical A-listers like Beyoncé, Justin Timberlake, Kelly Clarkson, Christina Aguilera, Mary J. Blige, Dr. Dre, Kanye West, Janet Jackson, and Wiz Khalifa, according to IMDb.
Tyrese’s allegedly defamatory statements impugned the reputation of Barber and his company, Pivot Originals. Barber said, “the success of Pivot Originals hinges largely on establishing and maintaining trust with original content creators.”
Listen to the entirety of “The Breakfast Club” interview. Tyrese transitions into a conversation about Barber at approximately the 43-minute mark.
