Rob Fusari – Proof is Everything

Published on March 19, 2010 by the boss · No Comments

Stories of stolen ideas, songs, royalties, and what have you are a dime a dozen in show business. In the latest, Lady Gaga is being sued for $30.5 million lawsuit by Rob Fusari, an NJ record producer who says he was Gaga’s mentor and co-wrote her songs, invented her stage name and helped her get a record deal.

Rob Fusari also has credits on Destiny’s Child’s Bootylicious and told Billboard in a February 2010 interview how he got no credit for his idea for that song:

I remember watching Barbara Walters interview Beyoncé about “Bootylicious,” and she told Barbara about how she came up with the idea for the track. And I was just like, “What?” I called Mathew – which was a big mistake; I got emotional, and I apologized after – but I called Mathew and said, “Mathew, like, why?”

After meeting future phenomenon Lady Gaga, then known only as Stefani Germanotta, in March 2006, Fusari was less than impressed with the tiny girl but changed his opinion, after hearing her play piano in his Livingston, NJ studio. He nurtured and mentored her every day for several months, according to his lawsuit. They even became involved in a personal relationship for a while, then Gaga hit the big time and Rob found himself out in the cold. Fusari is now seeking to obtain 20 percent of song royalties and 15 percent of merchandising revenue that he feels he is rightfully owed. He was paid some money for his efforts, but according to his calculations (if the $30.5 million asked for in the lawsuit is any indication), the $611,000 he was offered “in full satisfaction” ain’t cutting in and he’s not going gently into that good night, as he did in the Beyonce incident.

Many such claims are dismissed as sour grapes and particularly where handshake agreements were in place. But, Fusari must have brought his attorney some good kind of proof to be going after this many millions. Just figure that attorneys usually make a demand for 2 or 3 times what they really think the case is worth, so that would mean they’ve got proof enough to get them some millions, if not a whole 30.5.