A Georgia promoter just learned the hard way that forging Hip-Hop artist contracts comes with a massive price tag.
Federal Judge John Adams ordered Louis Givens and his company, Shaw Management Enterprises, to pay $874,921 to Youngstown-based Esmail Entertainment, according to WKBN. The ruling came after Givens failed to respond to the lawsuit filed against him.
The case started in August 2025 when Esmail Entertainment sued Givens for fraud. The company specializes in booking concerts across Northeast Ohio and trusted Givens to secure major Hip-Hop talent for a September show at Cleveland’s Wolstein Center.
Givens provided contracts that looked legitimate for three major artists. The paperwork showed signatures from GloRilla, Moneybagg Yo, and Skilla Baby for the Cleveland concert.
Esmail Entertainment believed the documents were real and wired $282,000 to secure the performers.
The company also paid a $10,000 deposit to the Wolstein Center and started selling tickets to fans eager to see the lineup. Everything seemed legitimate until Givens made additional financial requests that raised red flags.
Esmail Entertainment decided to verify the bookings directly with GloRilla’s production team. That phone call changed everything.
GloRilla’s representatives confirmed she never signed any contract for the Cleveland show. Her team was actually preparing a cease-and-desist letter against Givens.
He claimed he hoped to book the real artists before anyone discovered his deception.
Givens only returned $20,000 of the $282,000 he received. The remaining funds disappeared, forcing Esmail Entertainment to cancel the entire concert and refund every ticket holder.
The cancellation cost the company an estimated $2.5 million in potential sales. Fans who bought tickets expecting to see GloRilla, Skilla Baby, and Moneybagg Yo received full refunds instead of the show they anticipated.
The federal court noted that Givens and Shaw Management received the lawsuit via certified mail in September but never filed any response. This resulted in a default judgment, which occurs when defendants fail to participate in legal proceedings.
Under the ruling, both Givens and Shaw Management Enterprises are jointly responsible for the full $874,921 amount. The three Hip-Hop artists were not named as defendants since they had no involvement in the fraudulent scheme.
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