Ari Lennox Claims She Was Scammed By Two Record Labels

Ari Lennox is sharing her truth about how she felt she was taken advantage of by two separate record labels.

In a new audio clip, Lennox claims she was “scammed” by labels because of her naivete in the music industry.

Ari Lennox Speaks:

“The first label I signed to, I think it was a scam,” Lennox explained. “I don’t even think it was real because when I signed to Interscope, they literally disappeared. They literally disappeared. It makes me feel like all them years, I was stressing. Crayton Corporation. Crayon Corporation. I feel like they got me because I was so scared.”

Lennox also revealed that she had a successful audition for “American Idol” but had to decline the opportunity to go to Hollywood because of her contractual obligations.

“Like I said, I’ve told y’all this story before. I tried out for  “American Idol.” Every time I got to Hollywood, I got my ticket to Hollywood — I was afraid to lie. So, I told them, ‘Hey, I am under contract,” she recalled. “And then ‘American Idol’ was like, ‘Well, there’s nothing we can do.”

“And rightfully so if I was already under contract. So I guess I’m grateful everything went down the way it did because I don’t think I would’ve performed well on ‘American Idol,” Lennox added.

The “ Pressure” songstress also claimed to have been finessed by an unnamed man who offered to help her get out of her deal.

“We’re cool now, but he did scam me,” she said. “I thought he was helping me get out of this other situation and now, I just feel like there was never a situation.”

To get out of the contract, Lennox said she wrote “a nice little check” to the man so she could sign to Interscope, but she never had any communication with the label after the transaction.  She said she was told that she was on the hook for between $50,000 and $100,000 and the toxic situation caused her to be depressed for five years.

“I was so depressed. I wound up signing with the producer and that went negatively because he never gave me the mp3s […] They would’ve all got leaked, but still,” Lennonx shared. “He was very controlling in that way.”

Thankfully, her label drama is a thing of the past as she is one of the flagship artists of J. Cole’s Dreamville label.

Her new single “Smoke,” is set to drop on Oct. 18.