Rappers Snoop Dogg and Master P are suing Post Foods and Walmart, accusing them of intentionally leaving the musicians’ cereal off store shelves and hiding it in stockrooms to sabotage it.
Calvin Broadus, better known as Snoop Dogg, and Percy Miller, commonly known as Master P, rejected a proposal by Post Foods to buy the cereal outright, according to the lawsuit filed Tuesday in Dakota County, Minnesota. After they eventually entered into an agreement in 2022, Post did not treat Snoop Cereal “equally as its own brand,” even though it sold well when it was placed on store shelves, the suit says.
The rappers began Broadus Foods in 2022 in hope of “inspiring and creating opportunities” for minority-owned food products, according to the suit. A big product under Broadus Foods is Snoop Cereal, sold in flavors that include “Fruity Hoops with Marshmallows” “Frosted Drizzlers” and “Cinnamon Toasteez.”
Snoop Dogg and Master P approached Post Consumer Brands, which the lawsuit calls a “breakfast juggernaut,” seeking a partnership. They strived to get Snoop Cereal in stores where Post cereals were sold, the suit says.
After talks with Post began, the company initially offered to buy Snoop Cereal outright, Snoop Dogg and Master P rejected because it would go against their company’s goal to promote minority-owned businesses, according to the suit. Agreeing to sell the brand would also stop the artists from leaving the company to their families as a legacy business, the suit says.
On Dec. 13, 2022, Broadus Foods did sign a contract with Post to take over all aspects of production of Snoop Cereal, including manufacturing, packaging, retail, sales, distribution and transportation, the suit says.
As part of the agreement, it says, Broadus Foods and Post would split profits, and Post agreed to “treat Snoop Cereal as one of its own brands” and distribute it to “the major retailers including Walmart, Target, Kroger, and Amazon.”
“Because the largest…
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