Ricky Martin is being sued by his former manager and it doesn’t look good for the star…
Now, Ricky Martin has been dubbed the ‘king of Latin pop’ in the past, with hits such as ‘Livin’ la Vida Loca’ and ‘She Bangs’ etched into our childhood memories.
But it hasn’t always been easy for the star…
The Puerto Rican-born singer-songwriter has been in the public eye since he was very young, first gaining fame in his home country for TV commercials.
He then tried his hand at music, after developing a love for it at a young age. Martin auditioned for the popular boy band Menudo, and after being rejected multiple times, he finally got in at the age of twelve.
After years of traveling and creating music with the group, he finally went on to pave his own way in the music industry.
After being noticed by a Sony Discos executive, Martin was then offered his first solo music recording contract.
This propelled him into the spotlight, and he went on to release his debut solo album, Ricky Martin, on November 26, 1991.
It was an instant hit and even reached number 5 on the US Billboard Latin Pop Albums chart, selling a whopping 500,000 copies worldwide.
However, his popularity only carried on growing as time went on, and in 1998, it came out that Martin had made his first-ever English album, also titled Ricky Martin, making its debut in 1999.
Amazingly, this album thrust Martin to number one on the US Billboard 200 chart, becoming the first male Latin star to ever debut at the top.
With all that fame, you’d think Martin would have developed a pretty entitled personality, however that just wasn’t the case.
And many publications spoke out about his kind nature, with The Hollywood Reporter describing Martin as “one of the most acclaimed and admired creative artists ever.”
However, not everyone buys into his humble persona.
Martin’s former talent manager, Rebecca Drucker has opened up about working with the star.
She claims that he still hasn’t paid her $3 million in commissions that he allegedly owes her.
Drucker also claimed that she helped Martin recover his career during a time when his “personal and professional life [was] in absolute turmoil.”
“For years, she protected Martin from the consequences of his reckless indiscretions. Rebecca did so not only because she was his manager, but also because she thought that Martin was her dear friend,” according to the lawsuit.
In the lawsuit, Drucker explained that she first met Martin in the 2000s, when his career was really hitting off. They soon built a close friendship, and after a decade of knowing Martin, she started working for him in 2013.
However, “after a particularly ugly incident in Dubai involving Martin and his representative José Vega and other disputes,” she decided to step down as his manager in February 2018, according to the lawsuit.
Drucker claims this is when Martin’s “career took a nosedive” and he apparently “begged” her to come back and carry on her position as his talent manager.
In May 2020, she finally accepted his plea, under one condition… that she would receive a 5% commission.
According to the lawsuit, Drucker allegedly “resurrected” his career “in every way,” thanks to her hard work and substantial contacts in the music industry.
On top of his career, Drucker also admitted she had to help Martin with a lot of other problems in his personal life…
Drucker was apparently “forced to deal with a litany of Martin’s personal issues, such as problems with the nanny he hired to take care of his children, Martin’s nonpayment of taxes, and his substance abuse, among other issues.”
Drucker alleges she also helped protect him from a pretty big scandal…
“In one example among many, in or around September 2020, Martin received a letter from a highly-respected litigation attorney in Los Angeles, California. Rebecca stood next to Martin as they read the legal letter for the first time.
“In that letter, the attorney threatened to publicly file a legal complaint against Martin if he did not pay money to resolve a claim against him alleged by his attorney’s client,” the lawsuit states.
“After reading the legal letter, Martin collapsed. He expressed his extreme fear to Rebecca that if this threat were carried out, the consequences to Martin would be catastrophic.”
Drucker “quickly brought in one of the top defense attorneys in Los Angeles” and “needless to say, the claim ultimately never saw the light of day,” the lawsuit states.
“Martin emerged unscathed and proceeded with his professional resurgence. Once again, Rebecca saved Martin’s career with the exceptional managerial and advisory services that she provided to him during this ordeal.”
However, despite her help, Drucker claimed Martin treated her poorly.
The lawsuit said Martin “fostered a toxic work environment wherein he constantly mistreated, manipulated, and lied to Rebecca.”
Everything came to a head in 2021, when after a “communication breakdown” Drucker resigned, however, she later came back, this time for a 10% commission.
But it clearly wasn’t working out, as not even a year later, she resigned again.
And now, the talent agent is seeking upwards of 3 million dollars for the work she did while employed under Martin.
According to the lawsuit, when Ducker asked to be paid what she claims she rightfully earned, “they outright refused to pay her anything,” which she called “the ultimate betrayal.”
