Iggy Azalea Blasts UMG Over Unpaid Royalties, Says She’s Owed Millions

Iggy Azalea has taken to social media to accuse Universal Music Group (UMG) of failing to pay her royalties from international sales, alleging that the company owes her millions in back payments.

The Australian rapper did not hold back in her criticism of the music industry giant, calling out their alleged mistreatment of artists and threatening legal action to recover what she claims is rightfully hers.

On Saturday (March 15), Azalea, who rose to fame with hits like “Fancy” and “Black Widow,” made a series of explosive statements on X, revealing that despite her global success, she has never received a single royalty payment from UMG for sales outside of the United States.

“Crazy how in my entire career I was never paid a single royalty by Universal Music for anything outside of the USA. They owe me millions of dollars in back pay, that they technically stole from me, as per my contract I am due payment. The amount owed is in the 8-figure range,” she wrote.

The Grammy Award nominated rapper further disclosed that UMG recently attempted to settle the matter with a sum that she deemed laughably low given the scale of what she is allegedly owed.

“Last week they tried to respond to my lawyer and offer me a settlement of 18k. I’m told this is a normal response from their lawyers and after appearing in court they end up paying millions as they’re supposed to.”

Beyond her personal dispute, Azalea broadened her critique to condemn UMG’s overall treatment of artists. She accused the company of exploiting musicians for profit without properly compensating them for their work.

“I’d like to publicly say that I think Universal Music are criminals who actively take advantage of ALL of their artists in perpetuity for their own gain … Universal music really needs to do better in their treatment of the artists who quite literally earn them millions via intellectual property they had zero part in creating. Yuck.”

In one of her most fiery statements, Azalea made it clear that she would not back down in her fight for unpaid earnings, explicitly warning the company that she would take whatever legal measures necessary to hold them accountable.

“Universal music mark my words you ugly bi**h – You will pay me what’s owed.” She also noted that her battle with UMG has been ongoing for “over two years and counting.”

As of now, Universal Music Group has not publicly responded to Azalea’s allegations. However, her claims echo long-standing criticisms from artists who have accused major record labels of withholding rightful earnings through opaque accounting practices and contractual loopholes.

UMG is currently in a legal battle with rap star Drake concerning the music behemoth’s alleged bias in their release and promotion of Kendrick Lamar’s chart-topping diss track “Not Like Us.”

Rock group Limp Bizkit have also sued Universal in the past, alleging unpaid royalties due to “systematic” efforts to cheat artists out of proper compensation.

See Iggy Azalea’s X posts below.