Flo Rida Wins $82 Million Lawsuit Against Celsius

Tramar Lacel Dillard, professionally known as Flo Rida, left this week $82.6 million richer after winning a lawsuit against energy drink company Celsius, which was found to have violated a contract with the famed hip-hop artist and allegedly even fraudulently kept information from him.

IN MEMORIAM 2022: 100 GREAT CELEBRITIES WHO DIED IN 2022

The decision came almost two years after Flo Rida’s company first took legal action in May 2021.

For four years from 2014 to 2018, he served as a brand ambassador for Celsius, helping with brand promotions and awareness campaigns. His team, which included attorney John Uustal, noted that the rapper’s contributions led to an expanded product portfolio that featured a powder product and the boosted-performance drink series known as Celsius Heat.

They said that a loosely worded contract prevented Flo Rida from receiving the money that he felt he deserved.

“Basically, I helped birth this company, and all we was looking for was some trustworthy people who acted as if they were family,” the rapper told The Associated Press. “And then when it comes down to the success of today, they just forgot about me.”

Celsius’s lawyers, however, argued that the brand’s peak success came after the endorsement deal with him, attributing their spike in growth and audience engagement to other partnerships.

Its stock was worth only about $1 on the NASDAQ Exchange when Flo Rida entered the deal around four years ago, but it currently sells for $106.

Despite the decision, the rapper, who had played and rapped along to his own music during the court case, maintains that he will continue to work for the company.

“I’m still an owner in the company,” Flo Rida said. “And when you basically planted the seed for something that is successful, you can’t help but have unconditional love.”