Big Pun’s Widow Begs Judge To Free Him From Fat Joe’s Bad Contract

Big Pun’s Estate Suing Fat Joe & Music Publisher Jelly’s Jams For Back Royalties & Damages

Big Pun’s widow said the music publisher who cut a deal with Fat Joe to profit off of Pun’s songs hasn’t paid her a dime of an estimated $2 million in royalties.

Liza Rios, the widow of Big Pun, aka Christopher Rios, told a federal judge through her lawyer Lita Rosario that Pun was supposed to get the lion’s share of his royalties under the deal between Jelly’s Jams and Pun’s mentor Fat Joe. But Rios said she hasn’t seen any royalty statements or received any of her late husband’s money – not even profits from his hit “Still Not A Player.”

“Now his wife and children have lost their homes, have lost everything,” Rosario said. “75 percent of that money was supposed to be paid to my client.”

Rios and lawyer Rosario were in Manhattan Federal Court Wednesday to ask Judge George Daniels to let Pun out of the contract between Fat Joe and Jelly’s Jams, so that Rios could start collecting the royalties herself.

“There’s a severe miscarriage of justice to allow Jelly’s Jams to continue collecting money,” Rosario said, adding that the music publisher “has double dipped, has hidden money.”

The hearing was part of Rios’ ongoing suit against Fat Joe and Jelly’s Jams, which alleges Fat Joe reneged on a deal to split Pun’s music profits. Rios wants her late husband’s back royalties, advances, damages and money from using his songs on TV and in movies.