Metro Boomin will face a trial next month in a case alleging he raped a woman in 2016 and then made a song about it, according to a new filing.
The rapper, whose real name is Leland Wayne, told a California federal judge this week that he and plaintiff Vanessa LeMaistre tried to mediate their dispute in July but failed to reach an agreement — paving the way for a trial that’s currently slated to start Sept. 23, per a status report in the case.
“The Parties mediated in good faith,” the report, filed on Monday and obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, reads. “However, the litigation did not resolve. After the mediation, the Parties have continued limited settlement discussions, which have proven unsuccessful.”
On Oct. 29, LeMaistre filed a lawsuit against the artist, who resides in Cartersville, in the Los Angeles Superior Court, accusing him of sexual battery in 2016. Wayne has denied the allegations. LeMaistre, a Los Angeles resident, claimed that the pair formed a friendship while she was grieving the death of her 9-month-old son.
She said the Grammy-winning hitmaker invited her to his Los Angeles studio, where she took a Xanax and was given a shot of alcohol. LeMaistre alleges she lost consciousness and woke up in a Beverly Hills hotel room to him raping her.
In the filing, LeMaistre said she was “completely unable to move or make a sound,” as she drifted in and out of consciousness. She said she never gave consent.
Credit: Kevin Winter
Credit: Kevin Winter
Wayne later told her to get her belongings, she said. He put her in a car, which dropped her off at the Los Angeles studio, according to the suit. Weeks later, LeMaistre found out she was pregnant and had an abortion — linking the pregnancy to the alleged incident. She added that she didn’t have sex with anyone else at the time.
A 2017 song that Wayne produced, “Rap Saved Me,” is cited in the suit with lyrics that LeMaistre said parallel the alleged incident. The track, which features fellow Atlanta artists 21 Savage, Offset and Quavo, includes the lyrics: “She took a Xanny, then she fainted/ I’m from the gutter, ain’t no changing/ From the gutter, rap saved me/ She drive me crazy, have my baby.”
At the time, Wayne’s lawyer Lawrence C. Hinkle II described the allegations as a “pure shakedown.”
“These are false accusations,” Hinkle II told the AJC last year. “Mr. Wayne refused to pay her months ago, and he refuses to pay her now. Mr. Wayne will defend himself in court. He will file a claim for malicious prosecution once he prevails.”
The case moved to a federal court in December. Wayne’s lawyers couldn’t be immediately reached for comment regarding Monday’s filing.
Michael J. Willemin, an attorney for LeMaistre, told the AJC via email on Tuesday that he looks forward to “holding Mr. Wayne accountable in front of a jury of his peers.”
“Mr. Wayne has failed to comply with basic discovery obligations and Court orders in an apparent effort to avoid accountability for his actions. Meanwhile, we and Ms. LeMaistre have pushed the case forward aggressively,” the email said.
Earlier this month, Wayne dropped his highly anticipated mixtape “A Futuristic Summa,” which honors the futuristic era of Atlanta rap. The 24-track project features Young Thug, Lil Baby, Future and T.I. Last week, the producer hosted a party in Atlanta to celebrate the album‘s release.
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