Kirk Franklin is sued by God's Property

Jet, Nov 2, 1998

Gospel superstar Kirk Franklin has been sued by God's Property, the Dallas choir he mentored and produced in the highest-charting gospel album in history last year.

The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleges that Franklin induced God's Property founder Linda Searight into signing an "onerous and one-sided" contract with B-Rite Music.

The lawsuit also claims the Los Angeles record company hasn't paid the choir any royalties from sales of its hit album, God's Property From Kirk Franklin's Nu Nation.

Plaintiffs attorney Joseph Porter said Searight signed away royalties for the choir to B-Rite in a contract that Franklin allegedly helped to arrange.

"It's terribly unfair that you can have a new act that has sold 3 million (albums) at $15 each, generating $45 million in retail sales ... but my client has received nada-nothing," Porter told The Dallas Morning News.

B-Rite attorney Gerry Margolis said the case was without merit. The choir, formed by Searight in 1992, began to collaborate with Franklin in 1993 and sang backup on his 1995 album, Whatcha Lookin' 4 Franklin, in turn, produced and co-wrote most of the songs on the group's album last year.

The album, driven by the radio hit Stomp, has sold about 2.7 million copies. It has been in Billboard's gospel chart for 71 weeks.