Unexpected $4 Million Lawsuit Explained

The 50 Cent vs Taco Bell feud must have been one of the weirdest ever.

It’s also a spat that couldn’t have happened at any other time in history.

50 Cent has been the target of diss tracks in the past. It goes with the territory of his work. But locking horns with one of America’s most beloved fast food institutions was a little odd.

It all started with a joke. What followed was a $4 million lawsuit.

Why did 50 Cent feud with Taco Bell?

It all begins in 2008. We might not refer to that fateful year as a “happier, simpler time,” but it was a considerably less stressful election year than any that have followed.

In May of that year, Taco Bell released its new value menu. This is when anyone reading this more than a decade and a half later should begin to weep.

Prices for individual items on Taco Bell’s value menu were 79 cents, 89 cents, and 99 cents. In 2024, those are closer to the price of a single packet of Taco Bell’s Avocado Verde sauce (which, to be fair, is delicious) than to an actual food item.

You may have already guessed where this is going.

To promote their new value menu, Taco Bell’s campaign included a (joking) suggestion that 50 Cent (whose real name is Curtis James Jackson III) change his name.

Rather than 50 Cent, the iconic fast food franchise suggested, he might change his name to 79 Cent, to 89 Cent, or even to 99 Cent.

50 Cent was not amenable to the suggestion

To be fair, it doesn’t sound like 50 Cent’s issue was with a joke about renaming him.

Rather, he accused Taco Bell of using his name — for an advertising campaign — without his permission. In 2008, he was still considered a “big name” in popular culture.

And that is why he filed a $4 million lawsuit against Taco Bell. At that time, that would have been enough for more than 4 million value menu items!

Social media already existed in 2008. Additionally, forums and other internet communities (back when Google functioned well) gave people places to talk.

According to 50 Cent’s lawsuit at the time, according to The Guardian, some fans assumed that 50 Cent had endorsed Taco Bell’s products. Allegedly, various bloggers were putting him on blast for “selling out” — again, per his legal filing.

In other words, he accused Taco Bell of misusing his name and trademark without his permission — and of causing harm to his public image and brand. While many people would feel nothing short of delight to feature in a Taco Bell ad … they’d want to sign off on it and get paid, right?

Who won the 50 Cent vs Taco Bell lawsuit?

By 2009, it became widely reported that 50 Cent had won the Taco Bell lawsuit. However, his attorney told the public that neither party would be discussing the details of the settlement (which is standard).

It is natural for many people to instinctively side with Taco Bell over someone like 50 Cent. But we hope that the settlement satisfied all parties.

Meanwhile, despite the rampant greedflation causing prices to skyrocket in recent years, there’s one upside to ordering Taco Bell more than 15 years after 2008: you can easily have it delivered.