Derek Jeter said Thursday that allegations that he didn't want to be associated with 50 Cent because the rapper is too "urban" are false.
The spat appears to have come to light on Wednesday, after
TMZ reported that Swedish underwear company Frigo filed a lawsuit against Jeter in Sweden.
"According to the suit, Jeter signed a three-year deal to be a director of the company in 2011 and agreed to participate in major publicity events. But things went south in 2013 — first, Jeter allegedly told Frigo he didn't want his involvement with the company to be public during the U.S. launch," the celebrity gossip site reported. "So, the company tapped 50 Cent to be the brand ambassador instead — which didn't jive with Jeter, according to the suit."
The majority owner and CEO of Frigo, Mathias Ingvarsson, said that Jeter backed out because he thought 50 Cent made the brand too "urban." Ingvarsson said that Jeter's backing out cost the company $30 million, and now wants him to hand over $4.7 million to fix things.
Jeter responded to the allegations on Thursday.
"As a major investor, current stockholder and lender to the Company, I am disgusted by Ingvarsson's decision to make these false allegations against me in the press, instead of attempting to work out our business dispute in private," Jeter said in a statement,
according to the New York Daily News.
He added that the accusation that he called 50 Cent too "urban" was "categorically false."
“I facilitated the introductory meeting between 50 Cent and the company, so it makes absolutely no sense that I would object to 50 Cent being a Frigo brand ambassador or think that 50 Cent is ‘too urban’ for the brand," Jeter continued.
"[Ingvarsson’s] statements are particularly malicious because he knew all along that I never agreed to be a spokesperson or ambassador for the brand, and that is confirmed in documents that Mr. Ingvarsson himself signed."
Amid this week's flap, 50 Cent wrote in a now-deleted Instagram post, "Wow, guess I’m not a Yankees fan anymore. LETS GO METS! Man you can’t trust nobody these day. smh."
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