Billboard cited a Detroit News report, which said yesterday that the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, is filing a $10 million lawsuit against the parody site that run story about a fight that happened between her and Patti LaBelle. On April 11, The News Nerd published a fake story which detailed that Franklin was punched by LaBelle at an R&B/Soul concert. Although Franklin published a formal denial regarding the story, it appeared that she is not done yet with The News Nerd.
Franklin through her publicist Gwendolyn Quinn said, "The stories were not presented as satire or humor. It was presented as a serious news story intended to depict me in a slanderous and derogatory way -- defamation of character."
Billboard pointed out that The News Nerd's website does have a disclaimer at the bottom, which says that the stories they publish are for entertainment purposes only and are purely satirical in nature.
According to the parody site's satire news, Labelle was arrested for battery and assault following her attack on Franklin. LaBelle was said to have punched Franklin Floyd Mayweather style, which alludes to the power of the punches that landed on Franklin or how the fight had went down like a boxng match. The fictitious fight supposed broke out when Franklin had thrown epic shade at LaBelle repeatedly and also shunning the latter at public events.
Franklin, which might have taken the news as gossip, said in a statement on April 15, "I've never heard anything crazier-regarding myself and Patti allegedly fighting on March 20, in Atlanta. On March 20, I was in New York City readying for my birthday patty (Sorry. LOL. Laughing at my typo error). I meant PARTY, which we all had one fabulous time. Patti and I are cool and we always have been. I enjoyed her at the White House. Classic Patti."
The Detroit News pointed out that the byline of the news at issue has been changed from the name of the writer Kato Leonard to "The News Nerd Staff."
Billboard has yet to receive a response from Franklin's representatives about the lawsuit.
