Busta Rhymes has agreed to pay his former personal assistant Dashiel Gables US$25,000 to settle competing lawsuits involving unpaid wages, an alleged workplace assault and defamation.
The agreement represents a small fraction of the approximately US$6 million Gables initially sought from the Grammy-nominated rapper, whose legal name is Trevor Smith Jr.
A federal judge must still approve the part of the settlement covering Gables’ wage claims before the case can be formally dismissed.
Settlement split into two payments
Under the agreement, Gables will receive two payments of US$12,500. One will be classified as wages, while the other will settle the remaining allegations included in the legal dispute.
Busta signed the agreement alongside Starbus LLC and Conglomerate Entertainment. Neither side admitted wrongdoing or accepted liability.
Once the full amount has been paid, Gables must permanently dismiss his lawsuit and relinquish the claims he brought against the rapper and his companies.
The agreement also requires him to return confidential documents and other private materials obtained during his employment.
Court documents show the settlement was signed on May 27 following private mediation. The federal wage settlement requires judicial approval under US labour law before the parties can close the case. AllHipHop
Assistant alleged exhausting working conditions
Gables claimed he worked as Busta’s personal assistant from around July 2024 until January 2025, frequently completing 15- to 18-hour shifts while receiving a flat daily payment of US$200.
His federal lawsuit alleged that he worked seven days a week, including while accompanying the rapper on tour, without receiving proper overtime compensation.
Gables said his duties included collecting food, completing personal errands and managing other demands made by his employer.
His lawsuit also contained wider allegations about Busta’s treatment of employees, all of which the rapper denied.
Brooklyn confrontation sparked legal battle
A central part of Gables’ lawsuit concerned an alleged confrontation inside Busta’s Brooklyn residential building on January 10, 2025.
Gables claimed the rapper punched him following an argument involving work duties and his mobile phone. He said he received medical treatment and subsequently reported the alleged incident to police.
Busta later turned himself in and received a desk appearance ticket relating to misdemeanor assault, attempted assault and harassment allegations.
The rapper consistently denied attacking Gables, describing the allegations as fabricated by a disgruntled former employee who was angry after losing his job.
“I completely and categorically deny these allegations,” Busta said when the lawsuit was filed.
He described the case as an “attempted shake-down” and said he was confident that the allegations would eventually be exposed as false.
Busta responded with defamation claim
Busta and Starbus LLC subsequently filed a countersuit accusing Gables of deliberately spreading false allegations that damaged the rapper’s reputation and cost him commercial opportunities.
The countersuit alleged that Gables either knew his accusations were untrue or acted with reckless disregard for their accuracy.
Gables maintained that his claims were truthful and protected by law.
The parties reached a settlement through mediation earlier this year, although the financial terms remained confidential until the latest court filing.
If the judge approves the wage component and Busta completes the payments, both lawsuits will be dismissed without a trial determining whether either side’s allegations were true. The federal case was filed in the Eastern District of New York.
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