A royalty dispute involving more than 113 million claimed streams and a demand for more than $1 million in damages has ended almost as quickly as it began.
My Block Records, the label founded by producer Warryn Campbell and associated with gospel artist Erica Campbell, has settled its lawsuit against former distributor SRG/ILS Group. The case was dismissed 15 days after it was filed. Settlement terms were not disclosed.
The lawsuit centered on accounting, not whether the music performed
Music Business Worldwide reported that My Block filed the case on September 17 and withdrew it October 2 after the parties reached a settlement.
The original complaint covered three albums released under a 2021 licensing agreement: Lena Byrd Miles’ Brand New, The Walls Group’s Four Walls and Erica Campbell’s I Love You. My Block alleged that the releases generated more than 113 million streams between 2022 and 2024 while the distributor failed to provide royalty statements.
The allegations were never adjudicated. SRG disputed the broader accusations while the litigation was pending, and the settlement does not establish that the distributor violated the agreement.
Why “113 million streams” does not answer the money question
Streaming totals are visible. Royalty waterfalls are not. A release can accumulate enormous consumption while the actual amount payable to a label or artist depends on territory, service, ownership splits, distribution terms, recoupment, marketing charges, advances and contractual accounting rules.
That is why statements matter. A royalty statement is not merely a payment notice; it is the documentation that allows a rightsholder to reconcile usage, revenue, deductions and balances against the contract.
The federal docket confirms My Block filed the breach-of-contract case in the Southern District of New York on September 17. The later dismissal was without prejudice, meaning the dismissal itself does not automatically prevent the claims from being brought again.
The settlement leaves the most interesting details private
Because the case ended before a court reached the merits, the public does not know what amount changed hands, whether statements were produced, whether accounting practices were revised, or whether either side made concessions beyond ending the dispute.
That is common in commercial litigation, but it limits what outsiders should infer. The correct takeaway is not that one side “won.” The public record shows that a serious accounting dispute was filed and then resolved quickly on undisclosed terms.
Independent artists should build an accounting paper trail before there is a dispute
The practical lesson begins long before lawyers get involved. Artists and labels should know when statements are due, which party receives money first, what deductions are permitted, whether audit rights exist and how long they have to challenge an accounting period.
Save statements. Export dashboards. Keep distributor agreements and amendments. Reconcile major consumption milestones with the periods in which revenue is reported. When a release grows, the administrative side of the career has to grow with it.
Streams are a public scoreboard. Accounting is the private machinery underneath it. A career becomes much harder to protect when only one side has the records.
Featured image: Dimitri Karastelev / Unsplash. Illustrative editorial photography; the image does not depict the parties in this dispute.