BigXThaPlug is back in the headlines after his recent arrest, but this time the attention around him centers on music and money.
UnitedMasters filed suit against former employees David Melhado and Michael Weiss over royalty agreements tied to BigXThaPlug’s gold album I Hope You’re Happy. The complaint also names Melhado Holdings LLC and MBW Music Group LLC, companies UnitedMasters says the two men owned and controlled.
BigXThaPlug is not named as a defendant, and the lawsuit does not accuse the Dallas rapper or his company of wrongdoing.
UnitedMasters instead claims that Melhado and Weiss quietly created outside deals that allowed their own companies to collect money from an artist they served in their jobs.
“In secret side deals entered into without UM’s knowledge or consent, UM employees David Melhado and Michael Weiss awarded themselves a cut of the proceeds of I Hope You’re Happy, a certified gold-selling album by UM recording artist Xavier Landum, known professionally as BigXThaPlug,” the complaint alleges. “Of course, the Defendants had no such authority. To the contrary, they agreed with UM that UM ‘will be entitled to all of the benefits and profits arising from or incident to [their] services.’ They further agreed that they would not render any professional services outside of their employment with UM.”
Weiss joined UnitedMasters in 2018 and eventually became vice president of music, while Melhado joined in 2019 and became vice president of music and marketing.
Both men signed employment agreements in 2021 that required their professional services to benefit UnitedMasters and restricted outside work unless the company approved it.
The dispute centers on executive producer agreements that their companies allegedly signed with BigXThaPlug LLC on August 6, 2025, while both men were still employed by UnitedMasters.
“The EP Agreements obligated the Defendants to ‘provid[e] non-exclusive executive producer services in connection with’ the forthcoming I Hope You’re Happy album,” UnitedMasters alleges. “In exchange, each was contracted to receive (i) an ‘EP Royalty’ of one percent (1%) of royalties due BigX under the Producer Agreement; and (ii) a five percent (5%) share of performance royalties for each track on I Hope You’re Happy. The EP Agreements were entered into while Melhado and Weiss were employed by UM. UM never authorized Melhado or Weiss to enter into the EP Agreements or to otherwise profit from UM’s relationship with BigX.”
In simple terms, UnitedMasters says each executive arranged for his private company to earn album royalties while UnitedMasters was already paying him as an employee.
The complaint claims some of those royalties were paid, and UnitedMasters says that money should have gone to the company under the employees’ agreements.
UnitedMasters also accuses Weiss of involving employee Jesse Morav by allegedly telling him that the company had approved a similar executive producer arrangement.
“UM employee’s Jesse Morav’s direct supervisor, falsely conveyed to Morav that UM had likewise authorized Morav to enter into an EP Agreement providing the same benefits,” the complaint states. “Melhado’s and Weiss’s entering into the EP Agreements deprived UM of all of the benefits and profits arising from or incidental to their services, in violation of section 1(c) of the Melhado Employment Agreement and Weiss Employment Agreement.”
UnitedMasters wants a jury to award damages and order the defendants to return outside compensation they allegedly received during the disputed period.
The company also seeks repayment of compensation it paid Melhado and Weiss, punitive damages, legal costs and other relief the court finds appropriate.
The dispute involves a successful project because I Hope You’re Happy debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 and later earned RIAA gold certification.
Jail records list three accusations: driving while intoxicated, possessing less than two ounces of marijuana and unlawfully possessing a firearm.
The firearm charge is a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in county jail. The DWI and marijuana charges are Class B misdemeanors, which can carry as much as 180 days in county jail.
Allen police confirmed the arrest but have not publicly explained what led officers to BigXThaPlug or what evidence supports the latest DWI and firearm allegations. Police said the investigation remains active and declined to provide additional details about the encounter.
The date was especially notable because officers arrested BigXThaPlug exactly one year earlier on August 21, 2025, on marijuana and firearm charges in Dallas.
During that earlier stop, police said officers pulled over his pickup truck for lacking a front license plate on South Great Trinity Forest Way.
BigXThaPlug told officers a firearm was under the armrest, while police said a database identified him as associated with an Arlington gang. Officers also reported finding 3.4 grams of suspected marijuana, and he later posted a $5,000 bond in that case.
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