Rapper and former TV host Xzibit was once the face and voice of MTV’s popular Pimp My Ride series. Despite his contributions to the show, however, the former West Coast artist claimed that he wasn’t properly compensated for his work.
Xzibit once shared he did ‘Pimp My Ride’ because of his declining music career
The artist Xzibit would feature as the host of the popular MTV show Pimp My Ride for six seasons. As most might remember, the series focused on expert mechanics fixing and remodeling drivers’ broken-down cars into luxurious vehicles.
Hosting the show, however, was a means for Xzibit to make money while his music career was in jeopardy. Before his hosting duties, he was a successful rapper associated with acts like megaproducer Dr. Dre and diamond-selling artist Eminem. But soon his music career began to decline, which motivated him to find other avenues toward success.
“I knew how it felt when it didn’t seem to be happening for me anymore,” Xzibit once told Hip Hop DX. “So then I was like, ok, cool. I still love to do music, I still love to be creative, but I know I have to take care of my people, my family, myself. And so I went out and did other things. So that’s where Pimp My Ride was created.”
‘Pimp My Ride’ host Xzibit claims the show owes him money
After Pimp My Ride, Xzibit shared he later transitioned into film. He would do small roles in features like Gridiron Gang, a movie he co-starred with blockbuster star Dwayne Johnson. He also featured in films like 8 Mile and the crime thriller Derailed starring Clive Owen. Since then, he’s founded a highly successful cannabis business that he claimed is one of the most successful in the world.
Although he may not exactly be hurting for the money nowadays, Xzibit claims he’s still owed some extra cash from his former TV show. He recently asserted that the conglomerate behind Pimp My Ride, Viacom, might have strategically cut him out of profits he was supposed to earn from the program. And now he’s ready to be paid what he feels he rightfully earned.
“While I’m at it, hey @viacom_intl why is it you’ve made millions off the show #PimpMyRide I carried on my back and found ways to cut me out,” he once shared on his Instagram (via Vibe). “Like saying I would get percentages of all merch sold let alone streaming (which wasn’t even in the contract) and putting in the fine print ‘with my name and likeness’ then proceed to take my ‘name and likeness’ off of ALL the merchandise including DVD sales after season 1?”
Xzibit also quipped that he might be prepared to take legal action if this situation wasn’t resolved.
“To top that you guys went back and EDITED all of my music out of ALL entire seasons in order to avoid paying me for my publishing. Let’s talk about worldwide syndication,” he continued. “Wow. Hey, guys, my number is still the same. Hit me up. Or…… Can anybody hit me with a law firm who isn’t afraid of Viacom to get me right?”
How much did Xzibit make off of ‘Pimp My Ride?’
The rapper-turned-actor managed to earn a six-figure income starring in the MTV series. Thanks to court records shared from Spokesman in 2010, Xzibit was revealed to have earned $497,175 starring on the show. But after the show’s cancellation, his income went down to $67,510 in 2008.
The star has rebounded nicely, though. Nowadays, Celebrity Net Worth has claimed that the rapper is worth $2 million. The publication asserted that one of the reasons his net worth isn’t higher was due to a few financial problems he’s had. These included filing bankruptcy twice and owing to the IRS $1 million.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pLTEmqusoJWawW%2BvzqZmnqakmr%2B1rcinpJ6mpGSzsL7MnqlmqJmivW652GapopyVYrWwv9Nmr7Ohkp7Bbq%2FLmqCmq12dsrR5zrCcnWWdpLumxYyfqailXam1pnnSoaawZpipuq17