Joe Budden is no stranger to controversy, but his new legal woes have taken a strange twist. The former rapper turned podcast mogul is being sued by his neighbors after pretending to enter their apartment fully nude in December 2024.
The lawsuit, filed by the couple’s attorney, Thomas Mirigliano, alleges not only that Budden fostered a disruptive workplace environment with his popular podcast but also that he retaliated with a “campaign of intimidation and retribution” after John Aksoy and Yuliya Aksoy lodged complaints.
They said that Budden and his co-hosts, including Melyssa Ford, routinely recorded their show at high volumes, disturbing the Aksoys’ peace. They further claim Budden and his associates regularly smoked marijuana in the condo’s common areas, leaving ashes in their wake and creating what they say is a “hazardous environment” for their young daughter.
When the couple brought these worries to the condo association, tensions boiled. Budden allegedly accused Yuliya Aksoy of using racially tinged language and claimed he had proof on tape, but no such recording has emerged.
Perhaps the most shocking detail of the lawsuit involves an alleged incident in December 2024, in which Budden is said to have been found naked in the condo hallway. The Aksos say they have screenshots from their door camera of Budden naked as he tried to gain access to their apartment.
Budden was said to have been prohibited from the condo for a while but returned about a week later. Instead of taking the situation seriously, the couple says Budden mocked the allegations during an episode of The Joe Budden Podcast dated October 19, 2024. They claim he and his co-hosts blasted loud music, made simulated gunshot sounds, and blasted sirens for more than eight minutes in an apparent effort to provoke them.
Joe Budden’s attorney, Nima Ameri, has rejected the claims, describing the lawsuit as “a money grab attempt by a person we believe to be a racist.” Budden has not directly spoken about the accusations but has made one notable change in response: moving his podcast recordings back to his longtime engineer Parks’s basement studio.
Although Budden claims the alteration is due to municipal bylaws, fans speculated that his legal troubles played a significant role in that decision. If anything, some listeners speculated that co-host Flip committed an error by referencing that they were still recording in the condo after the nakedness in the hallway, thus contributing to their removal.
With Budden’s court date set for January 16 over the disorderly lewdness charges, it’s going to take more than a wipe-down to clean up his legal troubles. The lawsuit and Budden’s denials have led to an explosion of conversations online, with some coming to Budden’s defense and others bemoaning his alleged actions. However this case plays out, Budden’s ability to make headlines will not diminish.
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