Daddy Yankee has brought a bombshell lawsuit accusing his former manager, Raphy Pina, and estranged wife Mireddys González of scheming to steal songwriting royalties during a nearly decade-long racketeering conspiracy.
The reggaeton star (Ramón Ayala Rodríguez) is bringing civil claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, a federal organized crime statute often deployed against mobsters and gangs. The 107-page lawsuit accuses Pina, a veteran Latin music executive and founder of Pina Records, of plotting with González and other associates to fraudulently add Pina as a songwriter on Daddy Yankee’s split sheets.
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“[Pina], with the assistance and acquiescence of co-defendants, systematically misappropriated publishing income,” reads the legal complaint filed Saturday (Nov. 29). “Defendants’ conduct constituted a deliberate, sustained and coordinated attack on the integrity of plaintiffs’ publishing operations.”
Daddy Yankee alleges that Pina falsely made himself a co-author so he could receive royalties on more than a dozen of his songs back to 2015, including the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart entries “La Rompe Corazones,” “Runaway” “De Vuelta Pa’ La Vuelta” and “Vuelve” featuring Bad Bunny.
The lawsuit claims Pina was the “central architect of the RICO enterprise” and that González, who managed Daddy Yankee’s business enterprises during more than 20 years of marriage, provided the “administrative backbone” for falsifying the split sheets. The two allegedly got help from Pina’s music industry mentor, Andres Coll-Fernández, and lawyer Edwin Prado-Galarza.
Daddy Yankee filed for divorce from González in December 2024, and marriage dissolution proceedings are still ongoing. In the meantime, the singer has brought multiple legal actions against his estranged wife, alleging she severely mismanaged the finances of his label, El Cartel Records, and publishing company Los Cangris. Daddy Yankee seized control of the companies, and he says he discovered the “chilling truth” of Pina’s royalty fraud during an ensuing financial audit.
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The lawsuit claims that Pina also used the same scheme to steal royalties from other artists he managed. It adds that Pina, who has served prison time for gun possession, used threats of violence to “silence and deter” young and vulnerable artists from questioning his tactics.
“Leveraging his considerable height and strength, [Pina] cultivated an atmosphere of constant threat, ensuring that artists and associates remained compliant out of fear for their safety and well-being,” wrote Daddy Yankee’s lawyers.
The lawsuit seeks a court injunction to restore Daddy Yankee’s full publishing rights, as well as financial damages of at least $3 million for the misappropriated royalties.
Pina, Coll-Fernández and Prado-Galarza did not immediately return requests for comment on Wednesday (Dec. 3). González’s attorney, Roberto Sueiro, told Billboard that the claims are “all a fabrication” created by Daddy Yankee to gain a tactical advantage in their divorce proceedings.
“Daddy Yankee wants a favorable split of the community property that comes from their 20-plus years marriage,” Sueiro said. “He’s trying to use the press to create a favorable atmosphere before that split takes place.”
