50 Cent Sues Taco Bell for $4 Million

Rapper Had No Idea His Name was Being Used in a Value Meal Campaign

Looks like rapper 50 Cent does not want a chalupa with a side of nachos today; the artist has sued Mexican fast-food giant Taco Bell for $4 million, claiming that the restaurant chain used his name without his permission.

Now I thought the Yo Quiero Taco Bell ads from back in the day were funny (I mean, who could resist a talking Chihuahua voiced by Rocko's Modern Life star Carlos Alazraqui?), but this is just ridiculous.

A series of advertisements asked 50 Cent to change his name to 79, 89 or 99 Cent, as a promotion for Taco Bell's "Why Pay More?" campaign. The advertisements aimed to promote a number of products offered on a value menu that can be bought for less than a dollar.

For 79 cents, customers can buy cheese roll-ups, triple-layer nachos and cinnamon twists. For an additional 10 cents, customers can eat crunchy tacos, soft tacos and "cheesy double beef " burritos. And finally, for almost a dollar, consumers can sink their teeth into bean burritos, a "Big Taste Taco," caramel empandas, and a cheesy bean and rice burrito weighing half a pound.

All of this is news to 50 Cent, who didn't hear of the campaign idea until he saw a news report about it. A statement from Taco Bell Corp. Spokesman Rob Poetsch said that the chain offered a charity donation of $10,000 if 50 Cent had changed his name for one day by rapping an order at a drive-thru menu.

"We would have been very pleased to make the $10,000 donation to the charity of his choice," the statement said.

50 Cent's court papers indicated that Taco Bell sent a fake letter requesting the name change not to the rapper, but instead to the news media. According to BBC News, the Grammy-nominated rapper said that Taco Bell is "diluting the value of his good name."

50 Cent has met legal trouble involving his image before, perhaps even more unappetizing than his recent run-in with Taco Bell. According to Yahoo! News, an Internet company used his image for a shooting game called "Kill the Rapper" in July 2007. 50 Cent filed a lawsuit for $1 million.

Other advertisements pioneered by Taco Bell include the "Fourthmeal" campaign, aiming to promote late-night dining with the chain.

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