Rick Ross‘s stage name has been the subject of speculation since he changed it from Teflon Da Don in 2000.
Joe Rogan is the latest celebrity to criticize hip-hop mogul Rick Ross for adopting a stage name similar to that of former drug lord Freeway, Ricky Ross. Freeway Rick criticized the “Hustlin’” hitmaker during an episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience” on June 12, 2024.
Freeway Rick, real name Ricky Donnell Ross, gained infamy in the 1980s by building a drug empire in Los Angeles that spread across the U.S. He was sentenced to life in prison in the 1990s but was released in 2009 after a resentencing. Now an author and motivational speaker, Freeway Rick revealed that he has never confronted the rapper Rick Ross in person.
“Anytime I’m around, he disappears,” he told Rogan.
The former drug lord said it’s ironic that the rapper, who used to work as a correctional officer, now embraces a gangster image.
“When he got some money, everyone forgot he was a correctional officer,” Freeway Rick said.
He criticized gangsters working with a former law enforcement officer and shared letters from inmates alleging corruption by Rick Ross. Rogan expressed disbelief at the rapper’s use of Ricky Ross’s name.
“If there was a rapper named Joe Rogan, I’d be like, ‘What the f***?’” Rogan said.
Freeway Rick lamented that the rapper never sought permission to use the name or acknowledged its origins. “He won’t even admit that he stole the name. He tells people he invented it,” he said.
In 2010, Freeway Rick filed a $10 million copyright infringement lawsuit against the rapper but lost the court battle. The judge based her decision on the public’s first awareness of the rapper using the name, which coincided with a minor radio station’s airplay of his record.
Freeway Rick revealed that Rick Ross’s legal team spent $1.5 million on the lawsuit but never offered a settlement. At the time, Ricky Ross’s mother was facing eviction, and he would have accepted a relatively low offer to settle.
“If they had offered $250,000, I would have been thrilled,” he said, expressing frustration at the lack of respect shown by the rapper.
Freeway Rick also mentioned that he still owes the rapper $1 million in legal fees. Rick Ross claimed that his nickname came from being called “Big Boss” in high school, which someone misled him as “Rick Ross.”
Rogan dismissed this explanation as “the dumbest f****** story I’ve ever heard.”