Spotify Faces Class Action Over Alleged Fake Streams That Deprived Artists of Royalties
Eric Dwayne Collins, the Long Beach rapper known as RBX, has filed a class action lawsuit against Spotify, accusing the company of allowing fake streams that he claims deprived artists of millions in unpaid royalties.
The lawsuit, filed on November 2, 2025, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, names Spotify USA, Inc., Spotify AB, and Spotify Technology S.A. as defendants. Collins, best known for his early collaborations with Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, seeks to represent thousands of recording artists, songwriters, and music rights holders whose royalty payments were allegedly reduced as a result of fraudulent activity on the platform.
According to the complaint, Spotify collects revenue from subscriptions and advertising each month and pays artists a share based on their portion of total streams, a formula known as streamshare. Collins claims this system is distorted when automated software programs, or bots, are used to inflate streaming numbers for certain artists. He argues that by failing to prevent this activity, Spotify allowed illegitimate streams to siphon money from legitimate creators.
The filing states that Spotify publicly promises to detect and remove fraudulent streams but fails to enforce those measures effectively. Collins claims the company ignores warning signs because inflated activity makes the platform appear more successful, boosting advertising sales and investor confidence. He alleges that billions of fake plays occur each month without proper oversight, which he argues undermines the accuracy of royalty payments to legitimate artists.
The lawsuit cites data involving the music of Canadian performer Aubrey Drake Graham, known as Drake, as an example of Spotify’s alleged inaction. Collins claims that between 2022 and 2025, many of Drake’s Spotify streams came from automated accounts using virtual private networks to disguise their locations. The filing does not accuse Drake or his label of any wrongdoing, but instead references his streaming data to illustrate Spotify’s alleged failure to identify abnormal activity that should have triggered an investigation.
Collins brings two legal claims against Spotify: negligence and violation of California’s Unfair Competition Law. The negligence claim asserts that Spotify had a duty to maintain a fair and accurate royalty system and failed to take reasonable steps to prevent manipulation. The second claim alleges that Spotify misled artists by assuring them that the company was actively fighting streaming fraud when, in practice, it was not.
Under California’s Unfair Competition Law, companies are prohibited from engaging in conduct that is unlawful, unfair, or deceptive. The lawsuit argues that Spotify’s public statements about anti-fraud efforts created a false impression that artists were being paid based on genuine listener engagement. Collins claims that this misrepresentation caused significant financial harm to artists and other rights holders who relied on Spotify’s assurances that its royalty system was transparent and secure.
The lawsuit seeks class-action status on behalf of all U.S. rights holders with royalty interests in Spotify music from 2018 to the present, along with a separate California subclass. Collins seeks damages, restitution, and repayment of profits that he claims were wrongfully distributed because of fraudulent streaming. He also asks the court to require Spotify to strengthen its monitoring practices and ensure that royalties are distributed based on legitimate listener activity.
Spotify has not yet filed a response to the complaint.
