Brandon Garrett wants Nicki Minaj’s private text messages, and she has declined to hand them over. The fight over those texts now drives his battery lawsuit against the rapper, according to TMZ on Monday.
Nicki Minaj Resists A Demand For Her Texts
TMZ reported at 4:23 p.m. PT on Monday that Garrett, whom it calls her former assistant, asked Minaj to produce messages she exchanged with third parties about him and his employment from January through April 2024. He also wants every message she sent about an alleged backstage assault at an April concert.
Court documents cited by TMZ show Minaj says she holds no messages about the alleged incident. She also argues that some of Garrett’s requests reach too far, and she has refused to turn over those items. TMZ did not name the court, the judge, or the case number, and it gave no date for the discovery filing.
Outlets describe Garrett’s job in different ways. TMZ’s story text calls him a former assistant, while its web address calls him a former manager. TheGrio, reporting the original suit on Jan. 6, 2025, described him as a day-to-day manager on the Pink Friday 2 tour. The title matters because it shapes which of Minaj’s messages count as relevant to his employment.
What Garrett Says Happened In Detroit
Garrett filed suit in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, TheGrio reported. The complaint seeks relief for assault, battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. TheGrio’s report did not state a dollar amount.
According to that report, Garrett says the incident happened on April 21 backstage at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit after a concert. He says Minaj called him to her dressing room, screamed threats, and struck him with an open hand on the right side of his face, which knocked his hat off. He also says she hit his wrist. TheGrio did not state the year, but the January-to-April 2024 window in his text request places the events in 2024.
TMZ’s account adds a detail about the threats. It says Minaj, upset when she summoned him, told him he was a “dead man walking.” Garrett says the blow caused injuries and emotional distress. Minaj denies it. Her lawyer at the time, Judd Burstein, told reporters in January 2025 that she had not been served and called the suit “completely false and frivolous” if it matched the reports. TMZ’s Monday story also notes that her former lawyer denied the claims and does not say who now signs her discovery objections.
Minaj Also Faces Lawyer Exits In Other Cases
The text dispute follows a run of legal headaches in unrelated cases. According to HotNewHipHop, which credited AllHipHop for the first report, attorney Bruce W. Bieber of Kurzman Eisenberg Corbin & Lever asked a New York court on Oct. 23 to let the firm drop Minaj and Pink Friday Productions LLC. The filing cites “irreconcilable differences” and a broken attorney-client relationship, and it asks for a stay so new counsel can step in.
That case came from 24/7 Productions, which filed suit in March seeking $275,149.62 plus interest. The company says it fronted hotel and production costs for her December 2023 iHeartRadio Jingle Ball shows in Chicago and Atlanta and for New York events that promoted Pink Friday 2. Minaj’s lawyers answered that she approved the hospitality costs and that membership in an LLC does not make her personally liable. HotNewHipHop says Pink Friday Productions told the court on July 31 that it had paid what it owed.
A second set of withdrawals surfaced earlier this year. TMZ reported on Feb. 26, 2026, that Matthew Abbott, a lawyer for a management company Minaj hired, asked to leave her $10 million defense in a suit from a fan named Tameer Peak. Abbott cited a communication breakdown and said the company had not heard from her in months. TMZ added that Judd Burnstein, as it spells the name, had already withdrawn. Peak previously sued her for slander over claims she made about him. Nothing in these reports ties the lawyer exits to the Garrett case.
What Comes Next In The Garrett Case
The next step depends on the judge. Garrett can press the court to order Minaj to answer the requests, and she can keep arguing that they stretch too far. Reporting so far does not show whether he has filed a motion to compel or whether a hearing has a date.
Her position that she holds no messages about the alleged incident gives Garrett a target. If he finds texts from third parties about the Detroit show, her account could face a direct test. TMZ did not report that any such messages exist. Minaj also drew headlines before the 24-hour window opened. On Sunday, Oct. 25, TMZ and HotNewHipHop covered remarks from President Donald Trump about her at a Michigan rally, and Baller Alert reported that 50 Cent responded. That event falls outside this report’s window and serves here as background only.
TMZ’s story carries no fresh comment from Minaj’s side beyond the discovery objections. Watch for a ruling on the discovery dispute, a notice that names her new lawyers in the Jingle Ball case, and any new filing from Garrett in Los Angeles.
