HATEBREED's Longtime Bassist CHRIS BEATTIE Sues Band Over Split, Accuses JAMEY JASTA Of Greed
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According to Billboard and Law360, HATEBREED's founding bassist Chris Beattie has filed a lawsuit against the band, claiming he was the "driving force behind [HATEBREED's] sound and identity until his sudden and baseless expulsion" from the group last November.
The complaint, which was filed at Connecticut Superior Court in New Haven and which has been obtained by BLABBERMOUTH.NET, also accuses HATEBREED frontman Jamey Jasta (real name: James Shanahan) of displaying "increasingly erratic" behavior in the months leading up to Chris's "abrupt termination", "culminating in a unilateral decision to cut Beattie off from his career, fans, touring, and substantial expected revenue."
In the lawsuit, Beattie claims that he "contributed significant labor, musical talent, recording and management duties, promotion, and financial resources, without which HATEBREED would not and could not have achieved its current level of recognition and profitability." He adds that "the band functioned pursuant to a longstanding, implied agreement and understanding that Shanahan and Beattie were equal co-owners in the band and entitled to their designated share of profits, royalties, and intellectual property rights."
In September 2015, Shanahan, Beattie and drummer Matthew Byrne entered into an agreement concerning the distribution of proceeds from the sale of HATEBREED merchandise, according to the complaint. Under the merchandise agreement, "Beattie, Byrne, and Shanahan agreed they were each entitled to 25% of the sales and revenue from merchandise while the other two members of the band received 12.5%, accounting for the remaining 25% of sales," the lawsuit reads. "Shanahan and/or band manager Steve Ross maintained a specific HATEBREED bank account and managed the band's income and distributions to other members, including Beattie."
According to Beattie, he and other band members "had no insight into how the money was managed, and most often received payment via wire transfers. Those transfers often came with no explanation or breakdown of the amount being transferred."
The complaint goes on to say that "HATEBREED continued to operate in accordance with the longstanding implied agreement and understanding the primary members, including Shanahan, Beattie, and Byrne, were co-equal owners in the band. In addition, the three, along with band manager Steve Ross, played a critical role in all major decision-making on behalf of the band. For example, each of Shanahan, Beattie, Byrne and Ross were responsible for and often discussed managerial decisions such as how much other band members were paid for certain shows, booking and scheduling, distribution, and the band's public image and branding, among other things. Despite this understanding and practice that the three primary band members be involved in such decision-making and entitled to equal shares in profits, at some point Shanahan became more secretive with respect to decision-making and the band's finances."
Prior to his termination, Beattie claims that he "began to notice that there were substantial delays in receiving his share of merchandise sales following HATEBREED performances. When Beattie did receive payments purporting to reflect his share of merchandise sales, those payments were substantially lower than what he anticipated under the merchandise agreement. Because of this, Beattie began requesting financial information about the band from Shanahan. Despite his repeated requests in 2023 and 2024, Beattie never received any financial information confirming that the portion of the proceeds he received constituted 25% of sales as promised."
According to Beattie, he was notified last November by Shanahan that he was "terminated" from his role as HATEBREED's bassist. "Beattie's termination followed weeks of erratic behavior by Shanahan, including berating and belittling tour and road crew and publicly posting about being stressed, burned out, and generally having too much on his plate," the lawsuit claims. "In terminating Beattie from the band, Shanahan cited to an alleged incident that occurred on or around November 9, 2024 just prior to a HATEBREED concert at the Toyota Oakdale Theater in Wallingford, Connecticut. There, a Live Nation security guard at the venue falsely reported that Beattie had harassed her upon entering the theater prior to his performance. These allegations were patently untrue. Beattie never harassed any Live Nation employee and more likely, she mistook him for someone else.
"Despite Beattie's denying the incident, Shanahan abruptly terminated Beattie from HATEBREED, despite his thirty-year tenure in the band and the implied agreement that he would remain part of HATEBREED. Shanahan had no justified reason for Beattie's termination. Shanahan had structured a false narrative about Beattie — not supported by any evidence — to other band members following the Oakdale show in an effort to discredit Beattie's reputation and persuade the other band members to justify Shanahan's desire to kick Beattie out of the band."
Beattie goes on to say that the fallout from his "termination has had a significant negative impact on his career, reputation, and health and well-being." He also accuses HATEBREED of continuing "to sell merchandise using Beattie's likeness in its online store. HATEBREED and Shanahan also continue to promote the band using Beattie's likeness. For example, as of the date of this filing Beattie is still featured prominently on HATEBREED's profile picture for its Instagram account, and Beattie appears on HATEBREED's website and social media pages."
Beattie is seeking financial damages from HATEBREED and Jasta — including compensatory damages and damages for emotional distress — saying that he has been cut off from touring profits and has lost brand deals since being ousted.
When Beattie went public with his departure from HATEBREED five months ago, he wrote in a statement: "I just want to take the time to let everyone know that I am doing just fine and I sincerely appreciate everyone who has reached out.
"I was under the impression a joint announcement would be agreed upon in advance, but since that was not the case I wanted to address your concerns in my own post.
"At this time I am unable to discuss the specifics surrounding my departure from HATEBREED on November 13, 2024. However, I want to clarify that the decision to leave the band was not mine and that my departure was uncalled for and based on misleading and wrongful statements that will be subject to future actions."
Earlier this month, HATEBREED released its first new music in nearly five years, "Make The Demons Obey". The track was the first taste of new HATEBREED material after the group's "Weight Of The False Self" album which came out in 2020.
This past April, HATEBREED announced it was resurrecting the annual "Summer Slaughter" tour for 2025, which kicked off on July 8 in St. Petersburg, Florida and ran through July 28 in Grand Rapids.
Last month, HATEBREED guitarist Wayne Lozinak left the band's European tour following a brain tumor diagnosis. He will undergo a craniotomy — a surgical procedure that involves opening the skull to access the brain — on August 4.
In the meantime, HATEBREED has continued its European and American tours, with touring bassist Matt Bachand of SHADOWS FALL stepping in on guitar, and Carl Schwartz of FIRST BLOOD and TERROR joining the group on bass duties.
(Source: www.blabbermouth.net)
