Cardi B awarded $1.25 million in defamation suit against YouTuber

A federal court on Monday awarded Cardi B $1.25 million in damages in the hip-hop star's suit against a YouTuber who had defamed her with what a jury found to be false and malicious claims.

"Why am I happy but sad at the same time?" tweeted multiplatinum Grammy Award winner Cardi B, 29, born Belcalis Marlenis Almanzar, following the verdict. On Instagram Stories, where posts cycle out after 24 hours, she evidently referenced the emotional toll the nearly three-year lawsuit took, posting a photo of what appeared to be her childhood self and her mother and writing, "My queen thank you for hearing my prayers … only you know those nights that I cried to you feeling hopeless and tired even when it seems like I have the world on my hands."

In the suit, filed March 21, 2019, in a Georgia federal court, and obtained by Newsday, the "I Like It" artist alleged that YouTuber Latasha Transrina Kebe had slandered, libeled and defamed her on Kebe's roughly million-subscriber channel unWinewithTashaK. The rapper called the channel "a platform for Kebe to publish and spread malicious rumors, slanderous assertions, and false information about celebrities…."

Kebe, the suit said, had "become obsessed with slandering Plaintiff," posting at least 23 videos about Cardi B in the preceding 14 months. One such video "stated that … Plaintiff's then-unborn child may have intellectual disabilities," while another said Cardi B "prostituted for a living." An Instagram Live video by Kebe, the suit stated, claimed the rapper had a sexually transmitted disease and used the illegal drugs molly and cocaine.

These and other allegations caused Cardi B "to suffer embarrassment, humiliation, mental anguish, and emotional distress." She testified on Jan. 13 that they had made her want "to commit suicide over the things" said about her, according to TMZ.com, which added that Cardi B told the jury, "I felt defeated and depressed and I didn't want to sleep with my husband," the rapper Offset, born Kiari Cephus, with whom she has two children.

The jury found Kebe and her Kebe Studios liable on all charges, and awarded Cardi B $1 million in general damages for "pain and suffering and/or reputational injury," and $250,000 in medical expenses. The court had previously ruled it would not grant attorneys' fees to either side.

Kebe's attorney did not respond to a Newsday request for comment. Kebe did not respond to an email sent to her public address.

On Monday the YouTuber wrote on her social media, "My Husband, Attorney's, & I fought really hard. I want to thank them for their long hours and sleepless nights. … See y'all in a few days. Back to work." She thanked supporters and said, "In this business, this is part of the protocol. Everyone in my seat has been through this, & this ain't the last. This comes with the territory."