Drake concert film producers considering suing rapper for libel

Rapper Drake is facing the threat of legal action after publicly distancing himself from the release of a concert documentary he filmed in 2009.

The Started From The Bottom hitmaker reached out to fans online on Monday (16Mar15), claiming he and his OVO record label bosses have nothing to do with the film Drake's Homecoming: The Lost Footage, which is due to be released later this week (begs16Mar15).

The documentary features the recording of a show he staged in his native Toronto, Canada in May, 2009, a month before he signed his big record deal with Lil Wayne's Young Money Entertainment, and includes interviews with hip-hop moguls and the film's producers, James Prince and Jas Prince, who claim to have discovered the rapper.

Drake, who does not appear in any footage away from the stage, took to his Twitter.com account this week and declared the film was unauthorized, writing, "The Drake Homecoming film is not something OVO or Drake have any part in. I feel it is my responsibility to inform and protect my fans."

However, Mark Berry, whose production company Attack Media is helping to release the footage with bosses at Serious Entertainment, claims Drake signed a contract with Serious executives back when he was still a rising star, allowing them to shoot the gig in exchange for a $15,000 advance and 15 per cent of the documentary's profits, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Berry says, "I think he thought nothing was going to happen with the film. (The issue boils down to) someone not honoring a contractual commitment to another person."

Production bosses are now contemplating filing a libel suit against Drake, which could be worth as much as $15 million .

Drake has yet to respond to the accusations.

The documentary is scheduled for a 'one night only' cinema release in the U.S. and U.K. on Thursday (19Mar15). It will be released in other selected countries in March and April (15).