Lola Young in Legal Dispute with Producer Carter Lang Over ‘Messy’ Amid Career Hiatus

Lola Young is currently in the midst of a legal row with US producer Carter Lang over her hit song Messy.

Carter, who has produced for the likes of Justin Bieber and SZA, is reportedly claiming Lola owes him money from the track, which has over one billion streams.

Court fillings allegedly show the dispute between the singer, 24, and producer in which he also demands money for three of her other songs.

A source told The Sun: ‘Lola and her team were stunned when they found out Carter wanted a cut from the success of Messy. Now Messy is only getting more traction, he has come out of the woodwork and is demanding money. It has blindsided everyone.

‘Lola’s legal team have got involved now and are hoping to put this to bed quickly because it is incredibly stressful for a young artist who has only ever supported the people she’s worked with.’

The source added: ‘He’s also claiming he is owed money for three other songs.’

A statement from her lawyers reads: ‘It is with immense disappointment we have had no choice but to respond to recent writing credit claims from Carter Lang on four Lola Young songs by issuing legal proceedings. 

‘Carter’s claims are strongly refuted and we will not allow Lola’s reputation and integrity to be called into question, particularly so long after the sessions took place and agreements were put in place.

‘Lola has always been authentic in her song writing process and acknowledges song writing contributions where appropriate. This dispute has been ongoing for several months and we look forward to the truth being established.’

Daily Mail has contacted Lola Young and Carter Lang’s representatives for comment. 

The legal fight comes days after Lola revealed she will be cancelling her remaining tour dates to take a break from the public eye, after sparking concern when she collapsed on-stage.

The singer was ‘carried off stage’ by staff during her performance at a festival in New York last week, but later reassured her followers that she was fine.

Lola shared the sad news with her followers that she will be ‘going away for a while’ to ‘work on herself,’ adding that she would be cancelling her tour shows for the ‘foreseeable future.’

The Messy hitmaker had been due to fly to the UK for a show in Manchester on October 6, followed by dates in Birmingham and London.

In a post on Instagram, Lola wrote: ‘I’m going away for a while. It pains me to say I have to cancel everything for the foreseeable future. Thank you for all the love and support.

‘I’m so sorry to let anyone down who has bought a ticket to see me, it hurts me more than you know. Obviously you will be entitled to a full refund.

‘I really hope you’ll give me a second chance once I’ve had some time to work on myself and come back stronger. Love you all, Lola.’

Lola had already cancelled her performance at Washington DC on Sunday, which was due to take place a day after she collapsed in New York.

In a statement posted on Instagram, she wrote: ‘I’m sorry to confirm that I won’t be playing All Things Go in DC today.

‘I love this job and I never take my commitments and audience for granted so I’m sorry to those who will be disappointed by this.

‘I hope you’ll all give me another chance in the future. Thank you to all those who listen and care. To all the people that love to be mean online, pls give me a day off.’

Lola’s medical emergency came just moments after she admitted she had a ‘tricky couple of days’ and wasn’t sure she could have attended the festival. 

She said on stage: ‘I had a tricky couple of days, sometimes life makes you feel that you can’t continue but you know what, I woke up and made the decision to come here.’

The singer, best known for her 2024 hit Messy, was singing Conceited at Forest Hills stadium when she suffered the worrying ordeal.

Lola took to Instagram hours after to address the incident and wrote: ‘Hi, for anyone who saw my set at all things go today, I am doing okay now. Thank you for all of your support xxx’ 

The mystery medical crisis occurred after she cancelled a concert on Friday ‘due to a sensitive matter’.

Lola’s manager Nick Shymansky wrote on social media: ‘There are [occasionally] days where myself and my team have to take protective measures to keep her safe.

‘She is an incredible person and always takes her fans, career and performances seriously. I can only send huge apologies for the inconvenience caused.’

Lola revealed in 2022 that she had been diagnosed at the age of 17 with schizoaffective disorder.

She said in an Instagram post: ‘I cant find the words to describe how much this diagnosis has affected my entire life, and my outlook on the world around me. I have struggled immensely learning to accept this part of myself, and I am still learning.

‘I have to remind myself that I am a regular f****** person, I am human and I am, like everyone, capable of incredible things, my mental health condition does not define me. It is my superpower.’

Schizoaffective disorder is a mental health condition that is marked by a mix of schizophrenia symptoms, such as hallucinations and delusions, and mood disorder symptoms, such as depression, mania and a milder form of mania called hypomania, as per the NHS.

She made the discovery aged 17 after having suffered with what she thought was clinical depression and bipolar disorder.

She explained that she had an uncle on either side of her family who also had schizophrenia and who had both tragically died.

Lola believed that the condition may in part have been triggered by smoking cannabis as a way to manage childhood trauma, which she chose not to disclose the details of.

She said she can usually sense an oncoming manic episode when she starts getting strange thoughts, but is usually able to medicate to keep things under wraps, though she has previously been taken by surprise and ended up being sectioned.

Lola admitted the unpredictability of her illness makes touring difficult, and she sometimes has manic episodes that last a month and doesn’t sleep for several days on the trot.

Lola said that her illness can present her with a lot of guilt and shame, and that she often feels ostracised after incidents in which she has been unwell in front of people.