Who is James Rosemond Jr.? Ice Spice's manager defends his client against Cleopatra's claims, says "Openers don't have same things headliners has"

James Rosemond Jr., Ice Spice's manager, recently came forward to defend his client against Celopatra's accusations of Ice mistreating her on tour. On September 2, Cleopatra took to TikTok to call out Ice Spice, claiming she was forced to pay her bill for hotel rooms and other expenses after Ice assured her she would be compensated.

Cleopatra also claimed she was forced to change in bathrooms instead of dressing rooms. On one occasion, she claimed Ice Spice's team said she was not factored into the budget and refused to pay for her food. Cleopatra was the opening act for some shows in Ice Spice's 'Y2K World Tour.'

Following these allegations, the Bronx rapper's manager, James Rosemond Jr., took to social media to put down his thoughts. He accused Cleopatra's team of mismanaging her expectations as an opener.

"You have to invest in yourself, aka pay expenses if need be for the opportunity. It’s corny. Someone gives you an opportunity and this is the thanks the person gets. Openers dont have same things headliners has," he wrote.

He also claimed that up-and-coming artists needed to be aware of how to leverage opportunities to further their careers. Rosemond Jr. also said it was Cleopatra's management's fault for not talking to his team regarding the time crunch, as the artist was only given a day's notice before she was expected to perform on stage.

He also said that both teams got in touch after the controversy, and Cleo's manager supposedly took full blame for the situation as he pushed his artist to continue with the tour. He also said Cleo's manager knew she was "100% wrong" in this situation.

In a follow-up tweet, James Rosemond Jr. said the situation could have been handled privately in a much better way.

"What rubs me the wrong way is we live in TikTok / social media economy where people know how to go viral for clout and they go public with something that can be handle from a private phone call to speak on differences."

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James Rosemond Jr., Ice Spice's manager, founded Mastermind Artists

James Rosemond Jr., who previously managed artists like Infrared and Sean Kingston, is the CEO and founder of Mastermind Artists, an artist management firm. Ice Spice was Rosemond's first female artist when he signed her in March 2022, months before the Bronx rapper blew up with her hit Munch (Feelin' You).

James Rosemond Jr. is the son of Jimmy Henchman, who managed artists like Gucci Mane and The Game. Henchman was incarcerated after being convicted of drug-related charges in 2013 and allegedly orchestrating the murder of late G-Unit affiliate Lowell Fletcher in 2009.

Rosemond Jr. initially brokered publishing deals for producers and songwriters with music companies before starting Mastermind Artist over a decade ago. In a September 2023 interview with Complex, he said:

"I was doing a lot of pub deals in the beginning of my career. So if it was with Patrick Moxy at Ultra Publishing or Larry Mestel at Primary Wave, I was just [brokering] a lot of those publishing deals for writers and producers and then evolved in managing artists."

He now manages Ice Spice and her producer, RiotUSA. In the same interview, he said his role as Ice's manager was to "protect and serve" her interests.

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Ice Spice released her debut album, Y2K, on July 26, 2024. The 10-track album featured artists like Travis Scott, Central Cee, and Gunna. The rapper also went on a 24-date tour across Europe and North America between July 4 and August 28.

On September 3, Ice Spice announced a second leg of the tour in Europe, the UK, and Australia between October 29, 2024, and January 5, 2025.