Legendary saxophonist Kenny G has scored a victory in his bitter battle with his ex-wife over the Malibu estate he rents – to Amazon boss Jeff Bezos and fiancé Lauren Sanchez – for $600,000 a month.
Lyndie Benson, 58, whose divorce from musician was finalized in 2013, wants to force Kenny to sell the seaside property so she can share in the profit, DailyMail.com can reveal.
The musician – real name Kenneth Gorelick – bought the home in 1998 for $12million and purchased the house next door for $3million in 2000. Today it’s worth at least twice that amount.
Last year Kenny failed in a bid to slash $40,000-a-month spousal support payments to his ex after an LA judge was told he was renting out the palatial property to Amazon boss Jeff Bezos for an eyewatering $600,000-a-month.
Kenny, 67, and Benson have been fighting over his mega mansion ever since – he says he has no obligation to sell and can rent out as he pleases, adding in court papers that Benson had never mentioned the home until he tried to cut her money.
Kenny G was granted a protective order on his Malibu estate after ex-wife Lyndie Benson accused him of violating the terms of their divorce agreement by not selling the house. The legendary saxophonist – who is seen with his girlfriend Anaisia Thuy Nguyen (right) last week – laughed off the idea of a reconciliation between the two exes when approached by DailyMail.com
During a court battle seeking to amend his spousal support payments, the musician revealed he earned $600,000 a month in rental income alone after he began renting his home to the famous couple in April 2022
Bezos and Sanchez (pictured in Milan on January 13) are in the process of building their own palatial mansion nearby but have been shacking up at the Malibu compound in the meantime
Now, in a judgement dated January 4, he has won a protective order banning his ex-wife from engaging in vexatious legal maneuvers over the home and been told he doesn’t need to hand over a copy of the rental agreement with Bezos.
The ruling says the musician can also ignore all but two of Benson’s 38 requests for information about the home and the lease agreement – limiting it to one about any improvements made to the mega-mansion and another about whether any genuine offers to purchase the house have been made to him via a realtor.
As a result, the musical maestro – who has since moved on with new girlfriend Anaisia Thuy Nguyen – was relaxed and joked about his legal tussles when DailyMail.com caught up with him last week and asked about the divorce, saying: ‘Oh that was a long time ago. I never think about it.’
The dad-of-two then burst out laughing when a rapprochement with Benson was suggested, telling DailyMail.com: ‘That makes me laugh!’
The composer made a public appearance with Nguyen just a few weeks after the judgment was handed down, at The Aviation Awards at The Beverly Hilton Hotel, where the two lovebirds were all smiles.
Multiple Grammy winner Kenny, divorced Benson in 2013 and agreed to a settlement that sees him shell out $40,000 per month in spousal support.
In 2021, he filed to have the amount reduced – claiming his income had dropped dramatically since 2018 and that he could no longer afford it.
But in March last year, his request to slash his spousal support bill was denied – after it was revealed he was renting out his Malibu estate for $600,000-a-month to tech tycoon Bezos, who is currently renovating his own $165million Malibu mansion.
Benson then claimed she is being short-changed and is now trying to force him to sell the property which was awarded solely to him in their divorce.
After the saxophonist revealed he was renting the home in court filings last year, Benson ‘made several requests’ for Kenny to ‘turn over all emails and documentation pertaining to the lease’ – which he denied
Meanwhile, Amazon boss Jeff Bezos, 59, is currently building his own mansion nearby after paying $175million for the near 10-acre property – which was previously owned by former Warner Bros. President Jack Warner – back in 2020
In court, Benson said the identity of the renter – Bezos and fiancée Lauren Sanchez – is widely known
Using a 1924 judgement as a precedent, she says she is owed 25 per cent of the home’s sale price above $40million and says he should be forced to sell up in her lifetime.
His team, led by hotshot divorce attorney Laura Wasser whose previous clients include Kevin Costner, say he is under no obligation to sell – or give his ex-wife any part of the rental proceeds.
They also say Benson is engaging in vexatious litigation by filing multiple discovery requests and say a confidentiality clause in the rental agreement prevents him from handing it over.
In court, Benson said the identity of the renter – Bezos and fiancée Lauren Sanchez – is widely known.
But her arguments failed to impress the Honorable Scott J. Nord whose January 4 judgement denied nearly all of her discovery requests and her wish for financial sanctions against the musician.
The saxophonist is the best-selling instrumental artist ever and released his 20th studio album last month: Innocence.
Speaking about the new release, he told DailyMail.com: ‘It’s an album of lullabies actually, which is kind of cliched for my music.’
Kenny G, wife Lyndie Benson and sons Max and Noah
The legendary musician has 11 platinum albums and eight multi-platinum releases under his belt, with more than 75 million records sold
Nonetheless, he spent most of last month on the road to promote the new release, with performances in Munhall, Pennsylvania, Englewood, New Jersey and Wheeling, West Virginia, among others.
The 67-year-old’s previous efforts include 11 platinum albums and eight multi-platinum releases, with more than 75 million records sold.
Along with collaborating with Katy Perry and Kanye West, his music appeared on the soundtrack for The SpongeBob Movie, and in 2021, HBO made a documentary of his life and music, Listening to Kenny G.
The following year, he appeared in a Super Bowl advert for the beer Busch Light – his second Super Bowl ad, after appearing for Audi in 2011.
In 2022, he told Forbes he didn’t mind being mocked for being everywhere.
‘If I’m the butt of the joke, if it’s funny, I love it,’ he says, recalling how 1992 comedy film Wayne’s World included a joke about a dentist swapping out Novocain for his music.
He also referenced a South Park episode which mentioned how his music ‘makes everyone crap their pants,’ and how Saturday Night Live made fun of him for a duet he did with Frank Sinatra.
‘It doesn’t bother me because it’s truly funny.’
