A few years ago, d4vd was one of the music industry’s most improbable breakout stories. The teenager went from recording songs on his phone in his sister’s closet to generating millions of dollars, signing with Interscope Records and producing billion-stream hits. Today, his financial situation apparently looks very different.
On August 31, 2026, the private attorneys representing d4vd in his murder case withdrew, and the court appointed the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office to take over his defense. His former lawyers, Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski and Regina Peter, confirmed that the court determined d4vd qualified for appointed counsel.
That is a remarkable development considering testimony surrounding the case revealed that his music career generated roughly $11 million in just three years. And there are now additional signs of how severe the financial pressure may have become: during the months after d4vd’s arrest, his father borrowed $138,000 against one Texas property and sold another home for $229,000.
From Bedroom Recordings To Millions
Born David Anthony Burke, d4vd became a viral sensation in 2022 with “Romantic Homicide,” followed by another enormous hit, “Here With Me.” His rise was extraordinarily fast. He had begun making music largely because he needed copyright-free songs for his gaming videos, recording vocals using an iPhone and the BandLab app.
After his songs exploded on TikTok and streaming services, d4vd signed with Darkroom and Interscope Records, the same label partnership that helped launch Billie Eilish. Within a few years, he had released a successful album, toured internationally, performed at major festivals and opened for artists including SZA. His two biggest songs accumulated billions of streams.
Financial information disclosed in connection with his criminal case later showed just how lucrative the run had become. His financial manager testified that d4vd’s career generated roughly $11 million between 2023 and 2025 through music, merchandise and related income. Interscope separately testified that it paid more than $5 million to Burke and entities associated with him between 2022 and 2025.
Those numbers were not equivalent to personal take-home income. Management commissions, attorneys, accountants, recording costs, touring expenses, taxes and other costs would have consumed a significant portion of the money. Still, an $11 million career over three years makes what happened next particularly striking.
(Photo by Ted Soqui – Pool/Getty Images)
Where Did The Money Go?
Music-industry revenue can shrink quickly after expenses. Record-company advances may be recoupable, while managers, attorneys, agents, producers and other participants can all take a share of an artist’s earnings. Touring can generate substantial revenue but also comes with enormous costs.
In d4vd’s case, substantial legal expenses were eventually added to the equation. Before qualifying for a public defender, he was represented by a team of prominent private criminal-defense attorneys. Defending a murder case involving extensive forensic evidence, investigators, expert witnesses and months of court proceedings can become enormously expensive, although exactly how much d4vd spent on his defense has not been disclosed.
There also is not much public evidence that d4vd simply burned through his money on an extravagant celebrity lifestyle. He was reportedly living in a rental property and was not known for flaunting mansions, exotic cars or other obvious luxury purchases. At the same time, his ability to generate fresh income essentially disappeared as his music career ground to a halt.
His Family Was Raising Cash
Real estate records provide another intriguing window into the financial pressure surrounding d4vd and his family.
In late April 2026, shortly after d4vd’s arrest, his father, Dawud Burke, took out a $138,000 loan secured by a property in Houston. Then, in early July, his father sold a separate three-bedroom, two-bathroom Houston home for $229,000.
The timing is notable because both transactions occurred while d4vd was facing mounting legal expenses and was still represented by his high-powered private defense team.
There is an important caveat: these were properties owned by his father, not d4vd, and there is no public evidence proving that the $138,000 loan or proceeds from the $229,000 home sale were used to fund d4vd’s defense. His father also reportedly continues to live in a separate Hempstead, Texas, home valued at around $850,000.
Even so, the combination is hard to ignore. While d4vd was struggling to maintain an expensive private defense, his father was simultaneously borrowing against one real estate asset and selling another.
A Career Comes To A Halt
d4vd’s music career unraveled following the September 2025 discovery of the remains of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez inside a Tesla registered to him. His tour was canceled, promotional activity stopped, commercial partnerships disappeared and his relationship with Interscope ultimately ended.
Burke was arrested in April 2026 and charged with murder and other crimes in connection with Hernandez’s death. He has pleaded not guilty. On August 31, prosecutors said the death penalty remained a possibility, although Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said no decision had been made.
That same day, d4vd’s private attorneys withdrew. “This morning the court granted our request to withdraw as counsel and appointed the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office, after it was determined David qualified for appointed counsel,” his former attorneys said in a statement.
That qualification is important. A public defender is not simply a free alternative available to any defendant who would rather avoid private legal fees. Court-appointed counsel exists for defendants who are financially unable to retain adequate private representation. In other words, the same artist whose career had generated roughly $11 million between 2023 and 2025 was now deemed unable to continue financing his own private criminal defense.
We still do not know exactly how much money d4vd has left, what assets he owns, how much has already been spent on attorneys or where all of his earlier earnings went. But the evidence of a dramatic change in circumstances is becoming difficult to dispute. His multimillion-dollar music career disappeared, his father borrowed $138,000 against one property and sold another for $229,000, his private attorneys withdrew, and a court ultimately determined that d4vd qualified for a taxpayer-funded public defender.
