I took a writing class in college, liked it, and my first year out of school I couldn't get a job, so I wrote a play.
In retrospect I realize that the threat was about ego rather than the validity of the music.
The word of the mouth is a very powerful thing and you can say something about someone that is not necessarily true, but people will believe it and it will become a constant reminder and every time that your name is bought up, that will come up.