NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Channel 4 has obtained brand-new audio tapes with conversations between country singer John Rich's manager and singer Jared Ashley that suggest Rich's camp was offering cash to make the lawsuit between the two singers go away.

At issue is whether Rich's manager illegally offered advice in an attempt to persuade Ashley to settle a deal.

According to Tennessee state law, it is a misdemeanor for a person to conduct settlement negotiations on behalf of a third party if they are not licensed to practice law.

It all started a year ago on stage at Legends Corner bar, where Rich allegedly assaulted "Nashville Star" hopeful Ashley.

This March, Ashley filed a civil suit claiming Rich punched him in the face at Rich's private club on Broadway.

The next month, Rich filed a defamation lawsuit against Ashley.

This week, Ashley's attorney filed a motion to disqualify Rich's attorneys from the case, claiming they illegally tried to bribe his client to take a deal through a third party.

"I would like to see if I could work out some sort of settlement with you guys, and I think I can get John to play ball, too, because he's getting pretty tired of it as well," said Rich's manager Marc Oswald, who isn't a licensed attorney, on the audio recording.

The audio recordings are supposedly a conversation between Oswald and Ashley on May 22. The recordings are edited. Ashley never speaks.

"One thing about the music business, country music business in particular, is, you know, as long as you're not a child rapist or gay, you can get away with a lot … You know what I mean?" said Oswald on the tape.

"I would say, dude, if this guy is ready to back off and ready to write a check for aggravation and by doing so, it's over and you can feel like you accomplished a lot, I would do it," Oswald said. "If I can agree with you on the number and he drops his and you drop yours and you call the detective, we could be done with this today."

Oswald said he did meet with Ashley and his attorney over the Memorial Day weekend.

"For a manager of a musical artist to sit with somebody on a matter like this and say it is possible to resolve it, I would think would be in everybody's best interest rather than burning up the time of the court system," said Oswald on the audio tape.

The two sides apparently never struck a deal. A couple weeks ago, Rich said Ashley's attorneys demanded he pay $2.9 million to settle.

Rich refused and said it would all be worked out in court.

There was supposed to be a settlement hearing Thursday morning, but since an agreement has not been reached yet, Rich wasn't present.

The assault and harassment case against Rich will now go to trial in October.