Lauryn Hill Is Accused Of Fraud In A Lawsuit From Fugees Bandmate Pras Michel

The tumultuous history of the groundbreaking New Jersey hip-hop group Fugees has taken another turn for the worse. Following a series of canceled reunion tours and Pras Michel’s conviction for money laundering, Pras has now filed a lawsuit against Lauryn Hill, alleging that his bandmate committed fraud.

The lawsuit alleges that Hill mismanaged the reunion tour, with his attorneys calling it a “veiled and devious attempt to make a big score for herself.”

In the lawsuit, Michél claims that he made little money from the group’s scheduled 2023 arena tour since Hill controlled the tour budget that included “unnecessary, and, most likely fictitious, expenses, that seemed to be designed to lose money.” The suit claims that Hill was secretly taking 40 percent of tour guarantees and net profits while splitting the rest of the 60 percent with Jean and Michél. The tour ended up being canceled with Hill blaming “serious vocal strain.”

“Ms. Hill’s chronic tardiness was a hallmark of the tour, with shows routinely starting two or more hours late. Hill canceled the second half of the tour and, at the same time, financially penalized and defrauded Mr. Michel,” said Michél’s attorney Robert Meloni, of Meloni & McCaffrey, in a statement to Rolling Stone. “We assert that Ms. Hill misrepresented critical financial information and concealed her intent to take an excessive 60 percent share of the tour’s proceeds, leaving Mr. Michel with only 20 percent instead of the group’s customary one-third split.”

Hill issued a response shortly after the lawsuit’s filing calling the filing “baseless” and “full of false claims and unwarranted attacks.” Hill also claimed that she planned to go on tour with or without the Fugees and only included her fellow members to “aid” Michél amid his legal battles.

“I’ve been silent and pushing through because I understood that Pras was under duress because of his legal battles and that this was perhaps affecting his judgment, state of mind, and character,” Hill wrote.

Hill said in her statement that the lawsuit “notably omits” that Michél was given an overpaid advance of $3 million for the last tour and that he had yet to “repay substantial loans” she made to him as an “act of goodwill” so he could pay off his legal fees.

The lawsuit issued by Michél also claims that Hill rejected a $5 million offer to play Coachella since they would be billed below No Doubt with Michél claiming he was “never told” about the offer and only learned about it “when it was too late.”

“Hill’s arrogance was again demonstrated… the reason was that her ego was bruised since the group No Doubt would be receiving top billing over The Fugees the night of their show,” reads the lawsuit, which claims Hill asked Pras if she could perform Fugees songs with her son YG Marley at the fest. (Hill did not address this claim in her statement.)

The lawsuit mentioned that Hill pitched a tour with Fugees following her alleged unsuccessful solo tour with Michél’s attorneys claiming she “realized that the only chance for her to perform at arena-size venues and feed her insatiable ego” was to reconnect with Michél and Wyclef Jean, with whom she formed Fugees in the late Eighties.

“This legal action aims to hold Ms. Hill accountable and secure justice for Mr. Michel,” Meloni added in the statement. “The lawsuit comes on the cusp of the ‘Fugees’ European tour by Hill and Wyclef Jean, at which Michael will not be performing.”

The lawsuit claims that Hill took advantage of the fact that Michél was facing large legal fees over a battle with the Department of Justice after being named a co-defendant with Jho Low who allegedly stole $4.5 billion from Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund, when she asked him to join the tour. (Michél was convicted in 2023 for acting as an agent of China, although he was never accused of participating in the theft.)

In her response, Hill pointed back to his legal troubles, which she said she had no role in. “I was not in Pras’ life when he decided to make the unfortunate decision that led to his current legal troubles,” Hill wrote. “I did not advise that he make that decision and therefore am in no way responsible for his decision and its consequences though I have taken it upon myself to help.”

As for the group’s canceled 2024 tour, the lawsuit claims Live Nation had pulled the plug on the tour due to low ticket sales, although Hill blamed the media and its “clickbait headlines” about the band being late for shows for the band’s decision to cancel. In the lawsuit, Michél accuses Hill of “tarnishing” the Fugees brand for “showing up late for shows, sometimes by as many as two to three hours.”

“Because of the gross mismanagement by Hill and [her company], who had taken far too long to close the deal with Live Nation, the 2024 U.S. tour tickets sales were dismal,” reads the lawsuit. “There was little or no marketing for the tour, and not enough time between the announcement and the first concert date to do sufficient advance sales to justify the tour.”

Speaking to Vulture after the Fugees abruptly canceled the tour due to admitted low ticket sales, Michél said, “Everyone’s frustration has been building up. This is not something that just happened overnight. My frustration was for the fans. They are paying their hard-earned money to see you.”

via: Rolling Stone

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