Ready or not, a legal battle has come on the heels the failed Fugees reunion tour.
Pras Michel, a co-founder of the Grammy-winning hip-hop trio, has sued ex-bandmate Lauryn Hill for fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and breach of contract a year after the plug was pulled on their 2023 tour.
The “Ghetto Supastar” rapper claims in legal documents filed Tuesday in the Southern District of New York that Hill exploited his “vulnerable legal situation, manipulating him into an unfair agreement for The Fugees’ 2023 reunion tour.”
Michel, 51, was found guilty of money laundering, illegal lobbying and campaign finance violations in D.C. federal court last year. He’s currently seeking a new trial.
In its introduction, the legal complaint states: “Betrayals are always sinister, but the closer the betrayer, the greater the evil. Some say that God gives you friends to make up for your family. The Lord must have been off the day he paired Lauryn Hill with Wyclef Jean and Pras Michel, the plaintiff in this action, because the betrayal among the forged Fugees family has risen to Mythic proportions. This is their tale of woe.”
In a statement on Tuesday, Michel’s lawyer, Robert S. Meloni, referred to “Ms. Hill’s chronic tardiness” as “a hallmark of the tour, with shows routinely starting two or more hours late.”
He asserts the “Ex Factor” singer then “canceled the second half of the tour and, at the same time, financially penalized and defrauded Mr. Michel.”
Hill and the Fugees’ long-awaited reunion tour was canceled days before its scheduled kick off on Aug. 9 in Tampa. Hill later confirmed on social media that the Europe and UK legs of the tour were “moving ahead as planned.”
European tour dates are still on sale via the Live Nation website, beginning with Oct. 9 in Cardiff, Wales.
Meloni said the lawsuit “comes on the cusp of the Fugees European tour by Hill and Wyclef Jean, at which Michel will not be performing.”
Musicians Wyclef Jean, Lauryn Hill and Pras Michel of the Fugees pose backstage at the BET Awards 05 at the Kodak Theatre on June 28, 2005 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Frank Micelotta/Getty Images)
With the intention of holding “Ms. Hill accountable and secure justice for Mr. Michel,” the attorney claims “Ms. Hill misrepresented critical financial information and concealed her intent to take an excessive 60% share of the tour’s proceeds, leaving Mr. Michel with only 20% instead of the group’s customary one-third split.”
The Delaware-incorporated MLH Touring company, reportedly owned by Hill, is also named as a defendant in the suit.
Michel is seeking unspecified damages and demanding a trial by jury.
In an Instagram statement Tuesday afternoon, Hill called the lawsuit “baseless” and “full of false claims and unwarranted attacks.”
She said up until now she has 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 claimed Michel was given a $3 million advance for the tour and revealed that “as of the last tour Pras thanked me for ‘saving his life,’” indicating she has “the receipts” to back up her claims.
