Following Pras Michel’s fraud lawsuit, Lauryn Hill has responded to her Fugees bandmate’s claim.
On Tuesday (10.01), among other claims, Michel sued his group’s lead singer for fraud and breach of contract for cancelling several of their 2023 live dates and all of their 2024 tour, and accused her of mismanaging the 2023 tour and leaving him “empty-handed” despite the shows being sold out.
In a protracted statement, Hill said that his “baseless” lawsuit is “full of false claims and unwarranted attacks” omitting that she and their bandmate Wyclef Jean deferred their full advances to give Michel a $3,000,000.00 tour advance to help pay for his legal issues.
“It notably omits that he was advanced overpayment for the last tour and has failed to repay substantial loans extended by myself as an act of goodwill,” she alleged. “The tour was expanded to incorporate the Fugees because I found out that Pras was in trouble and would need money to aid his legal defense.”
Now 49-years-old the superstar songstress stated that “Pras was given a $3M advance for the tour, which he said he required to pay his legal fees… An agreement was put in place to secure the repayment of the money he was advanced. Pras has not paid back the money he was advanced, and is currently in breach of this agreement,” adding that it was “absolutely disheartening” to be sued by her longtime bandmate and “someone I considered a friend”.
In a statement to Variety, a publicist for Michél’s attorney said “Ms. Hill’s response is categorically false. If she was so responsible with the management of the tour, why has she not sent an accounting to Pras?”
Three days prior to its start in August, The Fugees U.S. tour was quietly cancelled, and whole the U.K. and Europe leg is scheduled to launch in Dublin, Ireland on Monday its future is now in limbo.
In 2023, Pras Michel was found guilty of conspiracy to defraud the United States, witness tampering and acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government for his involvement in a scheme to help China influence U.S. politics.
Keep up with the latest trending music news by following us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
Author: Saul Goode
Photo: Justin Higuchi