Lauryn Hill Responds After Fugees Co-Founder Sues Her For Fraud & More

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Lauryn Hill issued a lengthy response after Fugees co-founder Pras Michél filed a lawsuit against her.

On Tuesday, October 1, Variety reported that Michél is suing Hill in federal court for fraud, breach of contract, fraud in the inducement, breach of fiduciary duty, accounting and refusal to permit an audit of the Fugees’ failed tour. In court documents that were filed in the Southern District of New York, the Fugees co-founder accused Hill of fumbling every aspect of their anticipated tour including setup, budgeting and marketing. He also alleged the singer swiped money from tour proceeds. Hill vehemently denied the allegations from the “baseless” lawsuit.

 

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“This baseless lawsuit by Pras is full of false claims and unwarranted attacks,” she wrote in her statement. “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. Last year’s tour was put together to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. It was being planned whether the Fugees were involved or not.”

Michél’s lawsuit claimed Hill and the Fugees’ 2023 arena tour was going to be a major success especially since most of the shows were sold out in advance. He said things started going downhill after the “Everything Is Everything” singer abruptly canceled the second half of the tour in November 2023 due to a “serious vocal strain.” He also claimed the only way Hill would be able to perform in arena-sized venues was if she billed her “25th anniversary tour” as a Fugees reunion.

Pras Michél accepted the opportunity to get funds to pay off his legal fees from his four-year battle with the Department of Justice. He was named a co-defendant in financier Jho Low’s case. He was convicted of violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act and acting as an agent of China in April 2023. After the tour was canceled, Michél barely earned enough to cover his fees and accrued nearly $1 million in expenses. According to the lawsuit, “Hill was taking 40% of the tour guarantees and tour net profits ‘off the top’ for herself, leaving the remaining 60% to be split equally between Hill, Pras and Wyclef.” Michél and his team say they just found out about Hill’s financial plan this year.

The rapper also claimed Hill turned down a $5 million offer to perform at Coachella without telling Michél. It also alleged Hill “tarnished the Fugees brand” due to her tendency to be late to her shows. She blamed the media for creating the narrative about her reputation for being tardy in a statement she released after her most recent tour was canceled.