Lauryn Hill has responded to the new lawsuit filed against her by her Fugees bandmate Pras Michel – see what she had to say below.
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Yesterday (October 1), it was reported that Michel had filed a lawsuit against Hill alleging her of fraud after Hill’s and the Fugees’ anniversary tour across the US was cancelled in August just days before it was due to kick off.
In the lawsuit, Michel claimed that their comeback tour was sabotaged by Hill’s “arrogance” and “narcissistic tendencies” and that the group’s 2023 tour – which also saw several dates cancelled – would have been “a huge commercial success” given advance sales but Hill had grossly mismanaged the setup, marketing and budgeting of the tour and claimed it “was actually a veiled and devious attempt to make a big score for herself.”
Now, in a new statement shared with NME, Hill has addressed Michel’s claims head-on, during which she alludes to his lawsuit stemming from his own legal troubles. In April 2023, Michel was convicted for his involvement in a billion-dollar Malaysian money laundering scheme. He was guilty of 10 federal counts, including campaign finance violations, money laundering, illegal lobbying, witness tampering, and lying to banks. The Fugees’ 2022 reunion tour was completely cancelled reportedly due to Michel’s legal troubles.
Hill said to begin her statement: “Some clarity and facts need to be presented. 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.”
She would then go on to lay out seven “facts” surrounding the cancelled tours, its management, her funding of nearly every aspect of the tour and Michél’s legal cases. In her first defence, Hill called Pras’ lawsuit “baseless” and “full of false claims and unwarranted attacks”, claiming that it “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 also explained that the 2023 tour was meant to be in celebration of ‘The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’, and that the Fugees weren’t meant to be part of it.
Her second “fact” claims that the previously mentioned ‘Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’ tour was then “expanded to incorporate the Fugees because I found out that Pras was in trouble and would need money to aid his legal defense.” The third “fact” presented by Hill expands on “fact #2”, saying Michél was “given a $3million advance… which he said he required to pay his legal fees.”
She added that she and Wyclef Jean then deferred their “full advances to make sure he had what he needed”. She continued: “I covered most of the tour expenses, as the majority of the tour advance had gone to Pras. 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.”
“Facts” four and five see Hill claiming that the Fugees would be using her “band, production, and set up” that were already in place for the ‘Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’ shows and that “Pras basically just had to show up and perform”. She added that “as of the last tour, Pras thanked me for ‘saving his life,’” adding that she has “receipts”.
Hill then said she hasn’t responded to any of his public comments about her since the cancellation of the August tour as she’s “not in the business of kicking anyone, especially when they’re down” and that it’s “disheartening to see Pras in this position, my band mate and someone I considered a friend”.
Her seventh and final “fact” reads: “I was not in Pras’ life when he decided to make the unfortunate decision that lead to his current legal troubles. 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. Despite his attacks, I am still compassionate and hope things work out for him.”
Following the cancellation of Hill’s and the Fugees’ US tour, she in August confirmed that their run of dates in the UK and Europe – which is due to kick off on October 7 – will proceed as scheduled, though it is now unclear if those shows are in jeopardy of being scrapped amid the ongoing lawsuit and tension between members.
