Lauryn Hill Fires Back At Pras' "Baseless" Lawsuit

Lauryn Hill has responded to the lawsuit fellow Fugee Pras filed Tuesday (October 1) in the Southern District of New York. The full list of claims include fraud, fraud in the inducement, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, accounting and refusal to permit an audit of the Fugees’ tour.

In a lengthy statement sent to AllHipHop and later posted to Instagram, Hill called Pras’ lawsuit “baseless” and insisted it’s “full of false claims and unwarranted attacks.” Hill also said she was only trying to help Pras pay his mounting legal fees stemming from his ongoing federal corruption case. As she explained, “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 said the lawsuit “notably omits” that Pras was advanced “overpayment for the last tour” and has failed to repay “substantial loans” extended by Hill “as an act of goodwill.”

She continued, “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. 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.”

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Hill revealed Pras was given a $3 million advance for the tour and that both she and Wyclef Jean deferred their full advances to ensure he could cover the fees.

“I covered most of the tour expenses, as the majority of the tour advance had gone to Pras,” she added. “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.”

Hill also alleged Pras basically just had to show up and perform; nothing else was required of him.

“As of the last tour Pras thanked me for ‘saving his life’. (I have the receipts.),” she said. “I am not in the business of kicking anyone, especially when they’re down, which is why I haven’t responded to date. It is absolutely disheartening to see Pras in this position, my band mate and someone I considered a friend.”

Hill recognized she wasn’t in Pras’ life when he found himself in trouble but decided to help him anyway. She concluded, “Despite his attacks, I am still compassionate and hope things work out for him.”

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Pras’ lawsuit alleges that Hill “grossly mismanaged” the setup, marketing and budgeting of the Fugees 2023 tour and called it a “veiled and devious attempt to make a big score for herself.” He also accused Hill of secretly siphoning money from the tour guarantees. It also paints Hill as “narcissistic” and alleges that she turned down a $5 million offer for the Fugees to perform at Coachella because No Doubt would get top billing.

“Hill’s arrogance was again demonstrated when she unilaterally rejected a $5 Million offer [to play Coachella],” it reads. “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. Hill never told Pras about the offer or that she had was rejected it. Pras only learned about it when it was too late, after Hill, in an astonishing display of hubris, asked Pras if he would agree to perform a few Fugees songs for free as the opening act for her son, ‘YG’ Marley, who was slated to perform at the same Coachella festival.”

Hill’s attorney, Howard King, tells AllHipHop, “This desperate and unfortunate lawsuit brought by Pras Michel is packed with lies and intentionally disparaging remarks. It is particularly disappointing that the suit fails to reveal that Pras was grossly over advanced for the last tour to help him pay his mounting legal bills. His failure to show appreciation for the financial help Ms. Hill has afforded him in his time of need is disappointing. This action will be aggressively defended and defeated.”