M.I.A. sues Kid Cudi after being fired from his tour

M.I.A., who was removed from her supporting slot on Kid Cudi’s Rebel Ragers tour last month for making what Cudi called “offensive remarks” on stage, is now suing the Man on the Moon rapper for an alleged breach of contract. M.I.A., born Mathangi Arulpragasam, claimed in the May 29 suit that Cudi fired her in order to garner publicity after ticket sales dipped. She further alleged that Cudi was aware of her politics before he asked her to join the tour, and that her contract had granted her full creative control over each night’s performance. Arulpragasam also made the claim that Cudi forced Live Nation to breach a contract with her, which would have given her a $2.8 million payout, as well as any revenue tied to merchandise and VIP packages sold during the North American dates. 

“M.I.A. was terminated to generate publicity for the Tour, which has struggled with ticket sales,” the complaint states. “She was contractually allowed to say whatever she wanted on stage. M.I.A. now holds Kid Cudi accountable for his bad faith destruction of her contractual rights, business opportunities, and reputation.” The suit describes Cudi’s motivations as “purely commercial” and alleges that he has “ridiculed and attempted to ‘cancel’ M.I.A. to market the Tour and sell tickets.” Arulpragasam is requesting that the court force Cudi to pay the $2.8 million she would have received, in addition to legal fees and damages. 

Cudi announced Arulpragasam’s departure from his tour after a disastrous Dallas show, from which clips showed M.I.A. being booed after announcing she would not play her song “Illygal” because members of the crowd “might be.” Cudi wrote, “After the last couple shows, I’ve been flooded with messages from fans that were upset by her rants… I won’t have someone on my tour making offensive remarks that upset my fanbase.” Though the artist was an asylum seeker in the U.K. from Sri Lanka, and her most popular song, “Paper Planes,” is a tongue-in-cheek paean to the immigrant hustle, recent years have seen M.I.A. make a sharp turn toward right-wing rhetoric—singing the praises of President Donald Trump and shirking vaccines. But, in her lawsuit, M.I.A. called Cudi’s statement “riddled with falsehoods.” Cudi’s tour is still ongoing, with A-Trak and Big Boi billed as the opening acts.

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