Former Fugees member Pras Michel is suing the New York Post for a hefty $30 million for defamation after the tabloid accused him of skipping out on a performance.
The Post claimed Pras did not attend his own benefit concert in New York on 9/11. The concert took place in Hell’s Kitchen and was organized by Hope for Them. Pras, whose real name is Prakazrel Samuel Michel, says he is not even involved with Hope for Them and he was on a completely different continent in the days before the benefit concert. Therefore, Pras says the Post‘s story is completely false. Pras has filed the lawsuit in Broward Country, Fl, where he resides.
The Post says promoter, Mike Jean, informed the paper that Pras was unable to make the show because he was sick with the flu. Pras, who says he was completely healthy at the time, denies these allegations. Instead of taking up a lawsuit with Jean, Pras has gone directly to the source, claiming the New York Post‘s “reckless ‘reporting’ would be deemed as such had a high school student drafted the Article.”
At the time of the free benefit concert, the Grammy Award-winning singer was in Los Angeles, participating in unrelated charity work. Prior to that he had been in North Korea. Pras says he is most upset because he takes his charity work very seriously, and will not allow the Post to depict him as an artist that simply did not show up.
This is not the first time that the New York Post has been hit with lawsuits pertaining to defamation and fact-checking, or lack thereof. The newspaper is currently under review after publishing a report about two innocent Massachusetts residents during the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings.