M.I.A. Sues Kid Cudi for $2.8M After Removal From ‘Rebel Ragers Tour’

By Kyle Eustice

Mere weeks after Kid Cudi removed M.I.A. from his Rebel Ragers Tour for making “offensive remarks,” the Sri Lankan artist is retaliating with a new lawsuit. Over the weekend, her team fired off a statement accusing Cudi of making “false allegations” against the “Paper Planes” singer.

“Kid Cudi’s attempts to silence freedom of artistic expression and speech on his ‘Rebel Ragers Tour’ cannot go unchallenged,” the statement read. “Kid Cudi claimed shock over her comments he now labels as ‘offensive’ and his abrupt and unjustified termination of her performance agreement is a desperate attempt to sell tickets for his tour that was drastically underselling. As a result, his false allegations have fueled a misguided, hive-minded pile-on based on a deliberate misrepresentation of her words.”

M.I.A. Hits Back After Kid Cudi Fires Her From Tour

According to the lawsuit—filed May 29 in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California per Rolling Stone —M.I.A. is seeking $2.8 million from the Rebel Ragers Tour promoter and Live Nation. Attorneys for M.I.A. claim Live Nation agreed to pay her that amount “regardless of what she said on stage.” The lawsuit also says Cudi “directed Live Nation to fire M.I.A.” and claimed she knew she was prohibited from saying anything “offensive” on stage. The lawsuit states otherwise.

“M.I.A. was terminated to generate publicity for the Tour, which has struggled with ticket sales,” the complaint says. “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.”

Kid Cudi kicked M.I.A. off the tour last month after she allegedly told a Dallas crowd, “I’ve been canceled for many reasons. I never thought I would be canceled for being a brown Republican voter,” and added that she wouldn’t perform her song “Illegal” because “there’s probably one in the crowd.”

Shortly after the backlash began on social media, Cudi tweeted, “After the last couple shows, I’ve been flooded with messages from fans that were upset by her rants. This, to me, is very disappointing and I won’t have someone on my tour making offensive remarks that upsets my fanbase. Thank you for understanding. Rager.”

However, the lawsuit states Cudi’s statement was “riddled with falsehoods” and called her removal an “intentional interference with contractual relations.”

“Kid Cudi’s conduct caused Live Nation to breach the Agreement,” the complaint reads. “He directed Live Nation to terminate M.I.A. from the Tour. He caused Live Nation to fail to pay Plaintiffs the $2,805,000 Guarantee. He caused Live Nation to breach the Agreement’s provision guaranteeing the Company full creative control of M.I.A.’s performance.”

Following her removal, M.I.A. unleashed a flurry of tweets claiming she was canceled for “being a Republican voting American.” Kid Cudi has yet to publicly respond to the lawsuit.

_Originally reported by [Pollstar](https://news.pollstar.com/2026/06/01/m-i-a-suing-kid-cudi-for-2-8m-after-being-fired-from-rebel-ragers-tour/)._