Brass Michel opened up about his disappointment over the Fugees' recent tour cancellation — but stopped short of blaming Lauryn Hill for the canceled reunion tour — in a new interview.
Talk to eagle Two weeks after the Fugees abruptly canceled their tour due to low ticket sales, Michel said the trio's varied touring history, as well as Hill's reputation for being constantly late to concerts — and “not some media outlets' penchant for sensationalism and interesting headlines,” as Hill claimed — may have affected demand for concerts.
“I was surprised and not surprised at the same time,” Michel said of the lukewarm sales of the now-canceled tour. “Last year, there were supposed to be 20 shows, and we did 10. They sold out, but they had to do 10 more shows so they canceled them. Now, when the shows go on sale this year, people say, How do we know this won't be canceled? “Fans say, ‘It’s summer, school is about to start, I have to buy my kids stuff, and there’s inflation.’ There’s so much you have to juggle in your life. You go through that process until you turn around and say, ‘Sorry, the show’s canceled.’”
The Fugees first revealed plans for a reunion after a 15-year hiatus in September 2021, with Hill, Michele, and Wyclef Jean announcing their return with a Global Citizen show days later. Even that gig, Michele revealed to Vulture, was plagued by problems, with Hill’s habit of showing up hours late to the stage leading to the Fugees playing a pre-recorded standalone set on a New York rooftop instead of performing live during the livestream event. Brass said Hill, as expected, was three hours late for the reunion show, leading to some fans’ cars being towed.
“Everyone’s frustration has built up. It didn’t happen overnight. My frustration is with the fans. They’re paying their hard-earned money to see you,” Michel said. eagle.
The reunion tour subsequently went through several stops and starts, including being postponed due to COVID-19 in October 2021 and then canceled in January 2022, followed by the announcement of another reunion tour, which resulted in physical concerts and canceled dates.
“I've never seen this kind of fan reaction to Lauryn Hill,” Michel added. “There's rejection — We help you pay your bill.. Just as we should be happy that you came, you should be happy that we came.“This dynamic is a two-way street. It’s tough love. But that’s not an indictment of her or her character. All people complain about is the delays… We’re almost three decades into our existence, individually and collectively. To have people who are still interested in wanting to see you, man, you have to be grateful.”
After the Fugees' tour was cancelled, Michel released a new song called “Bar Mitzfa” which was interpreted as an offensive song to Hill; Michel told eagle It was more about him venting his anger about the situation.
“You’re family, you have internal disagreements, but it’s not going to the level where I’m abusing her — it doesn’t make sense,” Michelle said. “Artistically, sometimes we say things because that’s how we express ourselves. This track is me speaking my truth. When I was writing the album, these lines came out. These were actually the last lines that came out: ‘Don’t blame me, blame her, she made a mess.’ It sounded great!”
