Promoter Accused Of 50 Cent Scam

Several investors are reportedly suing New Orleans concert promoter Marcel Morton, claiming he scammed them out of money for a 2007 50 Cent concert that has yet to take place.

Four investors filed lawsuits in Jefferson Parish and New Orleans Civil Court accusing Morton and his firm, Down South Entertainment, of fraud, misrepresentation and breach of contract, according to WWL-TV.

The plaintiffs claim to have invested from $55,000 to $150,000 in the September 2007 50 Cent matter on Morton’s assurance each would double their return. However, that concert has yet to materialize and the parties are tired of waiting, the station said.

Morton denied claims he’s ripping people off, telling WWL-TV his investors will be repaid once the concert takes place, which he says has been rescheduled for 2010.

“Some things happened beyond my control,” Morton told the station. “I’m not in control of an entertainer’s schedule.”

Morton added that he can’t give the investors back their money now because the funds were “paid for deposits toward the event.”
“The event is based upon 50 Cent releasing a CD,” he told WWL-TV.

Although Morton’s explanation sounds plausible because the performer’s latest, Before I Self-Destruct, dropped Nov. 16, there’s a glaring problem.

The rapper’s agent, Cara Lewis at William Morris Endeavor Entertainment, told Pollstar that neither she nor 50 Cent’s management know anything about Morton’s claim of a booking.