Agency Sues Supafest Promoter

A U.S. booking agency is suing an Australian promoter for allegedly failing to pay $1.9 million in fees for artists booked for the four-day Supafest festival downunder in April.

The lawsuit filed by American Talent Agency Aug. 3 in New York Supreme Court accuses Dwayne Cross and his Paperchase Touring and Entertainment of breach of contract, unjust enrichment, fraudulent misrepresentation and contract interference.

ATA claims it had agreements with Paperchase to book Kelly Rowland, T-Pain, Sean “Diddy” Combs, Big Sean, Ludacris and Missy Elliott to perform at the shows in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Perth.

Court papers say that Big Sean and Ludacris were paid in full, but not the other artists.

Rowland and T-Pain performed all shows they agreed to although they hadn’t been paid in full.

ATA claims Cross dropped Elliott from the lineup on short notice, leaving ATA to pay the performer a $50,000 cancellation fee. Elliot did not receive any up-front payments.

The suit also claims Combs pulled out of the event because he’d only been paid a portion of his promised $1.6 million fee.

Supafest reportedly drew more than 100,000 fans for a lineup that also included Chris Brown, Lupe Fiasco, Trey Songz, Ice Cube and Naughty By Nature.