News

Rowe Entertainment, the promoter of R. Kelly's Double Up tour, is facing a hefty lawsuit from Ne-Yo thanks to his abrupt removal from Kelly's opening slot in November. According to MTV.com, Ne-Yo claims he contributed to ticket sales and received a crowd reaction that was "at least as positive" as Kelly's during his two performances. Because of this, he's looking for the remainder of his $785,000 guarantee (for 25 shows, starting on November 14), a figure that hovers somewhere around $735,000.

Leonard Rowe says he pulled the R&B star because they never finalized a verbal agreement for the trek—something Ne-Yo blames on pending insurance information. "It was decided that in the best interest of all involved, since I was unable to receive the fully executed contract, I had no other alternative but to release Ne-Yo from the tour," Rowe said in a statement after the split. "From a business perspective, it would have been extremely difficult for me to continue under this cloud of uncertainty."

Rowe contends that Kelly had nothing to do with the situation, something his rep echoed to MTV, saying, "this was a contractual issue between Ne-Yo and the promoter, not Kelly's decision at all."

The Double Up party train winds down in mid-January, except for one cancelled date: January 13 in Hampton, VA, a casualty of Kelly's child pornography case. (He has to appear in a Chicago court on January 14.)

—The ARTISTdirect Staff
01.02.08