Kid Cudi Uses Constitution Against M.I.A.’s Free Speech Lawsuit

Kid Cudi just threw the Constitution at M.I.A.’s lawsuit, claiming his First Amendment rights protect his decision to remove her from his tour back in May.

The rapper’s legal team filed a response to her $2.8 million suit, arguing that he’s got every right to control the artistic and political content of his own show, which means he can make casting decisions that align with his vision.

That’s a pretty bold move in court.

M.I.A. had sued after getting fired from the Rebel Ragers Tour following her onstage comments in Dallas, where she talked about being canceled for being a brown Republican voter and made remarks about immigration.

According to TMZ, Cudi’s response basically says the First Amendment shields him from liability here because artists have the right to curate their own performances.

He’s also pushing back on the payment issue, saying that’s between M.I.A. and Live Nation, not him. The label handled the money side of things.

M.I.A.’s team isn’t backing down, though.

Her rep fired back, saying Cudi’s trying to silence freedom of artistic expression, which is ironic considering M.I.A. has spent her whole career fighting censorship as a refugee who became a global star.

She claims she was contractually allowed to say whatever she wanted onstage and that Cudi knew her political beliefs before he hired her for the tour.

Her lawsuit alleges he fired her to generate publicity for a tour that was struggling with ticket sales, not because of anything she actually said.

The real tension here is whether an artist can invoke the First Amendment to justify removing another artist from a tour based on their speech.

M.I.A.’s legal team argues Cudi’s statement was “riddled with falsehoods” and that his termination was intentional interference with her contract.

She’s seeking the $2.8 million guarantee she lost from Live Nation plus additional damages for lost merchandise sales and VIP packages.