Whether you’re ready or not, many are wondering whether the Fugees gave their last performance — at least for a while.
Fans and other outlets and observers questioned whether the legendary New Jersey hip-hop trio’s will be forced to call it quits because group member Pras faces a prison sentence after a jury found him guilty in April on federal criminal charges in a political and foreign influence scheme. The charges carry a maximum prison sentence of of 20 years.
However, a representative for Pras, 50, said it’s too early to label this past weekend’s show as the Fugees’ final score.
“I would stay tuned as far as it being their final performance,” said Erica Dumas, a spokesperson for Pras, whose real name is Prakazrel Michel.
A date for Pras’ sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled, according to Dumas and court records.
The Fugees performance took place at Roots Picnic 2023 in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park during Lauryn Hill’s headlining set on Saturday evening, which was meant to celebrate the 25th anniversary of her five-time Grammy-winning 1998 album, “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.” During her set, Hill brought out Wyclef Jean and Pras for a surprise reunion.
“Someone just ask me was that really the fugees on stage at the #Rootspicnic Last night in Philly — and I replied ‘God is Great,’” Wylcef wrote on Twitter. The tweet included a video from the performance, showing Pras stepping onstage and launching into his verse from “How Many Mics”: “Too many MCs, not enough mics / Exit your show like I exit the turnpike.”
The trio also performed some of their other hits, such as “Ready or Not,” “Killing Me Softly” and “Fu-Gee-La.”
After Pras was found guilty on April 26 on all counts of conspiracy, concealment of material facts, making false entries in records, witness tampering and serving as an unregistered agent of a foreign power, the Fugees rapper took steps to enter another legal fight.
This time, he threatened to sue 50 Cent, Kyrie Irving and Rolling Stone for defamation after the three separately made comments referring to him as being a “rat,” “government informant” and “FBI informant.”
The rap mogul, NBA player and magazine were reacting to and reporting on testimony Michel gave during his criminal trial in April, during which he admitted to previously reporting a possible criminal lead to federal investigators.
Among the comments was Irving who tweeted, “A whole FBI informant was in the Fugees for that long??” in reference to Michel.
“Got me Wondering how many more informants are in Entertainment/Media/Politics silently destroying revolutionary movements from the inside,” Irving continued.
With Hill bringing Pras alongside Wyclef onstage Sunday, emphatically referring to them as “brothers,” Pras’ representative, Dumas, dismissed Irving’s tweet as “null and void.”
“There’s no love lost and they’re all supportive of him given his circumstances,” Dumas said of the other Fugees members.
A lawsuit against 50 Cent, Irving and Rolling Stone has yet to be filed in court.
After forming in 1992, the Fugees broke up five years later after alleged interpersonal and creative disagreements. Since then, they had occasionally reunited for one-off performances, such as an appearance in Dave Chapelle’s 2005 documentary film, “Block Party.” The group also performed in 2021 in New York and were set to embark on a tour to commemorate the 25th anniversary of their influential chart-topping 1996 album, “The Score.”
The group would cancel their 2022 tour, citing complications due to the pandemic. Yet many questioned whether it had more to do with Pras, who at the time was deep in his legal fight, facing federal criminal charges.
Hill has been performing solo at music festivals over the past year and is scheduled to play Wolf Trap in Vienna, Va., and Ravinia Festival north of Chicago in June and the Promiseland Festival in Australia in October.