Mariah Carey sued for US$3 million over scrapped South American concerts

After a wobbly start to 2017, Mariah Carey got her year off on the right note.

But there’s a legal battle ahead for the pop star, who’s been countersued by a concert promoter over a pair of cancelled performances back in 2016.

South American promoter FEG Entretenimientos filed the latest complaint which relates to Carey’s scheduled shows in Argentina and Chile, which were scrapped just days out from showtime. Carey was booked to play Oct. 28, 2016 in Argentina and two days later in Chile, but by Oct. 25, the singer and her reps claimed a large sum remained unpaid and both shows were yanked.

Carey and her company Mirage Entertainment last year hit Buenos Aires, Argentina-based FEG (also known as Fenix) for breach of contract, claiming their late payments gave her right to cancel and be paid in full. The diva also claims she missed out on other big money-spinning projects because of her commitment to the later-scrapped dates.

However, FEG returned fire last week with a multi-million dollar lawsuit for breach of contract and defamation. According to a complaint filed last Wednesday in California federal court, the promoter claims she didn’t have the right to “unilaterally cancel” and is asking the judge to award $1 million in damages and an additional $2 million in damages for defamation, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

FEG claims it had already paid some 75% of her fee, or roughly $700,000, by the time of cancellation. The promoter’s complaint claims the singer was required to give 48 hours to allow them time to right any wrongs, and that the company found out about the decision through media reports.

Carey recently announced a set of rescheduled tour for Australia and New Zealand, which will see her play arenas and outdoor shows in the first half of October. The dates were meant to take place next month but were postponed, with her reps citing a “necessary realignment of her international engagements.” The upcoming shows will be her first here since her Elusive Chanteuse winery and arena trek in November 2014.

This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.