Rod Wave has filed a countersuit against the promoter who sued him for $27 million for allegedly violating their contract following the cancellation of the remaining dates on the Last Lap Tour.
In court documents viewed by Complex, Rod accuses Grizzly Touring of trying to trap him in an “exclusive arrangement.”
"Grizzly Touring’s lawsuit is baseless and an unfortunate extension of its prior failed attempts to trap Rod Wave into an exclusive arrangement," the statement reads.
The rapper and singer claims it was "logistically impossible" for him to finish the tour due to production and routing issues. When he announced the cancellation of the tour on his Instagram Story in January, Rod seemed to be placing the blame on these same problems.
"Ok. So bout the tour. Yall [know] it was fucked up from the beginning. Because of production!" he wrote. "They had to cancel and reschedule. And it just wasn't makin any sense. The second leg had the same problem."
Through a statement from his attorney James Sammataro, Rod alleges Grizzly is attempting to force him into indentured servitude.
"Grizzly is not entitled to this improperly requested specific performance or equivalent injunctive relief, which effectively amounts to an indentured servitude," Sammataro wrote. "Defendants have lost confidence in Grizzly as their tour promoter and no longer wish to perform services for Grizzly or receive Grizzly’s services."
Grizzly is seeking $27 million in “unearned and unrecouped advances,” claiming they agreed to pay Rod $40,250,000 to perform 35 shows—half of which was paid upfront.
“[Rod Wave] has only performed 26 shows since the Last Lap Tour began in October 2024,” Grizzly’s attorney wrote. “That means [Rod] has only earned $29,900,000 against the guarantee, pursuant to its terms, and, as a result, now owes Grizzly $27 million for the amounts Grizzly advanced and paid on [Rod’s] behalf.”
The promoter alleges Rod has “chosen to spend his advance on private jets and lavish second homes,” instead of repaying the money allegedly owed.
Rod is asking the court to void their contract so he can focus on a new tour, The Redemption Experience, without Grizzly.