Cee Lo Green Sued by Concert Promoter for 'Conspiring to Cheat' Group out of $243,000

Cee Lo Green is being sued by a concert promoter over two failed Christmas gigs in 2011. According to a lawsuit cited by TMZ, Cee Lo's team approached Cierra Management Group in late 2011 with an idea for a "12 Days of Christmas" tour, MSN Entertainment reports.

When Cierra couldn't afford Cee Lo's $100,000-per-concert fee, "they agreed on two gigs, which Cee Lo did not end up playing."

Now, Cierra Management Group is accusing Cee Lo of never having intended to play the concerts, and of "conspiring to cheat" them out of $243,000, according to MSN. They are suing Cee Lo's representatives for $14.2 million in damages, reports Zap2It.

"It was all a scheme designed to finagle funding capital for concerts they knew would not manifest," Cierra said.

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Zap2It.com notes that "the lawsuit does not say that [Cee Lo] himself was part of the conspiracy, just his representatives. But Cee Lo is still being sued for allegedly refusing to perform the two concerts."

The Voice coach, known on the show for his outlandish outfits and his quirky but heartfelt advice, is taking a break from the singing reality show this year to focus on making his own NBC show. His fellow coach, Christina Aguilera, is also taking a break from The Voice this season to promote her new album, Lotus.

Both have said they are planning on returning for the fifth season. In the mean time, Usher and Shakira will take their places as coaches for Season 4.

"Doing back-to-back cycles of this show requires a tremendous amount of time," said NBC Entertainment Chairman in a statement provided by MSN. "We are happy to accommodate the commitments made by Christina and Cee Lo."