16 September 2023 , 18:36
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Music legend Boy George has signed a huge residency deal in New York for next year, amid his expensive legal wranglings with a former band mate.
The string of gigs should help ease his money woes in his lengthy battle with Culture Club drummer and ex-boyfriend Jon Moss. But fans will be delighted that they get a chance to see the pop royalty back on stage.
Jon was allegedly expelled from the band in September 2018 by manager Paul Kemsley, bringing his 37-year career to an end. He claimed he was owed lost tour income following his expulsion.
Boy George has signed a deal for a string of US shows (AFP via Getty Images)
The star encountered financial difficulties due to a legal row (Hoda Davaine/Dave Benett/Getty I)George, 62, and the band members later forked out £1.75 million to avoid the case going to the high court. George said at the time: “It is like an ugly divorce. Jon has left the band and he is suing us. What can I say?
“Jon just did not love being in Culture Club and I do. He seemed to be bored by it so we asked him to leave. The thing is Jon did not fight to be back in the band. He gave up too easily like he did in our relationship.”
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George's residency deal will see him make amends with the US after he was arrested in New York in 2005 on suspicion of possessing cocaine. At the time, George had signed a residency deal with Rosie O’Donnell who put his biopic musical Taboo on Broadway.
Boy George is well known for his iconic Culture Club performances (Getty Images)He’d called police alleging a break-in at his apartment in lower Manhattan. Police found no sign of a burglary, but did find 13 bags of cocaine. Drug charges were later dropped in exchange for community service and a $1,000 fine which saw George famously sweeping the streets in Little Italy and Lower East Side.
George was recently seen attempting to sell his £17m gothic mansion in Hampstead, London, on the Channel 4 series Selling Super Homes. The chart star was however left furious when a contestant on the show criticised the interior design of the property.
George was “unimpressed” and “annoyed” when one candidate put “a negative spin on the house”, according to show host Paul Kemsley. The seller told a prospective buyer: “Oh no, this isn’t for everyone,” while talking about the six-bedroom, Grade II-listed Gothic mansion’s recent renovations, prompting George – watching nearby – to snap: “He should never have said that. It’s definitely not a blank canvas, darling.
“If there’s no rock and roll or drama in their sales pitch then they are missing the point of who lives there.” Paul, 56, explains: “George has put a lot of effort into remodelling the house so of course he was going to think that was a bit rude.” The 62-year-old Karma Chameleon singer has lived in his plush pad, which overlooks Hampstead Heath, for 40 years, and spent three years renovating it.