Troubled R&B singer Tyrese Gibson has found refuge in another country amid speculation he is trying to avoid fresh legal troubles.
On Monday, May 13, he began posting random moments of his arrival in Kuwait, where he greeted fans and enthusiastically met the country’s ruler, Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. After a new report this week, many believe he left the United States to dodge a defamation lawsuit initiated by filmmaker Bryan Barber.
On Saturday, May 11, the “Sweet Lady” chart-topper abruptly ended a concert at Stockbridge Amphitheater in suburban Atlanta. TMZ, citing what it calls inside sources, reports bailed on the audience to avoid being served papers.
Footage of the escape was captured by a concert attendee and has gone viral.
The vocalist-turned-blockbuster actor was pouring his heart into his performance, belting out his 2003 hit, “How You Gonna Act Like That,” when one of his security guards whispered something in his ear onstage.
Without missing a note or a beat, Tyrese seamlessly hopped from the stage, microphone in hand, and continued singing until he exited through the back area of the venue. The audience followed with their eyes, wondering where he was going.
Tyrese getting served legal documents while performing “How You Gonna Act Like That?” is one of the funniest things I’ve seen so far in life 😂 pic.twitter.com/NZRCbk0yqq
— Austin🕺🏼 (@A_FarrisWheel) May 13, 2024
As he left, he could be heard saying, “I’m coming out this b—ch” as he warbled a few more bars of the song. Then, after he told his fans that he loved them, he said, “I gave them my time, y’all.” TMZ claims he exited with three songs left in his set.
The tabloid outlet reports the legal papers were related to the $10 million lawsuit filed by Barber, stemming from comments the “Transformers” star made on “The Breakfast Club” on Sept. 7, 2023.
During the interview, Tyrese claimed he had hired Barber to produce a short documentary video at his residence, for which he paid the director in full. Allegedly, after completing the video, Barber refused to return the footage to Tyrese despite receiving $35,000 for his services.
Furthermore, Tyrese accused the director of similar actions against other celebrities, including radio host Big Boy and producer Dallas Austin.
Barber vehemently denies that this happened, claiming Tyrese attacked and damaged his “character and reputation,” and sought legal action — which led to the attempt to serve the star with the legal papers.
After fleeing the concert, the movie star reemerged on social media from 7,000 miles across the Atlantic.
In a series of 12 posts in within less than 24 hours, Tyrese shows himself leaving his mother on Mother’s Day to being greeted at the airport by fans, him doing a celebratory dance once he landed, declaring his love for Doritos, and announcing his stay at the lavish Four Seasons hotel. He also filmed himself lying in the bathtub, doting on the great service and then sharing how he has wanted to come to the Middle Eastern country since he was a teen.
“I’ve been wanting to come to Kuwait since I was 15 years old sounds crazy right? When I was a kid, I was always the weirdo. I never felt like I was cut from the same cloth that everyone from my city South Central LA to ghetto the hood was from. I’ve always been a dreamer,” he wrote in a lengthy post caption (posted twice on his feed).
“I’ve always been a guy with the audacity to leave the city travel wanna go places see things do things experience things, I’m not the biggest traveler some people that have way more passion for traveling my desire to travel,” he added.
Tyrese said that his original plans were to go to New York, then to Kuwait, and then to Hawaii.
“As of today I’m gonna be able to say I’ve been able to live out the dreams that I’ve had a visiting those three places and Kuwait was the last place on my wish list since I was 15!” he said.
The 45-year-old Grammy winner made it abundantly clear that this was a getaway for him and not work, saying, “I’m completely wiped out or stressed out. I always run to the Middle East because everything about the culture, the people the love the vibe is my happy place.”
“I put myself up in first class,” he wrote. “I put myself up in this penthouse and everything about my travel was all arranged by me.”
Fans chimed in on social media.
One X user wrote, “disgusting,” regarding his ostentatious move.
Another joked online, “Why is he ducking papers??? I guess his Fast and Furious paychecks ain’t as big as we thought.”
One more person posted his classic reaction in another Instagram breakdown where he screams into the camera, “What more do you want from me?”
— My own lane (@CherryBerry855) May 14, 2024
A comment from one of his Instagram posts said, “RUN FOR YO FREEDOM.”
Tyrese has not mentioned if this trip was spontaneous, but it seems planned according to another Instagram post from April 19. Either way, when he returns to the U.S., he will be met by Barber’s lawsuit.
The “Love Transaction” singer is going through an ugly battle over child support with his second wife, Samantha Lee, the mother of his 6-year-old daughter, Soraya. His first wife, Norma Mitchell, mother of his teenage daughter, Shayla, requested a temporary restraining order in her defamation suit against Tyrese and asked that a judge halt him from making slanderous posts and accusations about her online.
