Alanis Morissette has filed a federal lawsuit against her former tour manager, accusing her of running a blackmail campaign that threatened to implicate the singer in drug possession and trafficking allegations at a U.K. airport unless Morissette agreed to a 15-year employment contract.
The six-page complaint was filed Tuesday in Los Angeles federal court and obtained by Rolling Stone. "Plaintiff Alanis Morissette is the victim of a calculated blackmail campaign orchestrated by a disgruntled former tour manager," the filing reads. "Morissette will not agree to work with an incompetent blackmailer for the next fifteen years or pay her a ransom under the gun."
The lawsuit names Keren Urinov as the defendant. According to the complaint, Urinov was traveling with Morissette and her team through a U.K. airport in 2025 en route to a concert in Spain when she was flagged for inspection and detained. British authorities allegedly issued a seizure notice stating that Urinov's bag contained marijuana and xylazine. During questioning, Urinov allegedly told border officers that the bag and its contents, including the suspected drugs, belonged to her. She also showed officers an Israeli medical marijuana license and was released, according to the lawsuit.
The complaint says Urinov was detained again in Spain and allegedly again told border officials that the bag and drugs belonged to her. After the tour ended, however, the lawsuit claims that Urinov and her lawyer sent Morissette a series of letters it describes as "increasingly extortionate." Those letters allegedly demanded that Morissette tell British law enforcement that the drugs were hers.
According to the complaint, Urinov said Morissette could put "an end to the matter" by providing a 15-year, full-time employment contract that would include significant compensation, annual raises, and bonuses. Urinov also allegedly demanded that Morissette hire an immigration lawyer for her.
When Morissette refused those demands, Urinov and her lawyer allegedly sent a follow-up letter implying Urinov would accuse Morissette of drug trafficking. The lawsuit says Morissette filed the case reluctantly, knowing that "attacks on her character" could follow, but that she felt she had no choice to protect herself against what it calls "patently frivolous" allegations.
Rolling Stone reported that attempts to reach Urinov through her Live Nation email address were unsuccessful, and that a representative for Live Nation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Morissette is suing for civil extortion, fraud, and negligent misrepresentation. She is seeking a jury trial, compensatory damages of more than $75,000, and punitive damages.
