On this occasion, it’s very much more than ironic. In fact, it sounds shocking and somewhat bizarre. Alanis Morissette is suing her ex-tour manager, accusing her of blackmail, fraud and extortion.
The Canadian singer-songwriter has filed the suit in a Californian court. It alleges that Keren Urinov, the tour manager in question, attempted to blackmail the singer over drug trafficking charges.
It all dates back to last year when Urinov was caught by British authorities bringing marijuana and the animal tranquiliser xylazine through customs. Apparently she carried the marijuana on an Israeli medical permit, and the xylazine had been prescribed. However, later on that tour Urinov confessed to Morissette that she’d once been arrested in Latin America for smuggling drugs in a surfboard.
After the tour wrapped up, things got even stranger. According to the filing, Urinov then started sending “increasingly extortionate letters” to the singer, threatening to report the drug trafficking to the British authorities unless Morissette employed her on a 15-year contract, with raises and bonuses and access to a US attorney so Urinov could work regularly in the US.
“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 15 years or pay her a ransom under the gun.”
“Morissette is not interested in employing Urinov for 15 years… Not only because she is a blackmailer, but also because she was a terrible manager of the 2025 tour.” It seems Urinov just wasn’t very good at her job – on one occasion she erroneously booked a hotel that cost the singer $70,000.
The singer is apparently pushing for a jury trial and requesting that Urinov pay $75,000 as well as a fine. The by-now very much ex-tour manager has not as yet responded to the lawsuit.
