$600,000 spent on one musician for Brampton Canada Day celebration

More than $600,000 was paid to the headline performer at the City of Brampton’s Canada Day celebration earlier this year, a document obtained by INsauga.com shows.

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The document, obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, shows internationally renowned rapper M.I.A. reached a deal with the city for $450,000 U.S. for the July 1 performance at Chinguacousy Park.

In Canadian dollars, as of Sept. 12, that amounts to roughly $611,000, but that figure would’ve been even greater when the payments were made as the Canadian dollar was lower at the time in comparison to the U.S. dollar.

The document notes that M.I.A. agreed to a withholding of $30,000 U.S. from the settlement payment as a contribution towards production costs, meaning $420,000 U.S. was allotted for M.I.A./her agency directly, though the deal was also subject to a 15 per cent Canadian withholding tax.

Two payments were made to secure the booking of the British-born Sri Lankan musician, the document shows: one on May 20 and the other on June 17.

The document includes in the header the logo for United Talent Agency, which represents M.I.A. and facilitates bookings.

The document itself was largely redacted, with the city citing third-party personal privacy laws under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

The quadruple-platinum rapper headlined the Canada Day celebration, which also included other performances.

Additional documents show that Punjab hip-hop artist Ikky was paid $15,000 for his performance that day.