Singer Rita Ora is being sued in the High Court for £3.2 million by her former manager over claims she failed to hand over earnings from her concert tours and television work.
Sarah Stennett, the founder of management firm FAE Ventures, filed court papers claiming that the 35-year-old pop star violated contract terms by failing to pay the agreed percentage of her professional income.
Ora first signed with Stennett's firm in 2009 when she was 18 years old. Born in Pristina and raised in London, the singer rose to international fame after releasing her UK chart-topping debut album, Ora, and serving as a judge on television talent shows including The X Factor UK and The Voice UK.
The long-running professional relationship ended in 2024 when Ora parted ways with Stennett. At the time of the separation, reports indicated that the two had disagreed over the future direction of Ora's career.
The commercial disagreement has now turned into a formal legal battle at the High Court of Justice in London, where FAE Ventures claims it is owed millions of pounds in unpaid commissions.
According to court filings reported by The Sun, the largest individual sum in the claim is just over £1.7 million. FAE Ventures alleges that Ora made impermissible deductions from her earnings for professional services, including advertising, accountancy, and insurance costs.
Touring revenue and court claims
The lawsuit includes a second claim for £1.1 million concerning unreported touring income between the spring of 2019 and 2020. During that period, Ora performed internationally on her global Phoenix World Tour in support of her second studio album, Phoenix.
The legal document claims that financial transfers made to FAE Ventures failed to take account of certain touring income that Ora received, or which was received on her behalf, during those concert dates.
Representatives for Sarah Stennett and Rita Ora have been contacted by the Daily Mail regarding the High Court lawsuit, but neither representative has responded to requests for comment.
Stennett is an influential music manager who co-founded First Access Entertainment and has represented major UK and international recording artists. FAE Ventures oversaw Ora's career throughout her transition from an emerging artist into an established global celebrity.
Career transition and new management
Following her split from FAE Ventures in 2024, Ora signed with manager Melissa Ruderman at Los Angeles-based talent management company Range Media Partners. The management change signaled a strategic broadening of her career beyond recording music.
At the time of her signing, industry reports noted that Ora wanted to focus on establishing herself as a multi-hyphenate entertainer across film, television, and commercial projects, rather than being managed primarily as a recording artist.
While widening her professional focus, Ora remains active in the music industry. She recently shared a photograph from a recording studio teasing new music as she works on her fourth studio album, which is scheduled for release in 2027.
Acting roles and business ventures
In addition to her music projects, Ora is slated to appear in several major film productions. She has been cast in the Amazon MGM film Honeymoon with Harry alongside actors Jake Gyllenhaal, Kevin Costner, and Sarah Pidgeon, and will also feature in Amazon MGM's upcoming Voltron movie.
Ora is also returning to the Disney Descendants franchise in the forthcoming title Descendants: Wicked Wonderland. She previously starred as the Queen of Hearts in Descendants: The Rise of Red, expanding an acting portfolio that includes her performance as Mia Grey in the Fifty Shades of Grey film trilogy.
Alongside her entertainment career, Ora is actively building TYPEBEA, a haircare company she co-founded with Australian entrepreneur Anna Lahey. The brand forms part of her effort to establish commercial business enterprises alongside her creative work.
