Toni Braxton

R&B diva Toni Braxton sued her former personal manager Friday (Jan 12), saying he owes her at least $10 million for dirty dealing that caused her to abandon a long relationship with Arista Records for the manager's own record label.

According to reports, the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Manhattan accuses Barry Hankerson of putting his financial interests ahead of Braxton's and inducing the singer to leave a lucrative deal with Arista through fraud, deception and double-dealing.

'Hankerson actively sought to destroy Braxton's relationship with Arista through underhanded 'double-talk,' telling Braxton that Arista was not interested in working with her anymore, while telling Arista that Braxton no longer wanted to record for Arista,' the lawsuit said.

In March 2003, Braxton ended the business relationship she had begun with Arista in 1991.

In other news, Toni Braxton is being released from her current recording contract with Blackground Records sources told Billboard. The Grammy Award-winning R&B singer's only release on Blackground, 2005's "Libra," has sold 431,000 units in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.