when going solo goes bad....

IS DAWN ROBINSON (FORMERLY OF EN VOGUE) THE FLO BALLARD OF THIS GENERATION?

Back in the day, Florence Ballard was kicked out of the Supremes and several years ago, Dawn Robinson was booted from En Vogue and judging from a leaked video that was released on "You Tube," last Friday (which has been taken down), Robinson has hit rock bottom-financially, just like Florence Ballard.

The video was a trailer that Robinson and her husband (Dre Allen, last photo) are allegedly trying to pitch as a reality TV series to BET and VH-1.

The video showed Dawn and Dre living among rats and roaches. Dre was also shown hawking tapes on the street for extra cash.

It was always rumored that Dawn allegedly made a "set salary" of only $30,000 per year when she was a member of En Vogue despite record sales. It was also rumored that she once contemplated going to the unemployment office for benefits and when she complained about the lack of money, allegedly, she was kicked out of the group. Meanwhile, En Vogue's producers (Foster & McElroy) were allegedly driving luxury sports cars each year and living large.

She then joined Lucy Pearl, reports surfaced that she was unhappy with the financial setup regarding this group and rumors of her alleged attitude problems were broadcast all over the Internet. Eventually, she would leave this group as well.

BACKSTORY (DRE ALLEN)

Dawn's husband Dre Allen (artist/writer) has a checkered past to say the least. Before he hit hard times, Dre was once a staff writer at LaFace and once drove a Porsche Boxster, he was also on TV, showing off a house in the Hollywood Hills which may have been leased for the shoot.

Dre's past also includes a black supermodel, black actresses and video girls and unsubstantiated rumors continue to surround him regarding an alleged attempted murder from his past.

The video is back up, to view, click on the following link: http://www.youtube.com/wa...r6CUPXo-uU


[Edited 10/10/07 5:33am]
[Edited 10/10/07 5:35am]

I have some room in my house if Dawn needs a nice, warm, safe, rat-free place to live. I ain't got no room for her hubby, though.

This is a tragic story,no doubt,but I also seem to recall that Dawn wasn't exactly the nicest person to her bandmates.There was a Vibe article/interview from the early part of this decade where she was gloating that EnVogue's first album without her flopped Shortly thereafter,she released her own solo album and it couldn't have sold more than 5 copies.


Sometimes,karma catches up with you.

The same Dawn that seemed to be so difficult to work with and shat on her former coworkers? The same Dawn that was suppose to be taking off with her solo album now that she didn't have the 3 pieces of dead weight? The same Dawn that bragged about doing big things with her husband? Aww, that's too bad.

SoulAlive said:

for every diana ross, lionel richie and babyface (people who successfully turned a gig in a group into somehing bigger as a solo artist), there are dozens more who should have stayed in the group. (see: temptations, spinners, etc)

I am so over broke down celebs getting reality shows. I’ll be damned if I waste my real life watching them fall apart, recover, struggle through addiction, dating, money woes and bad marriages.

JackieBlue said:

I agree.I'm sick of these reality shows featuring has-been celebrities! Anyday now,I bet we'll see Bobby Brown with another reality show....this time,we watch as he goes on a mission to find his next Sugar Mama

JackieBlue said:

she gets no sympathy from me.She dogged the other girls in the group.

F-- a reality show! Put Lucy Pearl back together instead!

Damn, you got Dawn's voice but choose to feature that whiny dude's vocals instead? O-TAY.

My man Al B. Sure!, he's in effect mode
Used to have a crush on Dawn from En Vogue
It's not like honeydip would wanna get with me
But just in case I own more condoms than TLC

Phife, you can probably tap that right about now, even in your current condition.

thekidsgirl said:

That would be nice. I don't think Raphael could stand her. They say when they were promoting the Lucy Pearl project, she really was cocky.

As a matter of fact, she could reunite with En Vogue and record another killer album. Stevie Wonder managed to get them all together to do "So What The Fuss", why not reunite for a tour and album (on a major label). Rhona is good, but she's no Dawn.

I don't understand why she wont do a reality show, everybody else does. I could see her doing well on Dancing with The Stars .

daPrettyman said:

The thing about "reunions" of those sort is that for a 1 song, it could work but for an entire album and tour - Old habits come back to life and the shit starts all over again.

It's funny, Ali Shaheed, who was in Lucy Pearl, just shakes his head in silence whenever interviewers would ask him what happened to LP. Now THAT'S a broken spirit when the very laid-back Shaheed is left speechless and frustrated. He just says "No comment."

MuthaFunka said:

I understand that reunions don't always work, but you must remember, most reunions are done for financial reasons only and nothing else. If she is such a bind for money, get yourself together, put aside your ego and get the job done. Its simple.

daPrettyman said:

Money sometimes isn't enough to overcome ego. Ask Bobby Brown and New Edition.

SoulAlive said:

damn, i guess i'am one of the five who brought her cd

carlluv said:

I bought her 1st single. It was so bad until I didn't buy the album.

MuthaFunka said:

Bobby brown and NE still perform together sometimes, it is just Bobby and NE are at the same level,if they tour together who is going to headline,

qvgangsta18 said:

I think Bobby has fallen so far that his ego is shot now.

sometimes you gotta put your 'dream' on hold and go out in the real world and get a job.why cant dawn and her husband get jobs and move into a decent apt, are they trying to get sympathy or make for better reality tv by living with roaches and rats?

lowkey said:

like it is easy for a person who was highly regarded in the music field to say let me walk into McD's and get a regular job, yall kill me, then yall will be killin allover the internet

qvgangsta18 said:

why cant they walk into mcdonalds or ups or the airport or any other jod that the rest of us get up and go to everyday to survive? do you think they will get mobbed by adoring fans ,

sosgemini said:

yeah he sounds like a whiney Lenny Kravitz

SoulAlive said:

I am one those guys who has a copy.
Yall don't be so hard on my baby. She can live with me. Her husband got to go elsewhere.

MuthaFunka said:

Phife is fatter than a mofo. I saw him in atlanta a couple of years ago as he joined his partner shaheed muhammed on stage at a mint condition show.

JackieBlue said:

Ya know!?!

phunkdaddy said:

Did you see him on the Hip Hop Honors the other night? Dude looked real bad. Diabtetes ain't no joke.

MuthaFunka said:

Shaheed wasn't happy with the lucy pearl situation either. Shaheed didn't agree with raphael sadiiq's decision to boot dawn out the group particularly when he replaced her with joi and stated joi was a better fit all along and shaheed totally disagreed. He basically just stated that he is a businessman and pretty much insinuated that him and sadiiq won't work together again. So maybe dawn did have legitimate beef in the lucy pearl situation. As far as dawn's situation with envogue, i think she was more frustrated with foster and mcelroy than envogue. They just happened to catch some of the backlash. Of course raphael and dawn have reconciled as she performed with him on his last solo album and if i'm not mistaken dawn joined the original envogue members in stevie wonder's video what's the fuss.

SoulAlive said:

Right on!