December 10, 2008
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American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino looks to be one of the latest victims in the economic downturn.

A Charlotte, North Carolina, home owned by the singer is being auctioned to reimburse a loan that was used to pay her taxes, according to the Associated Press.

The company Broward Energy Partners agreed to pay more than $68,000 of the Grammy nominated artist's taxes in 2006 and says they have not been fully compensated.

The earnings from the sale would be used to finish paying off the loan.

The home is due to be auctioned in January by the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office. "Her people never got in contact with us," Sgt. J.W. England, a supervisor at the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office told the AP. "We could have gone in another direction if she would have communicated with us. I hope it doesn't go to that extreme. We're hoping she'll pay this thing and we'll be out of the picture."

Fantasia, 24, rose to fame when she won Idol’s third season in 2004 and followed with solo albums and a role in Broadway’s The Color Purple. She has another home in the area, estimated at $740,000.

The singer’s rep could not be reached for comment.

I know that her CDs aren't selling anymore,but wasn't she appearing in the Broadway production of "The Color Purple"? Where did the money go?

Whats with this "not paying taxes" shit, i constantly see this with every "celeb" that gets into financial trouble. Also, sorry to knock her, but she should be aware that American Idol and the artists are basically one hit wonders or some not even, im curious why she is buying 2 homes? I mean did she really think she had it like that? Thats just plain ignorance to reality.

lastdecember said:

Part of the problem lies in her image. When she first came on the scene after winning Idol, she was in the vain of a Toni Braxtion. This fit her quite nicely.Her records were not where they should have been, on the charts but with time they would have been. The problem started when she was dropped by Arista then signed by Violator. Violator tried to change her image to this hard "hoodrat street chick" and her fans, were not buying it. Her record sales were even worst than before and I am willing to bet that she spent the little money that she did get on things. What she should have done was, spend that money on an accountant that would have told her "NO" and a "Shrink", that would have helped her deal with her new found fame.

It's not like it's her one and only home...Still, that shit ain't good!

shorttrini said:

Its more than album sales, i mean its a given unless you are one of about 20 artists, you arent going to bringing in tons of cash doing music. Its a way of thinking, she didnt use plain common sense, i mean think about the future. I mean ex-idol runner up Katharine Mcphee sold 400,000 of her debut but she didnt go out and buy 2 homes, and things like that. Fantasia just didnt use common sense, she thought millions would be rolling in, and sorry, but for the type of artist she was trying to be, thats not going to happen, VERY few make millions, and even fewer make it off the bat. So her image and albums have nothing to do with, Mcphee got dumped by the same label, and now is on David Fosters label, but Fantasia's situation screams of ignorance.
[Edited 12/10/08 15:37pm]

lastdecember said:

Mcphee and Fantasia are two totally different artists. Mcphee was not trying to cross over, like Fantasia was. One of the reason's why she signed with Violator is due to the fact that she wanted more urban fans. Which she was not getting at arista. Mcphee does not have that problem. To be honest, she is just happy to be here. Also, Fantasia did not have much growing up. So, when she was given that money she went ballistic. The same goes for people like, Strawberry, Tyson, the list goes on and on. These people did not have much growing up. So, when they got that million dollar contract, they did what comes natural to them, spend it!!

lastdecember said:

well on the bright side at least she spent the money on property, which has come in handy now that she needs cash, imagine if she would have bought a bunch of cars and bling instead of the houses...now she has 1 house to help pay off those debts and she still has the other house, she can even downgrade from that 700k house (which in north carolina is probably like a mansion), get herself something smaller.

Her home is not too far from where i live and it
is niiiiice.

lastdecember said:

Exactly.

shorttrini said:

Yeah,it seems like she is struggling to define herself and find the right type of image.One thing's for sure: her recent hairstyles ain't gonna improve her situation,lol.


.
[Edited 12/11/08 6:46am]

SoulAlive said:

Those colors make Ray Charles go blind and Hellen Keller speak!!

shorttrini said:

another time,it looked like she was wearing a skunk on her head,lol.

SoulAlive said:

Hair products.....

lowkey said:

Graycap23 said:

VinnyM27 said:

I can't see why a relatively new artist would need more than one home.Seems like they should wait awhile (until they've made many millions) before buying all these homes.

SoulAlive said:

And if I did have multiple homes, I'd own my main place of residence outright especially if I've been in the business for awhile.

JackieBlue said:

exactly.

Graycap23 said:

you sure about that? because in that picture, it looks like she took a bunch of red kool aid packets and made due with that

bboy87 said:

I know, right?

Hair products my ass.

Labels assign artists with their own shady fuckin accountants. where does the money go you ask?. back to the label and the shady accountants pockets

IAintTheOne said:

bboy87 said:

Expensive red koolaid.

Graycap23 said:

seriously,I wonder what kind of image she's aiming for? An urban ghetto punk rocker mash-up?

SoulAlive said:

My guess is, while she still wants to make music for everyone, she does not want to lose her urban fans. This is why she has put out the kind of music that she has, after her debut. That first cd was a more "radio friendly", meaning that it's songs could be played on pop and urban stations. If you asked me, she is still trying to find herself and is still looking for approval.

shorttrini said:

She needs to go back to the drawing boards and start over,lol.I remember her last album from a year or so ago.The single was horrible.

SoulAlive said:

Yes it was. But look at who produced most of the CD, Missy. Fantasia, was trying to go after that popular sound and I think it backfired. There are so many singers both old and new that don't believe in leaving stuff alone. You know that old saying, "If it ain't broke don't fix it", Well, there are some that believe in the opposite....If it ain't broke, let's fuck it up some more"!!
and that is a damn shame.