Fantasia Barrino Reveals How Naive She Was About Finances After Her 'American Idol' Win

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, SheKnows may receive an affiliate commission.

Fantasia Barrino thought she was set for life once she won American Idol in 2004, but that happy ending didn’t go exactly as planned for her. With a major comeback in play with the movie musical, The Color Purple, the 39-year-old star is looking back on her financial missteps and how naive she was to how the business of Hollywood operates.

More from SheKnows

• Kelly Clarkson & Fantasia Barrino Bond Over This Specific American Idol Experience

Barrino revealed the hard lessons she’s learned over the years, telling People, “You have to become a businesswoman and you link up with great business partners, but it doesn’t have a lot to do with love. It took me a long time to figure that out.” The winners of American Idol are often young and have no idea how to handle all of the legal documents coming their way.

“I didn’t know anything about contracts,” she explained. “I didn’t know anything about checking your money and making sure every day your stuff was where it was supposed to be. I just trusted and believed everybody that came into my life.” It’s one of those situations where a financial workshop could have benefited Barrino — there’s a reason why they NBA and the NFL run these courses for rookies because it’s easy to go broke quickly.

The talented singer admitted to Oprah.com in 2010 that American Idol wasn’t the end of her struggles, it was a start to a new set of challenges. “You have to take care of your money. You have to meet with your lawyers and look over your schedule and figure out what it is that you have going on,” Barrino revealed. “Because it could be too much. People could just be running you and using you and abusing your gift.” Her home wound up on the auction block and her dad sued her for his portrayal in her 2006 memoir, Life Is Not a Fairy Tale. It was a time in her life that she described as a “very embarrassing” for her.

Barrino now knows the power of the word, “No,” and won’t let anyone take advantage of her financially anymore. “I have to be in control of it all,” she summed up. “I’m glad that I went through it because now it has made me stronger and wiser, and I know that I can’t allow people to just take control of my destiny.”

Before you go, click here to see all of the highest paid women in Hollywood!

Best of SheKnows

• Nigel Lythgoe, Vin Diesel & 28 Other Famous Men Who Have Been Accused of Sexual Assault

• All the Celebrity Couples Who Broke Up in 2023

• 15 Celebrities Who Have Been in Open or Polyamorous Relationships

Sign up for SheKnows' Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.