Fantasia Barrino

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Lindsay Powers — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 10:49:31 -0400

Idols Go to Disney!

Allison Corneau — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 13:22:10 -0500

Surprise! Randy Jackson Says This Year's Idol Contestants Can Actually Sing!

Allison Corneau — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 09:15:11 -0500

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The judge tells Us, "There are kids that don't sound like... copies of everyone else"

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Ahead of tonight's premiere, Randy Jackson talked to Usmagazine.com about what to expect from the seventh season of American Idol.

"I must say that season seven is probably the most original cast we’ve had," Jackson told Us when we caught up with him in New York City during auditions for his new dance series Randy Jackson Presents: America's Best Dance Crew, premiering February 7 on MTV. "There are kids that don’t sound like sort of copies of everyone else, so it’s interesting. The under-21 crowd is definitely, definitely good."

Contestants in the early rounds are allowed to play instruments in their auditions – as long as they can sing, too. "It’s very cool and very different," Jackson said.

The Idol judge – who is also working on a new album featuring Paula Abdul and Mariah Carey also told Us that the brother of previous champ Fantasia Barrino auditioned this season.

As for a much-anticipated Beatles-themed night, Jackson explained, "We always wanted to [have one], but it’s hard to clear some of these songs... But I love the Beatles! I wish McCartney would come on the show, c'mon now, man!"

Where are past Idol contestants? Click here to find out.

Tell Us: Is Idol still good?

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Randy Jackson arrives at the 2007 Angel Ball sponsored by LEVIEV to benefit the G&P Foundation for Cancer Research in New York on October 29, 2007.

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Rep: Fantasia Barrino Is Not Pregnant

Henry Seltzer — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 10:40:47 -0500

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Her rep explains why the American Idol champ has recently missed some shows of Broadway's The Color Purple

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Fantasia Barrino is "not pregnant," a rep for her Broadway show, The Color Purple, tells Usmagazine.com.

Several blogs recently reported that the American Idol champ, 23, and rapper Young Dro were expecting.

"Fantasia is not pregnant and the Internet rumors are entirely untrue," Barrino's rep confirms to Us.

The New York Post also said that "an upcoming visit from the stork might explain the star's numerous absences from the Broadway smash The Color Purple."

But the show's rep tells Us:

"It is true that she has missed some performances because she has gotten sick from time to time over the nine months, but doing eight shows a week is a lot so she missed a few."

When Barrino was 17 she gave birth to daughter Zion, who turned 6 this year.

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Fantasia attends the 61st Annual Tony Awards on June 10, 2007 in New York City.

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Morning Rush: Let's Be Honest, It's Always Angelina's Night

Noelle Hancock — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 08:26:08 -0400

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· A demure Angelina Jolie tried to stay in the background at the Ocean’s Thirteen premiere, telling reporters it was her man's night.

· Sinead O’Connor reportedly once got into a fistfight with Prince after she did a cover of his song, "Nothing Compares 2 U."

· Fantasia Barrino says that when she hit it big, people were all, “Girl, you need to lose those pumps and long nails.” She did.

· Is Katie Lee Joel the new Katie Holmes? A new unauthorized biography about her May-December relationship with Billy Joel, 58, claims that Katie Lee, 25, is "unhappy in that big mansion on Long Island. It's a prison."

· On Pete Wentz’s 28th birthday at his bar Angels & Kings, he and girlfriend Ashlee Simpson rushed to the bathroom together saying “We’re going to puke” and stayed there for 10 minutes. Nothing like tandem vomiting to keep a relationship alive.

· Kate Bosworth was seen “chatting closely” with Orlando Bloom’s sister Samantha at a party. The Big O was supposed to come but ended up bailing out at the last minute.

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Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt at the "Ocean's Thirteen" premiere in Los Angeles, CA. June 5, 2007.

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Us Poll: The Ladies of American Idol

Noelle Hancock — Thu, 24 May 2007 10:29:01 -0400

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Last night, 17-year-old Jordin Sparks joined a legion of lovely lasses who've won American Idol.

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Last night, 17-year-old Jordin Sparks joined a legion of lovely lasses who've won American Idol. But how does she stack up against the rest?

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Fantasia Barrino Reigns ‘Purple’ On Broadway

Mayrav — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 03:16:56 -0500

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American Idol 2004 winner Fantasia Barrino is in talks to make her Broadway debut in The Color Purple this spring. According to Playbill.com, this will make her the first American Idol winner to hit Broadway.

Broadway has favored Idol finalists, like Constantine Maroulis and Diana DeGarmo, but no winners have graced the stage.

Four-time Grammy nominee Barrino, 22, reportedly will be playing the part of Celie in the Oprah Winfrey-produced musical – a nice rebound from having lost out the part of Effie in Dreamgirls to Idol loser Jennifer Hudson.

LaChanze, the actress who originated the Broadway role, won a Tony for her performance. It will be interesting to see how the Idol-ized songbird stacks up.

Talk to Us: What other Idol stars deserve a spot on Broadway?

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Fantasia Barrino

Allison Corneau — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 18:50:44 -0500

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Becoming a household name following her season three win on the FOX reality TV hit American Idol, North Carolina-native Fantasia Barrino has proven that she's not only got the pipes, but the personality as well. Her premier single "I Believe," from her 2005 album Truth Is, made her the first solo artist in history to hit No.1 on the Billboard charts in their first appearance. In April 2007, she was also the first Idol winner to debut on Broadway as the lead in "The Color Purple." Barrino is currently a single mother to her daughter Zion.

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Becoming a household name following her win on season three of the FOX reality TV hit American Idol, Fantasia has proven that she’s got not only the pipes but the personality to make it in today’s entertainment industry.

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A native of High Point, North Carolina, the singer began honing her musical skills as part of her church choir. Winning the American Idol crown after beating out tens of thousands of hopeful contestants nationwide, Fantasia released her debut album in November 2006, while her first single “I Believe” held steady on the Billboard charts at #1 for 11 weeks. The 22-year-old Fantasia, who used a portion of her earnings to put a down payment on a home for her mother, has also released her autobiography, "Life Is Not a Fairy Tale" in 2005, in which she candidly disclosed the fact that she was functionally illiterate. A film version of the singer’s story was aired on Lifetime, drawing 19 million viewers and making the made for TV movie the second most successful Lifetime movie ever aired. The former Idol singer’s self-titled follow-up disc was released in December 2006. Fantasia also starred in the Broadway production of The Color Purple from February 2007 until January of 2008. She is currently working on a third album which is planned to be released in late 2008.

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Fantasia is currently a single mother to her young daughter Zion.

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The Fantasia Barrino Story

Beverly — Mon, 21 Aug 2006 15:45:33 -0400

American Idol winner Fantasia to Star in Lifetime Movie

Noelle Hancock — Fri, 05 May 2006 15:24:18 -0400

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Everett Collection; Getty Images

Lifetime makes a rare departure from movies about girls that vomit or women â€œtaking back their lifeâ€ to make a movie about the life of Fantasia Barrino, the American Idol winner who overcame being a teenage single mother, poverty, sexual abuse and illiteracy. Fantasia will play herself in the movie. Reuters reports:

The movie, tentatively titled Life Is Not a Fairy Tale: The Fantasia Barrino Story, will premiere in August on the women's cable channel. Debbie Allen will direct from an adaptation of Barrino's autobiography, Life Is Not a Fairy Tale.

Viola Davis and Kadeem Hardison will portray her parents, Diane and JoJo Barrino, while Loretta Devine has been cast as her grandmother Addie Collins.

Kadeem Hardison! Thatâ€™s right, itâ€™s the triumphant return of Dwayne Wayne! If youâ€™re too young to remember A Different World, you seriously missed out. It was The Cosby Showâ€™s college spinoff featuring Denise Huxtable. Dwayne carried the show and no one has ever done more with a pair of flip-up glasses.

This is actually one of those movies where the behind-the-scenes interactions would be better than the actual movie. Surely someone will make a DVD with outtakes of Debbie Allen breaking into extemporaneous interpretive dances, and Hardison dishing about Lisa Bonet quitting the sitcom and journeying into soft-core porn (the well-traveled path of many a former child star). Start the prayer chain now, people. Where there's a will, there's a Wayne.

"'Idol" champ Fantasia playing herself in TV movie [Reuters via Defamer]

Fantasia Barrino

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Idols Go to Disney!

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