So recognizable she is known simply by her first name, Fantasia has parlayed her victory on American Idol into a vital and irrepressible singing and acting career. Fantasia Monique Barrino, was born on June 30, 1984 in High Point, North Carolina. She began singing in church at age 5 and later toured with her family throughout the southeast. Fantasia dropped out of high school when she became a single mom in 2001, and was working to support her daughter when she tried out for American Idol in Atlanta in 2004.
Fantasia made a singular impression on the judges for her
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stylized, gospel influenced sound and explosive stage presence. Her audition version of Tina Turner's "
Proud Mary" made her an early favorite in the competition. Her standout performance during the course of the show was a heartfelt staging, begun seated, of the Porgy and Bess standard "
Summertime" that idol judge
Randy Jackson labeled the best performance in the show's history. Treading through various controversies, Fantasia rose to the top two contestants on American Idol in the show’s third season, and was crowned champion in May 2004 at age 19.
In June 2004, Fantasia came out with her debut single, "
I Believe", which later debuted at number-one on the Billboard Hot 100. This number-one debut made Fantasia the first artist in history to achieve this with a first single. On the sales chart, the single spent eleven consecutive weeks at number one, giving it the longest consecutive stay on top of that chart for an American Idol contestant. Fantasia's debut studio album, Free Yourself, was released in November 2004. It debuted at number eight on the Billboard 200 pop album chart and was ultimately certified platinum, selling over 2 million copies. Free Yourself also received four Grammy nominations. Her second album, Fantasia, was certified gold, received three Grammy nominations and featured the 8-week #1 Billboard Hot R&B hit "When I See U." Following a critically acclaimed run on Broadway as Celie in the musical, The Color Purple, Fantasia was cast to star in the movie version of the musical, which is scheduled to begin production in 2009. Ultimately proving that one can certainly rise above one’s circumstances, Fantasia is also in the process of getting her GED.
