Fantasia Barrino rose to fame after winning season three of American Idol. As one of the most talented singers to grace the competition, she has since sold over three million albums in the US, starred on Broadway, and took home a Grammy for the song “Bittersweet.” While her career flourished, bad decisions — both professional and personal — took their toll. Here’s the sad truth about Fantasia’s dating history.
Teenage love gone wrong
Before she became an overnight celebrity, Fantasia was a typical teenager growing up in North Carolina. At the age of 14, she began a relationship with Brandel Shouse, and she dropped out of school when she was in the ninth grade. According to People magazine, Fantasia went wild and began drinking and hanging out at clubs. When she turned 16, she got pregnant by Brandel and gave birth to their daughter, Zion, in 2001. She told Us Weekly that although she thanks God for her daughter, she would’ve waited a bit longer to become a mom.
After Zion’s birth, their relationship got more tumultuous. During Fantasia’s Behind the Music special, Brandel admitted he once hit her in the face. And in 2002, he pled guilty to causing physical harm to her. Fantasia told People magazine their relationship made her realize it was time for her to respect herself. They split up in 2003 — just two years after Zion was born.
Fantasia moved to a small apartment and began raising her daughter on her own. Although she worked at her grandmother’s daycare to make ends meet, she sometimes only had enough money to eat Oodles of Noodles for breakfast and dinner. She credited her faith for helping her through that rough period.
Moving on
In 2008, she was at a recording studio when she met Atlanta rapper Young Dro. Their relationship was very intense, and Dro said he became a father figure to Fantasia’s daughter. Their families even became really close, but Dro told radio host Angela Yee that his relationship with Fantasia was very “ghetto.” He admitted he fell in love, but there was a lot of stuff going on that caused tension in their romance.
Dro confirmed their relationship ended on bad terms. He said he was the one who ended things because he didn’t like where their relationship was headed. But Fantasia told MTV that she was the one who chose to end their romance so she could focus on her career. Either way, by 2009, Dro had moved on and was in a relationship with someone else, but he and Fantasia remained friends.
The singer even maintained a close relationship with Dro’s mom and would frequently travel to Jamaica with her on vacation.
A scandalous relationship
Fantasia’s dating history got real messy in 2009 when she began dating a T-Mobile store manager named Antwaun Cook. Their roky romance also played out on her reality series, Fantasia For Real. Antwaun was married to a woman named Paula Cook when he began dating Fantasia. Initially, Fantasia said she believed Antwaun when he told her that he and his wife had separated in the late summer of 2009, but his wife wasn’t convinced.
During divorce proceedings, Paula filed a complaint, accusing Fantasia and Antwaun of making an intimate video and getting matching tattoos while he was still legally married. Because the case was filed in North Carolina where alienation of affection is recognized, there was the possibility that Fantasia would have to pay up for dealing with a married man.
At one point, Fantasia got pregnant by Antwaun, but she decided not to move forward with the pregnancy. Days later, she was hospitalized in North Carolina after taking an unknown amount of sleeping aids. She told VH1 Behind the Music (via People): “I wanted to go to sleep and just be at peace. I knew exactly what I was doing.”
The judge ruled in her favor
Fantasia and Antwaun’s wife met for mediation in November 2010. The singer was reportedly willing to hand over $100,000 for the alienation claims, but his wife was unwilling to settle without Fantasia admitting she’d known Antwaun was married when she began dating him.
In the end, a North Carolina judge officially ruled in Fantasia’s favor, stating Antwaun was separated when he pursued a relationship with the American Idol winner. With the case closed, Fantasia was ready to move forward and focus on her career, but she just couldn’t shake her feelings for Antwaun.
Another pregnancy
In Oct. 2011, she confirmed during an appearance on the Wendy Williams Show (via People) she was pregnant with a baby boy. During his interview with radio host Angela Yee, Young Dro said he was there for Fantasia during her entire pregnancy because Antwaun was “acting lame.”
She gave birth to Dallas Xavier Barrino in Dec. 2011, and Antwaun was confirmed as the baby’s father. She and Antwaun stayed together up until 2013 when it was reported he had reconciled with his estranged wife.
He and Fantasia reportedly share custody of their son, and all of the bad blood between them has finally been squashed. In an Instagram post, Fantasia said she was thankful for the great relationship she now has with Antwaun and his wife.
A bitter custody battle
After that relationship ended, her daughter’s father, Brandel Shousel, decided to jump back into the picture. In 2014, he filed for child support and custody of Zion, who was 13 at the time.
According to TMZ, in his petition, Brandel claimed he was the better parent and should be awarded primary custody. Fantasia clapped back and claimed Brandel never had a relationship with or cared for their daughter at all. She also said he had never given her any financial support, so she asked the court to order him to pay child support. The terms of their agreement were kept sealed.
Fasting and focused
Fantasia remained focused on herself and her career for a while and began fasting for seven months to rid herself of her past toxic relationships. She even told Billboard that she bought a ring and married herself. She said, “Some man has to top this, because I’m worth it.” She also wrote down a list of all the qualities she wanted in a husband.
How Fantasia met Kendall
In 2014, while visiting the rooftop bar at the Hyatt Hotel in North Carolina, a bunch of sloppy drunk guys tried to holla at her. Fantasia told her friends she was ready to leave, and that’s when Kendall Taylor, the chief operating officer of a courier company, approached her.
He apologized for his friends’ rude behavior, and he and the award-winning singer began chatting until six in the morning. She said she had never met anyone like him, and he became her boyfriend that very first night. Everyone was happy that she had finally moved on from Antwaun, but it didn’t take long for Kendall to get put on blast.
An insider forwarded Kendall’s mugshot to Love B Scott and spilled all the details about his past. His extensive rap sheet included a physical altercation with a woman, possession of substances, possession of a weapon, and failure to pay child support.
With his most recent brush with the law occurring in 2012, Love B Scott concluded that Kendall had turned his life around a couple of years before he met Fantasia. Kendall had also begun serving his time as a mentor to those who had gone through similar struggles, through a program called Mentors of Valor Empowered.
Fantasia and Kendall’s quickie wedding
One day, they were sitting around talking about marriage, and Kendall told Fantasia: “Let’s do it.”
In October 2014, just three weeks after meeting, they went to the courthouse and got married. They wore matching wedding bands to seal the deal and Kendall even showed off a tattoo of the singer’s name on his chest. Fantasia confirmed to The Breakfast Club that they refrained from intimacy until they tied the knot.
Kendall made it clear he was with her because he loved her by encouraging her to get a prenup. But Fantasia told The Breakfast Club she would’ve married him without one.
A brief breakup
Things didn’t remain on a positive note for long, Rolling Out reports. In April 2015, she revealed she was no longer with her record label, her beloved grandmother had passed away, and she and Kendall had split up. Two months later, they were back together and looking happier than ever.
In 2015, they had a lavish wedding ceremony which included their family and friends. And on Christmas Day 2016, they renewed their vows in a beautiful ceremony.
Kendall changed Fantasia’s life
Fantasia, who once admitted to being illiterate, now credits her husband for encouraging her newfound passion for books. She told CNN, “I used to hate to read, hated it, and now I can’t stop reading.” Reading has also sparked her interest in writing, and she hopes to publish a book one day.
She told Essence that when Kendall came into her world, her whole life changed. He provides the type of leadership that her household needs and gives her the love she deserves. With Kendall by her side, she told Essence: “I’m not the same Fantasia and I love the queen that I’m becoming.”
We’re so happy Fantasia’s dating history has a happy ending, unlike some of our other favorite celebs.
Angela Simmons has been bouncing in and out of Bow Wow’s life for years. Read more here.
Ashanti still can’t figure out if she wants to be a mom of 10 kids or if she wants to be single. Read more here.
R&B singer The-Dream has finally settled down, but his past dating history is all sorts of messy. Read more here.
Evelyn Lozada…well, just read here and find out for yourself.
Anywho, Fantasia was able to find the man of her dreams, and we wish her and Kendall nothing but the best!
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