Vanessa Williams won the title of Miss America 1984, becoming the first African-American to win the crown in the history of the pageant. But soon… shame and scandal followed when
nude photos of her were published in Penthouse magazine. She was forced to resign from her title. Williams laid low for a few years, then returned triumphant as a singer
and actress. She had several singles that charted on the Top 10, and earned Grammy Award nominations. For her acting, she’s won NAACP Image Awards and a Satellite Award for
MJ is the greatest entertainer that ever lived. No argument there. But the Smooth Criminal singer was plagued with inner-demons that drove him to prescription drug and plastic surgery addictions
with zero career damage. For years his love of mentoring kids, especially young boys, was pretty much ignored regardless of the endless allegations. But eventually somebody paid attention: The People
v. Jackson trial happened in 2005 and Jackson was tried based upon accusations of Gavin Arvizo, a 13-year-old boy. Jackson was acquitted. Even in death, he is revered and rich
OG comedian Richard Pryor was never known for being politically correct. Way back in 1977, he was a headliner of the Star-Spangled Night for Rights – a benefit put on
by a gay rights group – but Pryor shocked folks when he admitted to a gay experience in the most vulgar terms possible, then told the audience to “kiss my
happy, rich black ass.” He then left within 15 minutes of taking the stage. “His ‘street’ language was abusive, filthy, and racist,” wrote one audience member in the Los Angeles Times.
“It takes a certain talent, genius (if you will) to insult 17,000 people – black, white, male, female, straight, gay, rich and poor – at one time.” Oh, bet you
thought we were going to talk about the freebasing scandal from 1980, right? Yup, there was that, too. But in the end, the late comedian is remembered for being a
Paula Abdul’s pop music career earned her six #1 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 throughout the '80s and '90s. But then things went sideways. The choreographer-turned-superstar battled bulimia and
disappeared from the scene. In 2002, Abdul reappeared. She was with Randy Jackson and Simon Cowell as a judge for a new talent show called American Idol. Scandal came down
hard in 2005 when Corey Clark was disqualified from the second season of Idol and fired back with allegations of a sexual relationship with Abdul. But now, the Straight Up
singer is straight up working nonstop: She’s filming a documentary called Move, and wrapped a successful tour. She recently received the Harry Chapin Memorial Humanitarian Award for her work with
one thing, he’s been accused by several women of domestic abuse. In 2009, he admitted he beat up his then-girlfriend Rihanna (“She was spitting blood in my face after I
punched her,” he said) but tefloned his way out. Again and again. After winning a Grammy Award in 2016, he hate-tweeted them, saying, “The Grammys used to mean something.” But
all’s well that ends well, and not everybody hates Chris. In 2017, he released Heartbreak on a Full Moon, an astounding 45-track album, to great reviews.
There’s no doubt Prince had a lot of women. Most of them remember the late Purple One fondly. But he did get sued once by a bitter ex. Charlene Friend claimed
she was an 18-year-old virgin when she first met the I Wanna Be Your Lover singer in a Hollywood bar. He was 14-years-older than her. In her statement, Friend said:
“Prince informed me he took sexual relations very seriously. He believed he was the Messiah and if you engaged in sex with him, you became one with him.” She took
legal action for defamation and emotional distress but Prince won in court. And even though he’s gone—Prince is still a winner! #PrinceForever #PurpleReign
The musically-brilliant R&B icon R. Kelly cavorted in menacing masks, called himself the Pied Piper, and allegedly married Aaliyah when she was 14 using falsified documents. And then there’s that
in a “cult” scandal involving young girls. Yet, his net worth is estimated at $150 million. He’s sold nearly 60 million albums, remains in high demand for concerts, collaborations (he and
Who can forget all the hate and shade Alicia Keys got when she started stepping out with now-husband Swizz Beatz? Folks said the superstar singer stole him from his former
wife, Mashonda Tifrere and she was homewrecker. Now? Nobody cares. She’s selling out stadiums on tour and the latest is a nomination for the 2018 BRIT Awards.
Scandal dogged lawyer and talk show host Star Jones when she and her reportedly “gay” husband Al Reynolds got divorced in 2008. Nine years later, Reynolds came out as bisexual, and
Kanye’s come under fire for everything from interrupting Taylor Swift’s MTV Award acceptance speech on national television to comparing himself favorably to Jesus Christ. He made shocking remarks about AIDS
in 2005. He surprised folks in 2016 with his controversial music video, Famous. But no matter how abrasive he can be, Kanye always turns around and does something really cool.
He’s outspoken but he speaks up. He's got a top clothing line, Yeezy. He's just bought a $60 million mansion. He's got new music coming out soon. Basically, he's giving
