14 DAY TRIAL // Caribbean singer Rihanna may have been rocking the charts and selling albums left and right in 2009, but she was a financial mess in reality. The singer has filed a lawsuit against her accountant, accusing him of gross mismanagement that almost sent her into debt.
Despite the fact that she had just released a major album and she was even promoting it with a tour, “Last Girl on Earth,” Rihanna's cash flow had a big minus sign in front of it. And while everyone thought she was making millions hand over fist, the singer was actually struggling to make ends meet, says TMZ.
The legal documentation filed with the court in the lawsuit, alleges that the “Umbrella” singer had $11 million (€8 million) in cash at the beginning of the year, but by the time the year was done, she was left with a mere $2 million (€1.4 million).
The main culprit in the case is her accountant, who miserably failed to spot the leaks and inform the artist in time. He reportedly gave her the go-ahead to buy an expensive mansion priced at $7 million (€5.1 million), which she later sold for a $2 million loss (€1.4 million).
To top it off, the unnamed accountant knew that her tour was losing money, but he didn't warn the singer, who was almost forced to file for bankruptcy at the end of 2009, when she saw her savings dwindle and her expenses double in value.
But in case you're feeling bad for Rihanna, you should be happy to know that she has since made a full recovery and now she's the proud owner of a healthy $43 million (€31.4 million) estate.
Rihanna's latest musical effort was a very lucrative collaboration with Shakira called “Can't Remember to Forget You” that premiered at the end of January and is already sparking controversy as well as YouTube views.
Prior to that, she performed alongside rapper Eminem in his hit single “Monster.”