The verdict is in and Lauryn Hill has been sentenced to three months imprisonment for failure to pay her her taxes from 2005 through 2007 while earning 1.8 million dollars in revenue. The Grammy award winner tried her best to avoid jail time and comply with the court demands but came up short at the federal court in Newark ,NJ.
Ms. Hill appeared in court two weeks ago to face her charges and she paid a sum of $300,000 towards her debt but Magistrate Judge Madeline Cox Arleo scolded Hill for moving “slow” in making full payment [which totaled close to $900,000].
Hill managed to pay both her debt fee plus interest from her penalties 24 hours before her sentencing but obviously her efforts was not that appeasing to the court – and she sentenced to three months in PRISON.
Ms. Hill sentencing is set to begin on July 8th, allowing Hill to sought out her home life including her child care for her six children. The judge also sentenced her to an additional three months of home confinement after her release.
In related news, Ms. Hill has heard the cries of the public and reportedly inked a deal with Sony WorldWide Entertainment where Hill will launch her very own label, and release new music as well. Ms. Hill addresses the critics who feel that she had succumb to a record deal to clear her debt but Ms. Hill says:
“This has been a 10+ year battle, for a long time played out behind closed doors, but now in front of the public eye. This is an old conflict between art and commerce… free minds, and minds that are perhaps overly tethered to structure. This is about inequity, and the resulting disenfranchisement caused by it. I’ve been fighting for existential and economic freedom, which means the freedom to create and live without someone threatening, controlling, and/or manipulating the art and the artist, by tying the purse strings. “
Sidebar: Speaking of Ms. Hill’s current record deal. Here’s a newly released song from Ms. Hill entitled “Neurotic Society“.