Lauryn Hill Convicted of Tax Evasion & Compares It to Slavery…

Singer/Songwriter Lauryn Hill has been sentenced to three months in prison and three months of home confinement for failing to file tax returns for five years and not reporting more than $2.3 million in income.

In addition to being a singer and actress, Hill owned and operated four S corporations, and her primary source of income was royalties from the recording and film industries. During 2005, 2006 and 2007, Hill received more than $1.8 million in income from those sources, according to prosecutors, but didn’t file her tax returns for those years.

During the hearing, Hill compared her tax predicament to slavery. “I was put into a system I didn’t know the nature of,” she said “I’m a child of former slaves. I got into an economic paradigm and had that imposed on me,” she said. “I sold 50 million units … now I’m up here paying a tax debt. If that’s not likened to slavery, I don’t know what is.”

While Hill pleaded guilty to charges specifically related to those tax years, her sentence also takes into account additional income and tax losses for 2008 and 2009— when she also failed to file federal returns—along with her outstanding tax liability to the state of New Jersey, for a total income of approximately $2.3 million and total tax loss of approximately $1,006,517.

Our tax system is NOT a type of slavery. Slavery, involuntary servitude, is slavery. Being a millionaire and not having the foresight to get an accountant is just stupid. Stop with the hate, Lauryn. Tracy Chapman knows what up. Preach love, not hate, and pay your taxes.