Mary J. Blige recently spoke about allegations that her foundation FFAWN (Foundation for the Advancement of Women Now) has committed financial foul play. TMZ was the first to report that those in charge of the financial aspect of the foundation mishandled funds, including the non-payment of a $250,000 loan, lack of payment to musicians who performed at a benefit concert, and failure to file federal taxes for 2010.
The queen of hip-hop/soul spoke to Angie Martinez via phone call from Beijing, China, where she is scheduled to perform at an event for Armani. In the phone interview, Blige reassures that she is working to rectify the situation, stating that those who were running the organization are to blame, while respectfully not mentioning any names. “FFAWN has been mismanaged and when I found out about all these issues, I immediately got on the phone with my lawyers and my advisers and tried to fix this so that none of those women would suffer,” said the singer. “My goal is to do exactly what I set out to do. My motives were true and upfront. I set out to empower and encourage women, but it turns out the business part of it was not managed properly,” she says.
She goes on to state that the problem stems from the fact that the wrong people were hired. “I just found out that when you don’t hire the right people and have them in the right places, doing the right things, and they don’t have the same motives that you do, your business suffers,” she explained.
The outlook looks good for FFAWN, as Blige confirms that new people are being hired to save the organization’s reputation and keep it from sinking. “So right now as we speak, I’ve hired a team of people that are making sure my business is taken care of as far as FFAWN is concerned,” she said. “FFAWN is not closing down. We are just restructuring.”
The singer’s intention is to help women. “I’m an artist and my goal was to do something great. I dreamed about helping save the lives of women. This is something I always wanted to do, but I only wanted to do it if I had the right team of people who can do the part that I can’t do. I don’t know about the business side of this thing. All I know is giving-giving my time, giving my lyrics, giving my life.”
Hopefully, the previous management of FFAWN hasn’t tarnished Mary’s altruistic intentions to give back to the community.
Mary J. Blige has always been an outspoken figure in the music industry, and she’s now speaking out about a charity gone wrong. The Grammy-winning singer is bringing to light what went wrong with her FFAWN charity organization and how it wasn’t handled properly. In this article, we will explore why Mary feels so passionate about these issues and what can be done to ensure that charities are able to achieve their goals without any hiccups.
The star launched the Foundation for the Advancement of Women Now (FFAWN) back in 2008 as a way to empower women around the world by providing them with resources, education opportunities, and financial aid. However, recently it’s become apparent that there have been some missteps along the way resulting in less than stellar results from the foundation. Despite this setback, Mary still believes firmly in her mission for FFAWN; she just wants people to know exactly where things went wrong and take steps towards rectifying those mistakes.
It’s clear that Mary is deeply invested in making sure charities like FFAWN reach their full potential – and beyond! She’s standing up against complacency when it comes to helping others, something many can learn from. Read on to find out more about Mary J. Blige’s story and how she plans to help ensure other charities don’t fall into similar traps.
Overview Of Mary J. Blige’s Charitable Foundation
Mary J. Blige, an artist and philanthropist, has recently spoken out about the issues she encountered with her charitable foundation. She founded The Mary J. Blige and Steve Stoute Foundation for the Advancement of Women Now in 2014 to help provide women with resources and support to overcome poverty, addiction, abuse, homelessness, and other difficult situations. Since then, however, the organization has faced several challenges due to mismanagement.
In a recent interview with Variety Magazine, Blige expressed her disappointment over how the charity was handled by its former executive director who had been accused of embezzlement and misuse of funds within the organization. She said that it “wasn’t handled properly” and that there were many mistakes made along the way which led to major losses for the foundation. Despite these difficulties though, Blige is still committed to helping those in need and will continue fighting for justice for all women affected by her charity’s struggles.
Blige also revealed plans to relaunch the foundation after taking time off to restructure operations and reevaluate goals for its future endeavors. With new leadership on board now and more stringent oversight procedures put into place, she hopes this will be a fresh start for her charity so that it can reach even more individuals in need of assistance across the globe.
Alleged Mismanagement And Financial Issues
Unfortunately, the Mary J. Blige and Steve Stoute Foundation has been plagued by alleged mismanagement and financial issues over the years. In 2017, an audit revealed that more than $420,000 had gone missing from the charity’s accounts and former executive director Ronn Torossian was accused of embezzlement as a result. Blige said she was “devastated” to learn about this news since it put her mission in jeopardy.
In addition to these allegations, there have also been reports of other financial irregularities within the organization such as improper spending on travel and entertainment expenses. This led to further scrutiny of how funds were being handled and has caused skepticism among some potential donors who are now hesitant to contribute money to The Mary J. Blige and Steve Stoute Foundation for fear that their donations won’t be used properly or go towards its intended purpose.
Despite all these setbacks though, Blige remains determined to make a difference in people’s lives with her charitable work. She is currently working hard behind the scenes to restructure operations at her foundation so that it can continue providing aid and support to those who need it most. Moving forward, she hopes that with stricter oversight measures in place, her charity will be able to carry out its mission without any additional problems arising again in the future
Conclusion
I. Summary of Mary J. Blige’s Charitable Foundation
Mary J. Blige launched her charitable foundation, FFAWN (Foundation for the Advancement of Women Now), in 2006 with the mission to empower women and girls from underserved communities through education and mentorship programs. The foundation has operated for over a decade but recently came under scrutiny due to alleged financial mismanagement by its board members.
II. Alleged Mismanagement and Financial Issues
In recent interviews, Blige revealed that she was unaware of the extent of financial troubles at FFAWN until 2019 when she discovered “irregularities” within the organization’s books. She expressed disappointment in how it had been handled, saying that “the business wasn’t handled properly…it just didn’t look right.” Since then, Blige has taken action to ensure proper management and accountability moving forward.
III. Conclusion
Though Mary J. Blige is undoubtedly disappointed in how things have unfolded with her charity, she remains committed to its cause and believes it can still make a difference in the lives of many people who need help the most. Through her hard work and dedication, Blige hopes to get back on track and continue making an impact with FFAWN while also inspiring others to do their part as well.
