There are few worse burdens to face than tax debt. If you owe enough money, the government has the power to seize your bank accounts, publically embarrass you and/ or send you to jail. That’s a hard lesson many celebrities have learned over the years, and unfortunately for Mary J Blige, it seems she’s about to be the latest.
The singer has had some money problems for years between owing the state of New Jersey almost one million dollars over unpaid taxes and her charity owing two hundred and fifty thousand dollars for defaulting on a loan, but those issues kicked into overdrive this month when the federal government announced she owes a hell of a lot more. According to TMZ, Blige reportedly didn’t pay any income taxes for the years 2009, 2010 and 2011, and when the bills from those years are added together, they total more than $3.4 million.
Being a celebrity offers an incredible number of perks, but one of the serious drawbacks is most are self-employed. Consequently, they are responsible for setting aside money during the year in order to give the government the correct percentage. If the celebrity fails to do so, the government will typically catch on after a few years of unfiled returns, and at that point, the outstanding bill can sometimes be comically large.
Here’s to hoping Blige can figure out a way to get Uncle Sam his money without winding up in jail. She’s far too talented and is capable of spreading far too much joy to waste a year or more of her life behind bars.
