Was Fantasia's 'Suicide Attempt' a Setup?

Could the entire Fantasia Barrino saga this week been faked? Could the whole story of Fantasia's suicide attempt and sex tape with a married man been a setup to help promote her upcoming album and reality show, while also generating sympathy for her as she faces a lawsuit?

The entertainment world was rocked this week as Fantasia Barrino reportedly attempted suicide after it she was accused in a divorce filing of having made a sex tape with a married man named Antwaun Cook.

Fantasia, a recording artist, former American Idol champion and reality television star, is not exactly a household name, and despite several Grammy Award nominations, her career has not taken off post-American Idol in the way that she likely would have wanted.

She does have a new album due out on August 24^th called "Back to Me" and her reality show, "Fantasia For Real" debuted in January of this year. Its second season begins in October.

So why would anybody cynically suggest that her drama this week could be really more of a public relations and publicity campaign than a true personal crisis?

The 'official story' is that Fantasia was duped into dating a married man. Her manager, Brian Dickens, released a statement this week that claimed Fantasia was led to believe that the marriage between her boyfriend and his wife, Paula Cook, was effectively over.

The statement read, "Fantasia has always been an open book. Honesty, self-respect, and personal responsibility are values she wears proudly. Fantasia believed Mr. Cook when he told her he was not happy in his marriage and his heart was not in it. She believed him when he told her he and Mrs. Cook separated in the late summer of 2009. She believed Mr. Cook when he told her he lived elsewhere."

It turns out that what Fantasia was led to believe, or at least what her manager is saying she was led to believe, was not true. In fact, her boyfriend was still very much married to Paula Cook and Fantasia was, at least according to Ms. Cook, the 'other woman'.

Supposedly, after discovering both that Mr. Cook was deceitful and also that Ms. Cook knew of a sex tape, or sex tapes, that Fantasia made with her husband, Fantasia was so distraught that she tried to kill herself by ingesting a large amount of aspirin and sleep aids.

After two days in the hospital, Fantasia was released. Here is where the story begins to not make a lot of sense. If Fantasia were truly so despondent over learning the truth about her boyfriend that she attempted suicide, and if she were so morally opposed to dating a married man as her manager's statements suggest, then one of the last things it would seem that she would do is go meet her boyfriend, two days after trying to kill herself, in front of cameras for a 'reality' show.

Even less likely, it would seem, would Fantasia and her boyfriend actually pose for the cameras. Pictures obtained by several online media outlets, including TMZ, show the two talking and walking in front of the camera.

Fantasia's own father, Joseph Barrino seems to have doubts about the whole thing. He spoke about the 'reunion' of his daughter and her married lover to Radaronline and said, in part, "I do not think that can be real".

In addition to an upcoming album and reality show to promote, Fantasia could have had another motivation to stage an attempted suicide. Some of Paula Cook's friends have suggested that the suicide attempt is a way for Fantasia to garner sympathy as she faces a potential lawsuit from Ms. Cook; in North Carolina, and in six other states, the 'other woman' can face legal action from the wife of a married man.

Thankfully, Fantasia seems to be doing okay after her alleged suicide attempt. Doubts will continue to grow, however, as to whether she truly tried to kill herself or if the whole thing was faked.

Source: Staff, "Fantasia's Reality -- Staged Encounter with Married BF", tmz.com
Source: Staff, "Fantasia's Dad Displeased With Her Married Lover Reunion", radaronline.com
Source: Staff, "Fantasia's Overdose -- Aspirin and Sleep Aid", tmz.com