Fantasia’s Southern Expedition

“American Idol” winner Fantasia is headed on a regional tour for a few weeks, and she is bringing along Guordan Banks and fellow Idol star LaPorsha Renae.

Photo: Mary Andrews / ConcertLivewire.com
Arizona Jazz Festival, Arizona Grand Resort, Phoenix, Ariz.

“The Definition Of … Tour” takes its name from Fantasia’s fifth full-length album, which was released in July. Fantasia has been working hard since her time on the star-making TV show and won a Grammy in 2011 for the track “Bittersweet.”

“Consider The Definition Of…, her fifth studio album, a self-help manual on love, life and relationships,” Soul In Stereo wrote. “(The album) is Fantasia at her most confident … Fantasia is unapologetically raw and refreshingly real.” The album soared up various charts and hit #6 on the Nielsen SoundScan ratings. 

The new dates mostly stay in the regional South, except for two dates in Ohio. The first gig is in Lafayette, La., Nov. 16 and the last show is in Dayton, Ohio Dec. 4. Favored states in the routing are Georgia, with four stops, Florida with two and Alabama with two.

Fantasia is also appearing at  in Tallahassee, Fla., later this month and is featured on cruise next year.

Fantasia’s rise to prominence on “American Idol” was the quintessential Cinderella story of the 2000s. She was a teenage mother who was functionally illiterate and had dropped out of high school. What she did have going for her, though, was a one-in-a-million voice. In front of the largest television audience of any syndicated program at the time, she delivered standout performances that remain the stuff of legend.

Check out her rendition of “Summertime” that absolutely blew away the original judges and the weekly guest, Quentin Tarantino:

Here’s the plan:

Nov. 16 – Lafayette, La., Heymann Performing Arts Center
Nov. 18 – Augusta, Ga., William B. Bell Auditorium
Nov. 19 – Macon, Ga., Macon City Auditorium
Nov. 20 – North Charleston, S.C., North Charleston Perf. Arts Center
Nov. 23 – Toledo, Ohio, Stranahan Theater
Nov. 25 – Jacksonville, Fla., Moran Theater
Nov. 26 – Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Broward Center For The Perf. Arts
Nov. 27 – Columbus, Ga., RiverCenter
Dec. 1 – Savannah, Ga., Johnny Mercer Theatre
Dec. 2 – Mobile, Ala., Saenger Theatre
Dec. 3 – Huntsville, Ala., Von Braun Center
Dec. 4 – Dayton, Ohio, Mead Theatre
      
Get your tickets Oct. 7 at 10 a.m. local time. FantasiaOfficial.com is the singer’s website.