Joss Stone used fortune to buy out of contract
British pop star Joss Stone has lost the millions she racked up after shooting to fame.
The singer, real name Jocelyn Stoker, was recently ranked 27th on a list of Britain's Young Rich stars but she insists her bank balance is nowhere near the estimated $16 million she is said to be worth.
She says, "I don't have that kind of money."
Stone claims she handed over the bulk of her earnings to bosses at
record company EMI to get out of her contract in 2009.
She adds, "It all went when I left EMI. I was flat even, down to
nothing. I wasn't even down to a million in the bank.
"What I had left was my house and three flats in Exeter and that
was it. Money is the thing that people hold over you but to me it
was just cotton balls. Don't let it suffocate you. Don't let
yourself need it that much. I just thought, 'I'm free. I'll go out
and play some gigs and earn my living.'"