See, this is the problem with handing a young person who’s never had money before a potentially lucrative career — they have no understanding of the fact that the money isn’t guaranteed to keep coming. Fremantle ought to make these kids sign an agreement saying that a portion of their earnings every year goes to paying for a financial adviser, because they don’t really seem to be champs at managing their own cash flow.

Just like Fantasia before him, Ruben Studdard is in a ton of debt, because he hasn’t been paying his taxes.

In fact, Ruben owes $254,119 in state and federal taxes, including a $60,469 lien filed by the IRS on February 4 of this year for 2007 taxes.

Why didn’t you pay your taxes like the rest of us do, Ruben???

Meanwhile, Clay Aiken’s been dropped by his record label, RCA. Clay’s 2008 album, On My Way Here, sold 159,000 copies in the United States. His 2003 debut, Measure of a Man, sold 2.78 million. BIG DROP.

I hope he’s at least been paying his taxes!!!

Congrats to American Idol winner Ruben Studdard, who’s planning a big Southern-style wedding to his fiancee, Surata Zuri McCants, in Alabama on Saturday. Ruben plans to have 20 groomsmen at the wedding, which will be held in the Mountainbrook neighborhood of Birmingham.

This photo was taken at the American Idol Season 7 finale, and what I just can’t figure out is why the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power was advertising on the backdrop. Like, we don’t exactly have a choice. If you want water and power, you’re going through LA DWP. It’s not like Comcast is offering a new fiber-optic water network to compete. I’m confused.

Awwww, sad!!!

Ruben Studdard — who basically did nothing successful after winning season 2 of AmIdol — has been dropped from J Records.

His last album only moved 235,000 copies.

That’s worse than Britney’s!