NOT AN IDLE STAR BARRINO IS TRIPPING THE LIFE FANTASTIC WITH A NEW ALBUM, GRAMMY NODS AND HER OWN IDOL.

Byline: Fred Shuster Music Writer

She's published a best-selling memoir, starred in a record-breaking TV biopic and is often considered the best thing to come out of the ``American Idol'' franchise.

And when she unleashes her gospel-tinged rasp and powerhouse delivery, 2004 ``Idol'' champ Fantasia Barrino brings to mind the old '60s barn-storming soul-stompers.

``It comes from growing up singing in church,'' said the singer, who was raised in North Carolina and gave birth to a son at 17. ``A lot of the artists I love are all out of church. It's something you feel from the heart, and people in the audience understand where you're coming from.''

Barrino, whose story could give the ``Dreamgirls'' a run for their money, has lived a bit. As the Lifetime Network's ``Life Is Not a Fairy Tale'' told it last summer, Fantasia was a teen-age single mother who endured sexual assault, illiteracy and cripplingly low self-esteem before ``Idol'' launched her onto the charts.

When Barrino handles numbers like the slow-burning ``Two Weeks Notice'' (co-written by Missy Elliott), from her upbeat second album ``Fantasia'' (J-Records), which was released Dec. 12 and is currently in the upper echelons of the pop and r&b charts, you forget she's just 22.

``My life is testimony -- I want to show people you can go through all this and come out the other end even stronger,'' Barrino said on a break from rehearsals for a string of concert dates through February with Jamie Foxx (no local shows are yet scheduled).

The current album is a hit with fans and critics, and soul music historian David Nathan says that Fantasia ``is one of the few vocalists of her generation who really sings from the same place Aretha sings from.''

Although Barrino's ``Idol'' bid was plagued with controversies, more than 65 million votes were cast in order to determine Fantasia winner of the series' third season. It remains the highest finale vote in the show's history.

``By the time it was all over, I was `Idol-ed' out,'' Barrino said. ``I didn't want to hear another thing about it. And then I remembered I would still be unknown without it. I had started to forget the opportunities it gave me. But I want to be seen for what I can do away from `American Idol.' ''

Her life on Lifetime

No problem there. When her Lifetime biopic (based on Barrino's memoir of the same title), starring the singer and directed by actress-choreographer Debbie Allen, debuted on the female-targeted channel last August, more than 19 million viewers tuned in during its debut weekend, making it the second-most-watched movie in the network's 22-year history.

``People appreciate the struggle she's had and the way she came through it,'' said Robert Scorpio, program director at Los Angeles hip-hop/r&b radio station KDAY-FM (93.5). ``Listeners respond to her realness; she's not trying to be somebody she's not.''

Despite her limited acting experience, most reviews of Barrino's performance in the film were positive.

``Everybody I've met said it inspired them, which was exactly what I wanted to do,'' Barrino said. ``I wanted to reach out to people that were going through hard times. Mission accomplished.''

After ``Idol,'' Barrino's million-selling `04 debut album, ``Free Yourself,'' garnered notice from every corner of the industry, including four Grammy nominations. Most recently, she worked with her own American idol, Aretha Franklin, on the soul queen's upcoming album, and sang two Franklin songs at a roof-raising United Negro College Fund tribute that airs Jan. 27 and 28 on the BET network.

At the Kodak Theatre taping last September, Barrino met Franklin for the first time.

``I just cried, and she said, `What are you crying for?' '' Barrino said. ``There was so much I wanted to say, but I couldn't because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to get it out or it might come out wrong. So I just shut up and cried. I love and respect her so much.''

Men in the hood

When we reached her, Barrino was having the sort of week that could dry up those tears fast. Her new album's first single, ``Hood Boy,'' featuring Big Boi from OutKast, had just reached No. 3 on the r&b/hip-hop singles chart and was among the most-played tracks at radio. The song, built on a sample from the Supremes' ``The Happening,'' is a lively ode to around-the-way guys, the sort whose features are obscured by that ubiquitous street-fashion statement -- the sweat shirt hood.

``Of course I like hood boys,'' Barrino said. ``I like a strong man to be at my side. I'm not talking about going out and shooting nobody, I mean just a strong man. But at the end of the day, if he has to go there, he's able to handle it. That's what I love in a man.''

That noise you hear is the sound of hoodie sales shooting straight through the roof.

Fred Shuster, [phone]

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(color) - Fantasia Barrino