Former member of popular 90s girl group now homeless, living in car for three years

Former En Vogue member, Dawn Robinson, has recently disclosed that she has been experiencing homelessness, resorting to living in her car for the past three years.

‘I said it, oh my gosh, it’s out!’ the 58-year-old singer marveled in her YouTube vlog Tuesday.

In 2020, Robinson did numerous interviews, totaling 105, all while temporarily residing with her parents in Las Vegas. Despite the initial comfort of being with her mother, Barbara Alexander, the situation took a negative turn. Robinson expressed love for her mother but shared that her mother’s increasing anger was directed towards her, leading to a strained relationship.

Feeling like a constant target of her mother’s anger, Robinson found herself unable to cope with the situation. She expressed profound respect for her mother but struggled to comprehend the source of her mother’s anger, which deeply affected her.

The eight-time Grammy nominee’s manager offered her to stay at his $1,700/month apartment in Los Angeles, but there was ‘not enough room’ for her since they both owned dogs (her 16-year-old dog Max has since passed away).

‘So it turned into, “Okay, I’m going to put you in a hotel for the night.” And that one night turned into eight months [at $3K/month]. Oh my God, you guys I was like, “No, this is unacceptable,”‘ Dawn scoffed.

By 2022, Robinson researched ‘car life’ culture and decided to give it a shot: ‘I felt free. I felt like I was on a camping trip. It just felt like it was the right thing to do.’

The Connecticut-born belter spent her first night in her car in Malibu – most likely the Paradise Cove Mobile Home Park – which she called ‘scary.’

‘But then as I got to know what to do in my car and how to do it, like, how to cover my windows and you don’t talk to certain people,’ Dawn noted.

‘You’re careful of telling people that you’re alone, as a woman especially, and I’m a celebrity [so] I don’t just divulge that to people.’

Robinson immediately enjoyed ‘the sense of freedom’ that she felt: ‘I felt like I was on a camping trip. I just felt like it was the right thing to do. I didn’t regret it. You know, a lot of celebrities have lived in their cars.’ 

Indeed, there’s a long list of celebrities who fell on hard times over the years including Hilary Swank, Jewel, Steve Harvey, Kelly Clarkson, Sam Worthington, Drew Carey, Suze Orman, and Tyler Perry. 

But don’t pity the lyric soprano as living in her car was a choice she needed to make to ‘go through this fire’ and she has her brother Evin, assistant Niecy, and ‘forever mother-in-law’ to lean on.

‘You may have heard of something called the dark night of the soul,’ Dawn explained.

‘That’s when you go through like a period of isolation, a period of separating yourself from family and friends, and I’m definitely I’m in the trenches of this right now. [But] I wouldn’t trade my experiences and what I’ve gone through for the world.’

Proving she still has her sense of humor, Robinson laughed: ‘Just so you guys know, I have a gym membership and I shower there. I’m a Funky Diva but I’m not funky!’

The Free Your Mind hitmaker has been proudly filming her journey for a future documentary and envisions her eventual resurgence.

‘I mean society tends to look down on people for living off-grid when I tell you off grid is exactly what a lot of people are going to start doing,’ said Dawn, urging her fans to do something ‘scary.’

‘Would I have an apartment right now if I had a choice? I would. I’m not going to lie, but am I glad that I did this. Absolutely proud of what I’ve accomplished out here.’

Robinson auditioned for En Vogue in 1989 and reportedly first quit in 1997 over contract disputes before returning for stints with the group in 2005 and 2008-2011. 

Robinson reportedly first quit En Vogue in 1997 over contract disputes before returning for stints with the group in 2005 and 2008-2011.

‘When Dawn left the group, it derailed their momentum,’ producer Thomas McElroy told Wax Poetics last November.

‘It changed the dynamic of the group. It affected their relationship with the record company, and how much confidence they had in the group. And I said it often: they are En Vogue. Yes, we built and we conceptualized it, but they are their own brand now.

‘The legacy is in place, but there was so much that was unfulfilled that I felt could have happened. Even to this day, I feel bad that all the girls aren’t together, reaping the benefits of their legacy.’

Founding member Cindy Herron-Braggs added: ‘Dawn has just decided she doesn’t want to work with us again.’