Brandy: Fatal Car Crash ‘Changed My Life Forever’

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FIRST PUBLISHED: November 17, 2008 6:11 PM EST
LAST UPDATED: November 18, 2008 8:08 AM EST

LOS ANGELES, Calif. --

It was nearly two years ago that Brandy was involved in a horrific car accident that claimed the life of another driver.

Now, for the first time, Brandy is opening up about that tragic day.

“It was a situation that changed my life forever,” Brandy told Access Hollywood guest correspondent Quddus. “I will never be the same.”

On December 30, 2006, Brandy was driving her Land Rover on Los Angeles’ busy 405 freeway, when her vehicle slammed into the back of a 2005 Toyota, causing the Toyota to strike another vehicle before sliding sideways and impacting the center divider. As the Toyota came to a stop, it was hit by another vehicle.

“It was pretty bad,” Brandy recalled. “There were parts flying and there was a bunch of smoke.”

The accident claimed the life of 38-year-old Awatef Aboudihaj – the driver of the Toyota. The singer was uninjured.

Following the accident, Brandy was cast into what she called an “unfair” media glare.

“Well, I just feel like a lot of people jumped on it because it was something to talk about,” Brandy told Quddus. “And instead of just waiting to see what really happened, they kind of make their own story about it and started pointing the finger and blaming.”

Although Brandy was not charged with vehicular manslaughter, due to “insufficient evidence,” she still faces a $50 million wrongful death lawsuit filed by Aboudihaj’s family. The lawsuit is set to go trial in April.

But for now, Brandy is getting back to her music with “Human,” out in stores on December 9, which she called her most personal release yet.

“One of the reasons why this album is titled ‘Human’ is because people forget that when you are seen everywhere, they forget that you are a human being at the end of the day,” Brandy added. “I just sing. And you may be familiar with my face, but at the end of the day, if you cut me, I’ll bleed.”

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