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Lana Del Rey claps back at racism accusations as 'tone deaf' rant sparks backlash
22 May 2020, 10:44 | Updated: 22 May 2020, 10:45
The 'Blue Jeans' singer has been called "racist" and "entitled" after sharing her thoughts on double standards in music.
Lana Del Rey has responded after facing intense backlash for sharing her comments on double standards in the music industry during a lengthy Instagram rant.
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In her initial post, the 'Summertime Sadness' singer, 34, clapped back at accusations that her music glamorises abuse.
She said, "I'm fed up with female writers and alt singers saying that I glamorise abuse when I'm just a glamorous person singing about the realities of what we are all seeing are now very prevalent emotionally abusive relationships all over the world."
Lana sparked widespread controversy after comparing treatment she experienced to that of other artists including Nicki Minaj, Doja Cat, Cardi B, Beyoncé and Kehlani.
"Now that Doja Cat, Ariana, Camila, Cardi B, Kehlani and Nicki Minaj and Beyoncé have had number ones with songs about being sexy, wearing no clothes, fucking, cheating etc - can I please go back to singing about being embodied, feeling beautiful by being in love even if the relationship is not perfect, or dancing for money, or whatever I want, without being crucified or saying that I'm glamorizing abuse?" she wrote.
People slammed Lana for comparing her struggles to those of women of colour, arguing that she will never understand the hardship they endure. Many criticised the post as entitled, tone-deaf and racist.
You can speak about sexism within the music industry without dragging the names of successful women of color into it. Racist overtones deafen any real conversation of misogyny. In the end, one is left to believe that you are pandering to racists to sell your music. #LanaDelRey pic.twitter.com/clLReVtBWO
— Anne Boleyn (Sussex Supporter) (@TudorChick1501) May 21, 2020
lana del rey is expressing peak white womanhood....pitting herself against woc as if they haven't gone through much worse. ol girl can keep her "woe is me" attitude, boring 70's racist diner milkshake music, and her cop boyfriend
— Yolian Ogbu (@yolian_ogbu) May 21, 2020
I just wanna know who Lana del Rey is thinking she is with her superiority complex & pick me attitude. Those talented women of color she stated have been criticized ten times fucking over for things beyond their music. White feminist. She can rot
— annette 💫 (@internnette) May 21, 2020
In response to the backlash, Lana commented underneath her original post to defend her statement and insisted that she had no issue with the women she mentioned in the message, brushing the racism accusations off as "bullish*t".
She began by saying that she found it "sad" that her messaged was turned into a "WOC issue," and argued that the point of her post was point out that "there are certain women that culture doesn’t want to have a voice."
"Bro. This is sad to make it about a WOC issue when I’m talking about my favorite singers. I could’ve literally said anyone but I picked my favorite f**king people. And this is the problem with society today," she wrote.
"Not everything is about whatever you want it to be. It’s exactly the point of my post – there are certain women that culture doesn’t want to have a voice it may not have to do with race I don’t know what it has to do with. I don’t care anymore but don’t ever ever ever ever bro- call me racist because that is bullsh*t."
In a further follow-up comment, she wrote, "By the way the singers I mentioned are my favorite singers, so if you want to try and make a bone to pick out of that like you always do, be my guest, it doesn't change the fact that I haven't had the same opportunity to express what I wanted to express without being completely decimated,"
"And if you want to say that has something to do with race, that's your opinion but that's not what I'm saying. "To be clear because I knowwwwww you love to twist things.
"I f**king love these singers and know them. #that is why I mentioned them. I would also like to have some of the same freedom of expression without judgement of hysteria. There you go."
