Ariana Grande has responded to the backlash over her headlining Manchester Pride, saying: “I’m not claiming to be the hero of the community.”
The US singer is due to perform at the annual LGBT+ event in August, two years after a suicide bomber killed 22 people at her concert in the city.
The announcement earlier this week led people to question whether Ariana, who is straight, was the right person to headline the event.
On Wednesday (February 27), Ariana responded to a viral tweet claiming that “Ariana headlining pride when she’s straight and doubling the price of tickets… kinda smells like exploitation of the LGBT community to me.”
After telling the nameless user, “I saw many people discussing this so I wanted to chime in…hope that’s okay,” Ariana said she just wanted to “celebrate and support this community.”
“The LGBTQ community has been so special to me and supportive throughout my entire career,” Ariana said.
“The relationships I have with my LGBTQ fans, friends, and family make me so so happy.
“I want to celebrate and support this community, regardless of my identity or how people label me.
“And also I wanna visit a city that means so much to me,” she added.
https://twitter.com/ArianaGrande/status/1100833408144498688
Ariana pointed out that she was following in a long line of straight musicians who have starred at Pride events.
“Over the years, pride events have been headlined by performers and artists of all sexual orientations and genders, including straight allies like Cher and Kylie Minogue,” she wrote.
“I do think there’s room for us to talk about these issues without equating a performance *for* an LGBTQ audience with the exploitation of the LGBTQ community.
“If you truly feel like I didn’t deserve to be offered this spot, I respect that. but I did accept it excitedly and gratefully.
“I’m not claiming to be the hero of the community or the face of the LGBTQ rights movement – I just wanna put on a show that makes my LGBTQ fans feel special and celebrated and supported. that’s all I wanna do”, she concluded.
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