Denying it all. Iggy Azalea is clapping back at people who claim she is blackfishing in her “I Am the Stripclub” music video, calling the accusations “baseless” and “ridiculous.”
The 31-year-old singer dropped her single on July 1, quickly receiving backlash that she was blackfishing in the video, which refers to a non-Black person using photoshop, makeup or other means to make their skin or appearance look more Black.
While the rapper has a handful of outfit changes throughout the course of the video, it’s a look in which she’s wearing a Jean Paul Gaultier body con dress with a black wig that was met with the most outrage.
Following the outcry, Azalea decided to take to Twitter to respond to a handful of users raising concern about her appearance, blaming her altered skin tone on a mix of lighting and makeup.
“I’m the same color as I always am, just in a dimly lit room with red lights. It’s the same makeup from every other part of the video just with a smoky eye and different wig. Just ignore them, who cares? Let em talk,” she replied to one user who was questioning the allegations.
Her initial response didn’t sit well with some. In fact, one person wrote: “All MAJORITY of those people are black and brown! So she saying she ‘doesn’t care’ and ‘f—k us.’”
In direct response to the user, the “Fancy” singer said that she “can’t care about something that ridiculous and baseless.”
She added: “I’m wearing a shade 6 in armani foundation, it’s the same shade I’ve worn for the last 3 years. It’s the same shade in every music video since Sally Walker. Suddenly I wear a black wig in a club scene and it’s an issue.”
Since the music dropped, and the controversy started, Azalea’s song has received more than 3 million views on Youtube — and the singer is appreciative for positive and negative press.
On July 4, she tweeted: “To everyone showing me love: Thank you for dedicated your day to me & helping me promote, I love you! To everyone showing me hate: thank you for dedicating your day to me & helping me promote, I love you!”
This is not the first time the rapper has faced controversy. In 2017, Halsey called her out during an interview with The Guardian, claiming that singer is a “f—king moron” and “had a complete disregard for black culture.”
Two years prior, the Australian born singer also faced backlash after homophobic tweet from her younger years resurfaced. She issued an apology via Twitter at the time.
