Lana Del Rey is facing backlash over a video showing looters in the riots protesting George Floyd’s death.
Last month, Del Rey took to Instagram to address criticism that her music was “glamorizing abuse.” In the message, Del Rey called out other artists for making “songs about being sexy, wearing no clothes, f*cking, cheating, etc.” Most of the women listed by Del Rey are of color, causing followers to accuse her of racial bias.
Del Rey is now drawing criticism after sharing two videos of the protests in response to the killing of George Floyd. In one video, a man can be seen standing on a burned-out car with his fist raised and holding a sign which reads, “NO JUSTICE NO PEACE.” In the second video – which has since been deleted – people can be seen looting.
Kehlani tweeted in response “@LanaDelRey please remove your instagram post it’s dangerous as f— and a very poor choice of moments to post. by all means protest, but DO NOT endanger people with your very massive platform. oh and turn your f—in comments on man.”
Tinashe tweeted, “@LanaDelRey why the f— are you posting people looting stores on your page literally WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM.” Both singers deleted their messages after Del Rey deleted the video from her Instagram. A shorter video of protesters still remained on her platform.
Activists on the ground have repeatedly called for those participating or documenting the protests to not include any features that may identify an individual for fear of repercussions by the police and white supremacists.