Ariana Grande has responded to backlash over her headlining Manchester Pride this August.
The singer will return the city for the first time since 2017’s One Love Manchester concert, which she organised to raise money for the victims of the terror attack that took place after her Manchester Arena gig on May 22.
After Ariana was confirmed as a Manchester Pride headliner this week, many fans were delighted by the news – but some festival goers were less than impressed.
Venting their frustration on Twitter, some accused Ariana of ‘exploiting’ the LGBT community due to the rise in ticket prices.
Ariana Grande is headlining Manchester pride. Ticket prices have doubled, and she’s straight rendering it exploitative as FUCK. pic.twitter.com/ikvqKjt4E1
— anj (@Angelaahhhhhh) February 28, 2019
idk …. ariana headlining pride when she’s straight (as far as we’re all aware) …. and doubling the price of tickets …. kinda smells like exploitation of the lgbt community to me …..
— ???? (@raininjulyvinyl) February 25, 2019
However, the singer hit back at critics by confirming, “i have nothing to do with ticket pricing — manchester pride sets those rates, and they’re mostly out of my control.” [sic]
“the lgbt community has been so special to me and supportive throughout my career. the relationships i have with lgbtq fans, friends, and family make me 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. lgbtq representation is incredibly important, and i’m always proud to share that stage with lgbtq artists!” she wrote on Twitter.
After Twitter users criticised the festival for choosing a straight artist over a member of the LGBT community, the 25-year-old reminded her followers that the Pride events have had straight artists perform in the past, including Cher and Kylie Minogue.”
“i do think there’s room for us to talk about these issues without equating a performance *for* an lgbtq audience with 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,” she added.
i saw many people discussing this so i wanted to chime in…. hope that’s okay ???????? pic.twitter.com/7joiZwI1QS
— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) February 27, 2019
