Betty Who apologises for “harmful” comments about lesbians: “I will do better”

Betty Who has apologised for their comments about lesbians in a recent podcast, which were criticised for being “harmful” by some members of the queer community.

The Australian pop singer appeared as a guest on the Made It Out podcast – and was asked about their relationship with their husband, Zak Cassar, as well as their thoughts on the fluidity of sexuality. Betty Who identifies as bisexual and non-binary, and spoke about how her sexuality has changed over the years.

The episode, which is titled “Being Queer In A Straight Relationship”, had a segment where Betty was asked about JoJo Siwa and Fletcher’s recent hard launches of their relationships with men.

“I have so much space and love for those women who are probably going through it right now,” Betty responded. “I think it’s hard when you become representative of something to other people, and then you change or you are just following your heart, and then that means other people feel that they are not represented anymore. The pressure of that is so immense.”

They then said: “A huge part of queerness is identifying yourself and putting yourself under, you know, the alphabet mafia. It’s like, ‘Which one are you?’”

Later in the conversation, they then brought up comments made by Reneé Rapp. “Reneé Rapp is like, ‘You’ll never catch me dating a man,’” Betty said on the podcast, before adding, “Like, ‘Go off, queen. I love that for you!’ But I also hold space for her in 10 years if she goes, ‘Oops, I met the love of my life and it’s this man, I didn’t mean to.’ It’s like, that’s okay!”

Some members of the queer community criticised their comments, and said they reiterated “harmful” stereotypes around lesbianism being perceived as a phase, and that lesbians would be able to change sexuality if they met the right man.

As Cosmopolitan reports, some criticism also came from pop musician King Princess in a TikTok video. While King Princess did not name Betty Who, fans are largely speculating that the video is about Betty, as it repeats the topics discussed in the controversial podcast episode.

“Date a man, it’s not a big deal,” they said in the TikTok. “But why are you on a podcast talking about it? It’s not an interesting narrative. We live in a country where our rights are being stripped from us every day, and you think it’s important to get on a podcast and talk about how hard it is to be in a heteronormative relationship? Diva!”

@kingprincess

♬ Girls – King Princess

Betty Who then posted a response to the criticism on their Instagram story. “In recent days, I’ve taken time to sit with the conversation around my gender and sexuality,” the statement started.

“I recognize that the language I used poorly articulated my experience and unintentionally reinforced ideas that were harmful or dismissive, particularly toward the lesbian community. That was never my intention, and I’m truly sorry.”

They then explained that they did not consider the nuance in other people’s experiences, and had made the comments based on their own. “I went into the interview to discuss my own journey – specifically, how I figured out how to identify myself and how I ultimately landed on non-binary and bisexual, both assignments that live somewhere in-between,” they said.

“I understand there is so much nuance in this conversation, and in other people’s lived experiences, that my comments did not reflect. I also recognize that I’m coming from a place of privilege, and I never meant to contribute to prejudice against the community.”

The statement concluded: “The LGBTQ+ community is my home; it’s where I came alive, found my people, and learned more about love, acceptance, and tolerance on a deeper human level. I will do better.”

Last year, Betty Who was one of the musicians announced as part of the new Yo Gabba Gabba! musical line-up. They were confirmed alongside Flea, Anderson .Paak, Diplo, Kurt Vile and Thundercat. 

The children’s TV show, which was originally presented by DJ Lance Rock (Lance Robertson), is centred around music, encouraging viewers to sing and dance along, as well as showing them life and social skills. Titles of past episodes have included ‘Eat’, ‘Dance’, ‘Friends’ and ‘Careful’.

The original show, which first aired on Nick Jr. in 2007, featured many musical guest stars during its eight-year run, including Mos Def, The Killers, Weezer, MGMT and Solange.