Avril Lavigne has denied her most recent music video for Hello Kitty is racist.
The video clip, which appeared on Avril Lavigne’s on April 22, has faced criticism for its depiction of Japanese culture.
It appeared on YouTube on Tuesday before being taken down and reappearing the following day.
The video has since been reported it was removed because it was leaked, rather than because of the negative response it received.
One review called the video “unseemly” and “an embarrassment in any language” adding that the presence of “four identical, creepily expressionless Asian women” standing behind the Canadian singer during the video was offensive to Asian culture.
Another suggested that there are “serious questions about whether it’s offensive (expressionless Asian dancers, Tokyo-as-prop) or offensively obvious”.
In response, Avril Lavigne wrote on Facebook: “RACIST??? LOLOLOL!!! I love Japanese culture and I spend half of my time in Japan.
“I flew to Tokyo to shoot this video specifically for my Japanese fans, WITH my Japanese label, Japanese choreographers AND a Japanese director IN Japan.”
Despite negative reviews, many of Avril Lavigne’s fans praised the video, including a comment on the singer’s website which reads: “I came here to say that this video is excellent for the song design, you guys did a good job to try an capture that hello kitty obsession, overall concept, feel and visual,etc.
“People who dislike this don’t have a freaking clue about the range of musical diversity.”
Hello Kitty will be the fourth track to be taken from Avril Lavigne’s recent self-titled fifth studio album.
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