BAFTA Producer Defends Ariana DeBose’s Awkward Rap Performance + Actress Deactivates Her Twitter Account Amid Backlash

“I think it’s incredibly unfair, to be frank. I absolutely loved it. Everybody I’ve spoken to who was in the room absolutely loved it. She’s a huge star, she was amazing.”

the full version of ariana debose’s bafta rap is somehow even better / worse than the short clip pic.twitter.com/rD85l19GVS

— a (@thisisnotahmad) February 21, 2023

Bullen continued,

“That rap section in the middle, mentioning the women in the room, was because it’s been a great year for women in film, and we wanted to celebrate that. And here is a woman of color who is at the absolute top of her game. And she’s opening the BAFTAs with a song that said so much on so many levels.”

When asked who wrote the lyrics of the rap, Bullen said,

“She [DeBose] only had a few weeks to put this whole thing together. She worked with a great musical director and choreographer. So it was a real team effort. She had an amazing team around her, and she and her team put the whole piece together.”

Ariana DeBose

Bullen added,

“I think a lot of people don’t like change, and there’s a view that the BAFTAs have to be this slightly stiff, traditional British, middle-England messaging. But American awards shows have much more razzmatazz, much more showbiz and perhaps a broader range of people being involved. We felt we’re not about revolution, we’re about evolution.”

Following her performance, Ariana DeBose received a lot of criticism on Twitter, with many people making fun of her rap. The “West Side Story” star got a lot of attention for one line in particular which she said,

“Angela Bassett did the thing/ Viola Davis my Woman King”

In fact, the line was discussed so much that “Angela Bassett” trended on Twitter on Monday (Feb. 20).

Angela Bassett

In the wake of her performance going viral, the Oscar winner deactivated her Twitter account.

The 76th British Academy Film Awards, also known as the BAFTAs, were held on Sunday (Feb. 19) to honor the best national and foreign films of 2022. Presented by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, accolades were handed out for the best feature-length film and documentaries of any nationality that were screened at British cinemas in 2022.

What are your thoughts on Ariana DeBose’s performance and the backlash she received? Let us know in the comments below!

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