STREAM EXCLUSIVE ORIGINALS

Sincere? Read La'Porsha Renae's Apology to the LGBT Community

The American Idol finalist responds to the epic backlash.

American Idol fan favorite La'Porsha Renae caught a lot of heat on social media this week for her offensive comments about the LGBT community. “I am one of the people who don’t really agree with that lifestyle. I wasn’t brought up that way. It wasn’t how I was raised," she said in an interview before going on to say that she has lots of "gay and homosexual" friends who are nice people. 
Her remarks disappointed a lot of folks, including many of her LGBT fans. Now, the singer is coming forward with an apology for her insensitive comments. When asked by TV Line about the backlash, she says "I deeply apologize" for the comments and agrees she’d been “offensive by using the word ‘lifestyle.'” She also admitted that while she doesn't know a whole lot about Mississippi's anti-gay bill, she is “firmly” against any law that promotes discrimination.

This apology goes a bit further than her tweet immediately following the backlash, when she still appeared to be on the defense about her views:

La'Porsha's comments come at a time when anti-gay bills are being passed in North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and Mississippi. The bills use the language of "religious freedom" to discriminate against LGBT people for housing, health care and adoption.
Time will tell if the LGBT community is cool with her apology.
In the meantime, check out our interview with Janet Mock, who talks more about identity, gender and LGBT issues, below:

BET.com is your No. 1 source for Black celebrity news, photos, exclusive videos and all the latest in the world of hip hop and R&B music. 

Latest News

Subscribe for BET Updates

Provide your email address to receive our newsletter.


By clicking Subscribe, you confirm that you have read and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge our Privacy Policy. You also agree to receive marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers) and other information from BET and the Paramount family of companies. You understand that you can unsubscribe at any time.