Angela Bassett on Ariana DeBose’s Viral BAFTA Rap: ‘It Was Beautiful’
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Angela Bassett finally did the thing and commented on Ariana DeBose’s now-viral BAFTA rap.
“I DM’d her last night. I did. It was beautiful,” Bassett told Variety of the red carpet at the NAACP Image Awards Saturday. “I just wanted to make sure she was okay because, you know, it’s a lot of attention. And she is A-Okay.”
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Bassett’s shoutout in DeBose’s rap — “Angela Bassett did the thing/ Viola Davis my Woman King/ Blanchett Cate you’re a genius/ Jamie Lee you are all of us” — quickly became the most infamous moment in the bonkers BAFTA performance, with artists like Adele and Lizzo pinpointing and poking fun at the Bassett line at their own concerts.
Following the negative reactions to the skit, DeBose deleted her Twitter account, prompting one of the BAFTA producers to speak out about the backlash, calling it “incredibly unfair.”
“We felt we’re not about revolution, we’re about evolution. Let’s just evolve, let’s just move forward with some gentle changes that start to lay out the stall of what this show should be and where we should be with it,” producer Nick Bullen told Variety, adding that “everybody loved it” in person.
However, DeBose has since taken the higher road about the performance, curating an Instagram gallery of celebs — including Halle Berry — that mocked her BAFTA rap.
“The internet is wild y’all! Appreciate all the love,” DeBose wrote.
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