Bishop apologizes to Ariana Grande with another Taco Bell joke
Bishop Charles H. Ellis III has apologized for his actions towards Ariana Grande at Aretha Franklin’s funeral. As previously reported, the bishop appeared to grope her right breast and also made a tasteless joke, likening her name to a menu item at Taco Bell.
“I personally and sincerely apologize to Ariana and to her fans and to the whole Hispanic community,” Ellis told The Associated Press. “When you’re doing a program for nine hours you try to keep it lively, you try to insert some jokes here and there.
“It would never be my intention to touch any woman’s breast … I don’t know I guess I put my arm around her,” he added, before doubling down on the Taco Bell humor: “Maybe I crossed the border, maybe I was too friendly or familiar but again, I apologize.”
He continued, “I hug all the female artists and the male artists. Everybody that was up, I shook their hands and hugged them. That’s what we are all about in the church. We are all about love,” insisting “The last thing I want to do is to be a distraction to this day. This is all about Aretha Franklin.”
Grande, or her representatives, have yet to comment on the matter.
