In a world without social media intense criticism of public figures could be contained in the corners of obscure message boards by PR savvy publicists.
The world, as we all know has changed.
What that means for potentially problematic stars? Hell.
For, after escaping the harsh hand of public criticism during their peaks they now find themselves forced to face the music.
The latest act to find herself in a spot of historic trouble?
Gwen Stefani.
Time had this to say about Stefani in 2014…
Stefani used four backup dancers known as the “Harajuku girls” in all her performances and as an entourage offstage. They followed her everywhere and were reportedly contractually obligated to only speak Japanese in public. She renamed them — as if they were pets — “Love,” “Angel,” “Music” and “Baby” after her album title. As you can see in the video for the song “Harajuku Girls” above, the women are basically puppets. The lyrics of her actual songs aren’t much better. In “Harajuku Girls,” Stefani calls their culture, “A Ping-Pong match between Eastern and Western.”
Unfortunately for her, many still feel the same way today prompting a heated debate online hours ago.
Why cultural appropriation is a no-no?