Halsey opened a tiny, fancy-smelling can of worms on Friday.
The singer, 23, complained about hotels not providing shampoo for people of color, which quickly descended into a full on Twitter rant.
‘I’ve been traveling for years now and it’s been so frustrating that the hotel toiletry industry entirely alienates people of color,’ she first tweeted. ‘I can’t use this perfumed watered down white people shampoo. Neither can 50% our customers. Annoying.’
Heads up: Halsey complained about hotels not providing shampoo for people of color, which quickly descended into a full on Twitter rant on Friday
Her 9.6million followers swiftly divided into two factions: and those scoffing at her for making such a trivial complaint, and those agreeing hotel shampoo was indeed racist.
There was also a side argument as to whether or not Halsey herself was black.
The star’s mother is white and her father is black.
When one fan wrote: ‘You’re one of my favorite female artists, but how in the f*ck can shampoo be racist lol dumb for this one,’ the 23-year-old snapped back: ‘How can u have lived ur entire life without knowing that people of color and white people require different hair care products.’
Washing woes: ‘I’ve been traveling for years now and it’s been so frustrating that the hotel toiletry industry entirely alienates people of color,’ she first tweeted. ‘I can’t use this perfumed watered down white people shampoo. Neither can 50% our customers. Annoying.’
Pick your side: Her 9.6million followers swiftly divided into two factions: and those scoffing at her for making such a trivial complaint, and those agreeing hotel shampoo was indeed racist
When another suggested she simply bring her own shampoo, she replied: ‘I’m fortunate enough to be financially in a position to do so, but POC traveling frequently for work/medical reasons might not be. Just making a point is all!’
At first, the New York native was bemused at the bluster: ‘Who knew me acknowledging that white hair care products are the national standard (while POC are confined to a tiny aisle) would piss so many people off — not sorry.’
However she soon certainly seemed to be sorry, as the tweetstorm picked up pace.
‘im not pissed off you’re just literally making no sense…they’re not white hair products they’re just cheap hair products,’ one fan lashed out. ‘why not tweet about the actual problems poc face instead of finding a race issue where their is none??’
Halsey then reasoned: ‘The point is that mass production of those products as the standard is part of a greater problem of disenfranchisement. If white ppl can enjoy the luxury/convenience, there should be an option for everyone to. Its an “insignificant” example of a bigger problem. That’s all!’
But the blows kept coming: ‘I’m sorry, but this is so stupid…the shampoo they have in hotel bathrooms is CHEAP crap that really isn’t great for anyone’s hair, regardless of race. I know racism and inequality is still a big problem, but don’t create non-issues, it doesn’t help anyone,’ another follower admonished.
Race issue: There was also a side argument as to whether or not Halsey herself was black
The star’s mother is white and her father is black. She is pictured with her mother and father when she was a baby
Flames: At first, the New York native was bemused at the bluster, but soon appeared to regret making the point
Still Halsey continued to defend her point: ‘I’ve been to hotels with f*cking Hermès toiletries. The point is, people think “oh they just use normal cheap shampoo” but that’s because u associate “normal” with “white.” That’s not everyone’s standard. End of story. I’m good on the shampoo debate now lol.’
When yet another follower mused: ‘Imagine being a 23-year-old multimillionaire, traveling the world to entertain legions of adoring fans, and being bothered by complimentary hotel shampoo…’ the increasingly irate Closer hitmaker branded him ‘an idiot.’
She even insisted she was not specifically attacking hotels, pointing out that the psychiatric hospital she stayed in as a teenager also didnt cater to ‘POC’.
‘It’s hard enough being in there as it is, but then ur gonna too feel ugly and dry n frizzy too? Nah,’ she argued. ‘Anyways. Y’all still missing the point lol.
‘It’s about being made to feel unincluded. Which is, obviously, a far greater problem than shampoo,’ she concluded, adding: ‘I never wanna talk about soap ever again.’
Will not rinse and repeat: ‘It’s about being made to feel unincluded. Which is, obviously, a far greater problem than shampoo,’ she concluded, adding: ‘I never wanna talk about soap ever again.’