Pop megastar and fashion entrepreneur Rihanna has apologized after a fashion show for her lingerie brand Savage X Fenty featured music that included an Islamic verse, drawing a huge backlash online.
The 32-year-old singer used the song ‘Doom’ by London producer and vocalist Coucou Chloe, which incorporates a rendition of a Muslim text known as a Hadith.
In a statement posted on her Instagram stories on Tuesday, Rihanna said the choice of music for the raunchy lingerie display was “completely irresponsible,” adding that she was “incredibly disheartened” at the hurt caused to “many of our Muslim brothers and sisters.”
The Barbados-born singer said that she didn’t mean to antagonize adherents of any religion.
I’d like to thank the Muslim community for pointing out a huge oversight that was unintentionally offensive in our Savage X Fenty show
The runway show was streamed by Amazon Prime on October 2, and saw models dancing to a sped-up version of the song as they wore the lingerie brand, which has earned praise for its “diversity” and “nuanced grasp of empowerment.”
Several high-profile celebrities turned out for the show, including Bella Hadid, Demi Moore and Cara Delevigne.
In Islam, a Hadith is part of a collection of sacred texts that are believed to have been spoken by the Prophet Mohammed.
Hadiths serve as a source of religious law and moral guidance for Muslims, their importance second only to that of the Koran.
The chopped-up section of Arabic verse used in ‘Doom’ is part of a Hadith about the return of Jesus and judgement day.
Facing mounting outrage and calls to remove the song, Chloe came out apologetic as well, claiming that she had no clue about the meaning of the verses she used.
I take full responsibility for the fact I did not research these words properly and want to thank those of you who have taken the time to explain this to me. We have been in the process of having the song urgently removed from all streaming platforms. 2/2
“I want to deeply apologize for the offense caused by the vocal samples used in my song ‘DOOM.’ The song was created using samples from Baile Funk tracks I found online. At the time, I was not aware that these samples used text from an Islamic Hadith,” Chloe tweeted, adding that she “did not research these words properly.”
Chloe vowed to “urgently” remove the song from all streaming platforms.
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