TORONTO — Canadian crooner Michael Bublé responded Friday to accusations of body shaming that came after he posted a photograph on Instagram showing a young woman wearing tight shorts.
The 39-year-old B.C. native captioned the image he posted Monday with the hashtags “#myhumps #babygotback #hungryshorts #onlyinmiami #picoftheday #beautifulbum.”
The photo was snapped inside a store in Miami by Bublé’s wife, model-actress Luisana Lopilato.
While the cheeky social media share earned more than 42,000 “likes,” it sparked criticism from some who feel Bublé is disrespecting women.
In a statement posted to Instagram, though, Bublé said the photo was intended to be “complimentary and lighthearted” and he regrets that some people found it offensive.
“For the record, it hurts me deeply that anyone would think that I would disrespect women or be insulting to any human being,” he wrote. “Women are to be celebrated, loved, respected, honoured, loved and revered.”
Shortly after the photo was posted, one person commented: “You need to educate yourself on white privilege, consent, rape, culture, and our misogynistic society.”
READ MORE: Pop star Pink responds to comments about her weight
Another commented: “This photo is disrespectful. it is sexualizing a young woman. We don’t know if she was okay with a photo of her ass being put up on instagram. But people like you think it’s OK because hes famous or whatever excuse you can come up with to make it ok. It’s not ok. As a mother I would be ashamed if he was my son and horrified if that was my daughter. He may not have been body shaming but it’s not his body to take pictures of and post online. Obviously other people on here have been body shaming her. He opened a flood gate. He is a disrespectful ass. His sense of entitlement is sickening.”
One person asked: “Had this been your daughter do you think you would want people mocking her like this?”
Bublé posted the photo on Monday, around the same time singer Pink was defending herself on social media after receiving nasty comments about her weight.
Many fans were quick to defend Bublé, who is famous for his sense of humour.
“If a person is going to dress letting it all hang out they deserve to be talked about,” wrote one.
Another person was more to the point, telling critics to “get a life.”
This article has been updated to add Bublé’s statement.
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