Lorde was attempting to explain that her relationship with Taylor had certain restrictions on it because she’s so famous: she can’t go places and do things that normal people do. But describing it as like “having a friend with autoimmune disease” offended some people.
Twitter user Stephanie Marie, editor of the Australian site SBS Sexuality, tweeted, “I wonder how @selenagomez feels about this. What an incredibly ignorant analogy to make @lorde.” Selena, another friend of Taylor’s, does suffer from the autoimmune disorder lupus.
In response, Lorde wrote that Stephanie Marie, “didn’t mention taylor, but regardless, i f***ked up & that was really insensitive. i’m sorry.”
Any controversy Lorde caused isn’t affecting sales of her new album, Melodrama. Billboard reports that it’s on track to debut at #1, with first-week sales of 80,000 to 90,000 units. Her first album, Pure Heroine, debuted at a chart peak position of #3.
Copyright © 2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
LAVA/RepublicFans were disappointed when Lorde was quoted as saying that being friends with Taylor Swift was like having a friend with “specific allergies” or an “autoimmune disease.” Now, the singer has apologized for that analogy.
