Celebrities making poor choices in this pandemic is nothing new, but sometimes Twitter zeroes in on a particularly poor choice and makes it go viral, which is what has happened to Lana Del Rey.
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Lana Del Rey has had a controversial year so far.
The singer, best known for her hits like “Video Games,” “Born To Die,” and “Summertime Sadness,” has faced a little bit of controversy this year already after receiving intense backlash for a controversial open letter she shared to her Instagram account.
The lengthy statement posted in May detailed an issue that Lana perceived to be happening in pop culture.
In the post , Lana compared what she saw as a favorable reaction from society to musicians like Doja Cat, Cardi B, Camila Cabello, Kehlani, and Nicki Minaj to accusations that Lana’s own music “glamorizes abuse.”
Lana was immediately criticized for claiming “women who look like” her were not represented in feminism or in music.
Fans felt that this was tone-deaf, given that Lana had listed almost exclusively women of color, who have had to deal with specific backlash for their music based on their race that Lana has not had.
Her most recent controversy has exploded online after new pictures of Lana meeting fans at a book signing event.
In the photos, which were taken at a book store where Lana was holding an impromptu signing, Lana can be seen wearing a mesh facemask covered in rhinestones through which her mouth and nose are visible and not fully covered.
Lana had initially worn the same mask on the cover of *Interview* magazine.
In the interview , the text read “Please wear a mask. Just not, you know, this one,” highlighting that the mesh mask would not be an effective face covering during the pandemic.
Fans were surprised to see Lana then wearing that very mask in public.
Many fans pointed to the magazine excerpt as proof that Lana knew that kind of mask was not effective and that it was irresponsible for her to go out in public and meet with large groups while wearing it.
Fans were quick to point out the ineffectiveness of a mask of this style.
Many referenced the popular meme of “Karens” protesting the idea of wearing masks by purposely wearing ineffective ones.
Rapper Megan Thee Stallion wore a similar mesh-style mask on Saturday Night Live this weekend.
Lana even shared a picture of herself wearing the mask to her Instagram page.
“Impromptu signing,” she captioned the pic. Fans in the comments immediately also pointed out the issue with Lana’s mask.
“Please address the mask situation… it’s absolutely embarrassing,” one fan wrote.
Fans were not happy that Lana would put her fans’ health at risk.
One fan present at the signing claimed that the event was shut down for health reasons as the number of people in attendance made maintaining six feet of space impossible.
Lana has not addressed the issue publicly, but she did share a video of herself reading some of her poetry.
In this video, Lana is wearing a proper fabric mask. Fans were happy to see her wearing a more responsible mask.
“Finally a real mask! love ya girly pls always have this one!” one fan wrote, while another added, “Why couldn’t you have worn this mask at the signing?”
What do you think of Lana’s mask?
Do you think people were overreacting, or do you agree that it was irresponsible of Lana to wear a mesh mask to a large gathering? Tell us how you feel in the comments below!
