Rebecca Black says the queer community were the only people fighting for her after Friday backlash
Rebecca Black says the queer community stood by her during “Friday” backlash. (Getty/Gilbert Flores)
Rebecca Black has opened up about how the queer community supported her following the intense hatred she received for her debut single “Friday”.
Black was just 13 when the track was released in 2011, with the song and its accompanying video almost instantly going viral for all the wrong reasons.
Adults referred to it as “the worst song ever”, opening up the floodgates for millions of trolls to target Black with hatred. The video became one of the most “disliked” YouTube videos of all time and Black experienced humiliation from all corners of the internet.
Now, in a new interview with Them, Black has expressed her gratitude to her LGBTQ+ fans who stood by her when no one else would.
The singer, who came out as queer in 2020, said: “The only people I would see fight for me or even just empathise with me were people who were queer and who really understood my experience.
“That was really helpful for me as a kid, to be like, ‘OK, this isn’t that bad. I can figure this out. I’m not alone.’”
Last week, the Razzie awards removed Ryan Kiera Armstrong from their “worst actress” nominations list after receiving intense backlash for the obvious criticism of the 12-year-old Firestarter star.
In contrast, just 12 years ago, the vicious pile-on against Rebecca Black was seen as appropriate.
Addressing the hatred she received, Black said: “Defining anybody by what they created as a child is horrible. But I got through it. If my story can help people with something that is traumatic or anything that is really difficult, great.”
The singer has since made a defiant return to the world of pop with the release of her debut album Let Her Burn. It’s a genre-blending celebration of her queerness and a successful attempt at flipping the “Friday” narrative that plagued her teenage years.
Now 25, the signer is returning the favour to the rest of the LGBTQ+ community for their support by pledging to speak up whenever she can.
“Not only am I a queer musician, I’m now a spokesperson whether or not I want to be,” she said.
“That carries responsibilities. I try to not speak for the entire community, I speak from my own experience.”
Let Her Burn is out now.
