Music

Jill Scott Recalls Upsetting One of Her 'Heroes' After They Thought She Called Them Obese

The R&B icon said there was a misunderstanding over a compliment she gave.

Jill Scott.
Paras Griffin/WireImage

Jill Scott once had an uncomfortable encounter with a hero of hers who accused the "Golden" singer of calling them obese.

The R&B icon, who is gearing up to release her sixth studio album, was a guest on the latest episode of the R&B Money podcast, where she recounted the tense moment during the 'I Ain't Sayin' No Names' segment of the show. This is where guests can retell a wild industry experience without saying the name of the person involved, who's usually famous.

After being "stuck" on a story to tell, around the 1:46:00 mark of the video below, Scott recalled being at an awards show where she saw one of her "heroes" on the red carpet. "I run over to her and I say too fast, 'Oh my god, I love you so much. I listen to you all the time. You you inspire me so much. You are a beast,'" she told hosts Tank and J. Valentine.

"And she kind of just looked at me. And I was like, 'Oh, okay. I might have did too much,'" Scott continued, adding that she tried not to take the response "personal."

Scott then recalled a person, who was probably the artist's assistant, approaching her "with her face all scrunched up" and claiming that Scott "offended" the woman.

The "A Long Walk" singer later approached the artist after being urged by the assistant to inquire about the misunderstanding. "I say, 'Hey, what did I say?' She said, 'You called me obese,'" Scott recalled. "What the hell I look like calling somebody obese?"

Scott added that the woman was "mad" and "fuming," although she denied having insulted her — it was Scott calling the woman a "beast" that was misconstrued.

Another artist recently addressing allegations of fat-shaming was Lizzo, who had the accusations dropped against her in a lawsuit filed by three of her former dancers.

"I have never fired an employee for gaining weight," the four-time Grammy winner said. "I have only encouraged and supported people with bigger bodies and shared my platform with them. This claim has haunted me since the day it came out."

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