YouTuber Colleen Ballinger faces backlash
- A YouTuber is under fire for accusations of racism and grooming
- Colleen Ballinger allegedly formed inappropriate friendships with fans
- Ballinger said she ‘used to message’ fans ‘but not in a creepy way’
(NewsNation) — YouTuber Colleen Ballinger is under fire after an old video resurfaced of her performing to Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” with a painted face.
Some online are convinced Ballinger was in blackface. A law firm representing Ballinger claims she was wearing green face paint because she also performed a song from “Wicked” at the show.
“She painted her face green like the witch. After that number, she went right into Single Ladies (while still wearing the green makeup). At that time, she closed all her shows with that Beyoncé number — it was one of her most popular bits,” the law firm told NBC News.
The video posted five years ago by Ballinger’s “Miranda Sings” account shows the internet personality singing and dancing to “Single Ladies” in what appears to be a dark painted face and leotard with two backup dancers.
One YouTube user commented on the video: “This is absolutely disgusting.”
Another said: “So even if that’s just green paint, and not blackface, she has to realize how bad it looks. It can easily be mistaken for blackface.”
The video resurfaced Wednesday night in a tweet that said: “I’m gonna need someone to explain the black on her face.” The video has been viewed more than 5 million times on Twitter alone.
It’s not the first time Ballinger has faced backlash. She has also been accused of forming inappropriate relationships with teenage fans.
In a 2020 YouTube video, Adam McIntyre explained that an unhealthy friendship was started between himself and Ballinger when he was 13 years old. McIntyre says Ballinger had private group chats with underage fans and that she sent him lingerie at one point.
McIntyre said looking back, he’s “disgusted with the situation and confused.”
Other former fans have also come forward with their own allegations against Ballinger.
In a video, Ballinger said she “used to message” her fans “but not in a creepy way.”
“It was more of a loser kind of way, but I was trying to be besties with everybody. It’s kind of like when you go to, like, a family gathering and there’s a weird aunt there,” Ballinger said.
So far, Ballinger has not faced any charges connected to any of the claims. The allegations don’t appear to be hurting her bottom line. She’s currently on a “Miranda Sings” tour.