Netizens criticized American pop star Katy Perry for locking lips with a 19-year-old auditionee on American Idol.
An auditionee named Benjamin Glaze told the judges that he has never kissed anyone before. Upon saying it, Perry, a judge of the new season of American Idol, stood up from her chair and offered the 19-year-old cashier a kiss.
After the episode aired, however, Glaze revealed that Perry’s action made him “uncomfortable.”
“I wanted to save it for my first relationship. I wanted it to be special… I know a lot of guys would be like, ‘Heck yeah!’ But for me, I was raised in a conservative family and I was uncomfortable immediately. I wanted my first kiss to be special,” he told The New York Times.
Many netizens bashed Perry, 33, online for stealing a kiss from a 19-year-old.
Imagine if a 33 year-old male artist tricked a 19 year-old female auditioner into a kiss like Katy Perry just did with that teenage guy. Would we all think it was cute? #AmericanIdol
— Craig M. Tiede (@craigmtd) March 12, 2018
Ok, let’s be real for a minute: If Katy Perry was a man and that American Idol kiss happened to a woman, it would be sexual harassment, right? If we want people to listen to legit claims of harassment by women, we need to end the double standards. My 2 cents.
— Anna Baglione (@AnnaBaglione) March 12, 2018
Anyone else watching Idol feel like Katy Perry pressured that poor kid into letting her kiss him on the cheek and violated him by planting one on his lips? Would not have been okay for a male celebrity to do to a young girl. #americanidol #katyperry #mencanbesexuallyharassedtoo
— Heather Campbell (@Niblet81) March 12, 2018
Unfortunately, Glaze did not get the judges’ approval as his performance is said to have “lacked practice” and seemed “rushed”. Nevertheless, it was him who also stressed that he did not feel sexually harassed by Perry in the audition.
This journey has just begun, Benjamin.
A kiss for good luck from @katyperry and you’re on your way. #AmericanIdol pic.twitter.com/k9YYLkLcXM
— American Idol (@AmericanIdol) March 12, 2018
On a lighter note, another video of Perry went viral a few days ago. It showed how Perry funnily swoons over another “hot” auditionee named Trevor Holmes.
“You’re so hot… Only hot guys are typically named Trevor,” Perry swooned.
Many netizens said that Perry’s reaction was “true” and “relatable”.
Perry’s video with Holmes has now gained over 36 million views and nearly 1 million reactions on Facebook.
American Idol is the long-running singing competition in the United States that skyrocketed the careers of Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson, and Carrie Underwood among others.
Jasmine Trias and Jessica Sanchez are some notable Filipino contestants who also competed on the show.
