Todrick Hall as responded to the haters for his appearance in Taylor Swift’s music video for “Look What You Made Me Do”
When a short clip appeared of the music video last Friday on Good Morning America, many people were quick to call the video out for what critics were calling “stealing” from Beyonce’s Formation video. Also, featured predominantly in the shot was Todrick Hall as one of her back up dancers.
Fans called Hall a “sell-out” and said he was “only doing it for money.” Others commented he was “seeking white approval” and that he was no longer “woke” among other things.
In a Yahoo! Music Interview, Hall responded to the criticism. Read some of his answers here, and be sure to head over to Yahoo! for the full interview.
YM: So when some people saw you dancing in “Look What You Made Me Do,” they were not pleased, to put it mildly. What exactly happened?
Hall: ..I was just very confused by that, because I knew that there was nothing “Formation”-esque or Lemonade-esque about the video. Artistically, I didn’t feel that was the case. I’m a humongous Beyoncé fan. I’ve worked with Beyoncé. I’ve choreographed for Beyoncé. And I would never intentionally be a part of art that I felt was ripping off my favorite artist of all time. But I felt like these were two completely different lanes.
“Sellout” was one of the common names you were called.
“Yes, one of the main things that people said was, “He wanted to make his money. Well, good for him, he got paid. And I guess payment is enough for you to sell out your family, your people, your community…”
But there are people online who have a problem with the fact in general that you and Taylor are friends?
“Yes, I have gotten comments from people who are upset and have literally said the fact that I am friends with a white person is a problem, because white people don’t possess the ability to love or ever truly care about black people. And I find that very disheartening…”
What is Taylor really like? Describe your bond
What people are mostly forgetting is that Taylor Swift really is my friend…
Some of the criticism Taylor has received recently has to do with the fact that she has not been politically outspoken in the past year, like her peers Katy Perry and Lady Gaga.
Yeah, many people have been tweeting me, “She supports Trump! She probably voted for Trump!” They’re making this huge assumption, when Taylor has never to my knowledge come out and said anything about her being pro-Trump…
Is Taylor aware of the heat you’ve gotten for being in her video?
I have talked to her about it, and she has been very uplifting and given me a lot of information about how when you’re doing big things…
You have gotten this sort of criticism before.
Yeah. In the beginning, it was because I did videos based on stereotypes of a particular group that put people in a negative light. And so I took those notes, because I consider myself to be a humble person, and I tried to apply them…
Online outrage is at an all-time high right now, for sure. Everyone is on edge.
I think that we’ve got to figure out a way within our own community to stop tearing people down and stop making assumptions and looking for reasons to be mad…
Did you engage with any of your online critics about this video?
I gave no negative tweets, didn’t argue with people on social media, had nothing to say to them…
While, I’m still out on Taylor Swift and her “comeback” I do love me some Todrick Hall and I know his appearance in the video doesn’t change my opinion of him.
Taylor Swift is great an
Taylor Swift is great an American singer-songwriter. His latest album 'Look What You Made Me Do' is superb.
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