Singing Reality Series Sparks Furore For Blackface Impersonations Of Celebs
Image via Twoja Twarz Brzmi Znajomo
A Polish singing reality series has caught heat due to its brazen use of blackface, but it has stated feeling “surprised” by the criticism received online.
Your Face Sounds Familiar is a singing show in Europe and it features celebrity contestants attempting to impersonate singers, both vocally and visually. The characters are designated to them by the show.
This means white celebrities have been assigned to take on the roles of Black musicians, including Beyoncé and Tina Turner. Instead of just wearing similar outfits to the artists, contestants have taken a step further by covering themselves with makeup to present themselves as Black.
The show has amassed heavy criticism on social media as photos of the stars getting made up in blackface have surfaced online.
The team behind the show has since addressed the controversy, and it is standing by the production. In an Instagram post, it said, “The Polish edition of the show, seen as exemplary abroad, always tries to show great performances, which strive to be as close to the original as possible. Incredibly important for us, as well as for the artists taking part in the show, is the charity aspect of the program.”
The producers explained that the aim of the singing competition is for celebrities to recreate the musician as “accurate in the depiction as they can.” The post also names participating celebrities, including Kasia Skrzynecka as Tina Turner, Agnieszka Włodarczyk as Michael Jackson, Mariusz Totoszko as Stevie Wonder, Natalia Szroeder as Whitney Houston, Kacper Kuszewski as Missy Elliott, and Aleksandra Szwed as Beyoncé.
“The intention of each star performing on the show, as well as of the whole production team, is to recreate the original performance in the most precise manner while honoring the original artist,” it further explained.
Reacting to the statement, one Instagram user said, “Hey, [they] said all that and still didn’t even acknowledge the problem. Do they not see how it’s racist??Just because they’ve been doing it for years, it doesn’t mean it’s okay. A big TV show as well, they need to do better.”
Another outraged user wrote, “I can’t get over the fact that you guys do this it’s not okay no matter where you are.”
[via B&T, cover image via Twoja Twarz Brzmi Znajomo]
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