Usher has responded to a viral video of Keke Palmer dancing at his Las Vegas residency that drew scrutiny from the “Nope” actor’s boyfriend on social media.
The “Caught Up” hitmaker called the video and ensuing discourse a “pop moment” that is “worth talking about” in an interview published Friday by People. In the concert clip, Usher can be seen serenading Palmer as they slow dance to his 2010 song “There Goes My Baby.”
“I think everybody’s vision or a version of what they felt happened there just leads you back to just really having a good time in Las Vegas,” said Usher, who made a memorable cameo in 2019’s “Hustlers,” starring Palmer.
“And that’s what I hope came out of it. Rather, it was a conversation of what was going on with us having fun in front of the audience or conversation about that song.”
The concert footage of Palmer and Usher gained even more traction on social media after the “Akeelah and the Bee” star’s boyfriend, Darius Jackson, publicly shamed her for wearing a sheer dress and black bodysuit to the show.
“It’s the outfit tho.. you a mom,” Jackson replied to the clip on Twitter.
Jackson’s remark garnered instant criticism from many who saw it as a bitter attempt to exert control over the Emmy-winning actor and mother of their newborn child. In an effort to defend himself, Jackson doubled down on his unsolicited opinion of how a mother should dress.
“We live in a generation where a man of the family doesn’t want the wife & mother to his kids to showcase booty cheeks to please others & he gets told how much of a hater he is,” he said in a follow-up tweet.
“This is my family & my representation. I have standards & morals to what I believe. I rest my case.”
Palmer later waded into the online discussion about motherhood and her body in an interview with the Cut. She said that before giving birth to her son, Leodis Andrellton, she was “actually quite self-conscious.” Since then, she has become “so much more powerful” and decided to “lean into this new body.”
“Do you, new moms. Do you,” she said, adding that she appreciates the support she has received online from fellow moms.
“Girl, if there’s one person on this earth that loves you for sure, it’s that baby. Be happy, because there’s no love like it. Somebody loving you like that, hell, who cares?”
Shortly after attending Usher’s show, Palmer posted several photos modeling her stylish concert look on Instagram. The “Yeah!” hitmaker was quick to thank her for coming and to hype her up in the comments section.
“Every night I’m thinking about how the world now is going to react to this moment that I’ll have with whoever I’m choosing to sing to,” Usher told People.
“But it was a pop moment, and it was fun to have at least conversation going and we just keep it light. I don’t see anything negative happening in Las Vegas.”
