The Weeknd has ended his partnership with H&M over an advertisement labeled by many as racially insensitive.The retailer sparked backlash after depicting a black child model in a sweatshirt that read “Coolest Monkey in the Jungle,” prompting the hip-hop artist to release a statement of his own condemning H&M’s choice.
“woke up this morning shocked and embarrassed by this photo,” The Weeknd tweeted. “i’m deeply offended and will not be working with @hm anymore…”
In a statement obtained by E! News, H&M Media Relations apologized for the advertisement as well as the product: “We understand that many people are upset about the image. We, who work at H&M, can only agree. We are deeply sorry that the picture was taken, and we also regret the actual print. Therefore, we have not only removed the image from our channels, but also the garment from our product offering globally.”
woke up this morning shocked and embarrassed by this photo. i’m deeply offended and will not be working with @hmanymore…
“It is obvious that our routines have not been followed properly,” H&M concluded. “This is without any doubt. We will thoroughly investigate why this happened to prevent this type of mistake from happening again.”As of now, the sweater is still available online but the photo of the model has been removed.
The Weeknd worked with H&M on two different collaborations, and his latest clothing collection was released last September. It’s currently unclear if and when the recording artist’s products will be removed from H&M stores.
Other celebrities that have commented on H&M’s advertisement include Questlove and Sean “Diddy” Combs.”I’m sure the apologies are a coming,” Questlove, who performs with The Roots, wrote on Instagram. “And the ads will be pulled. I’m certain there will Be media fixers and whatnot and maybe a grand gesture like a donation to some charity (donations under these circumstances are the corporate version #SomeOfMyBestFriendsAre move if there ever was one) all this tells me about @HM is that the seats in the boardroom lack something…wanna take a guess?”
Diddy shared a reimagined version of the sweater that read “Coolest King in the World,” adding, “Put some respect on it!! When you look at us make sure you see royalty and super natural God sent glory!! Anything else is disrespectful.”
Dominate 2025, a youth empowerment program, organized by Gift Africa, with Mrs Slyvia Akwaboah as the Covernor, had great speakers and panelists who spoke on various issues that are relevant to shape and improve the youths of today.
Moses Bliss, the Guest Minister for the event, made a keynote address to all and sundry on the topic, “Dare for More”. His insightful presentation covered aspects that include, “how to dare for more, things to put in place if you want to do more and things to do differently this year in order to receive more.”
He shared stories of how he began as an upcoming Gospel artiste, but with persistency, consistency, availability, and his eagerness to learn and yearn for more, he is now recognized globally. In view of this, Moses bliss admonished all Gospel singers to always minister their own songs at events, regardless.
In order to dare for more, Moses gave out some pertinent points and facts to note. Firstly, one needs to know exactly who he or she wants to be and who he or she doesn’t want to be. There is no one more important than who you are becoming, therefore be focused on who you are becoming and what you are becoming. Focus brings resilience.
Moses further moved on to talk about the things to put in place if one wants to do more. He elaborates, “have an unquenchable desire for success, be really good or exceptional in the field you want to become, have a change in your daily routine, increase in wisdom, and then give yourself to training.
Finally, he made emphasis on some things to do differently this year in order to receive more. He states, “align with God, speak word into your future (align your steps), stay under the cloud of God, make a mark in all areas and lastly, spend time to read and invest in the word of God”.
A prayer was shared by Moses Bliss to climax his informative presentation.
