Sara Beth Liebe, a candidate on “American Idol,” called judge Katy Perry’s response to find that she is a new mother “hurtful” and “embarrassing.”
“Hi friends. What an interesting video to be filming,” the 25-year-old mother of three said in a March 8 TikTok video. “Recently, I auditioned on ‘American Idol’ … and while I was on the show, there was a joke that was made that’s gotten some attention.”
During the California mom’s audition, which aired in early March, judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie marveled over her youthful appearance as a mom to three kids.
“What?!” said Perry, jumping from her seat and walking away.
“You OK, Katy?” Bryan asked.
“Nope,” responded Perry, who shares a 2-year-old daughter, Daisy, with Orlando Bloom.
“If Katy lays on the table, I think I’m going to pass out,” Liebe said.
“Honey, you’ve been laying on the table too much,” Perry replied.
Liebe spoke candidly about her response to Perry’s remark in her TikTok video.
“It was embarrassing to have that on TV and it was hurtful, and that’s that,” she said in the video. “But I did want to take this opportunity to just say that I think that women supporting and uplifting other women is so cool, and I think that mom shaming is super lame.”
Perry received numerous requests for an apology on social media.
“Your behavior during her audition was atrocious, especially being a mother yourself,” one person wrote on Perry’s Instagram account.
“As a mom of 3 at 27, we go through enough!” a follower wrote. “People giving off those vibes bring negativity that is really not needed.”
On TikTok, Perry was called “rude” and a “bully.” She was also told, told, “Do better.”
Other people said her feedback to Liebe’s rendition of “You Know I’m No Good” by Amy Winehouse was harsh.
“Come on, we need more!” Perry said during the song, adding, “That’s not enough.”
Perry then asked Liebe to sing another song, “Bennie and the Jets,” to showcase the limits of her voice. In the end, Liebe received a ticket to the Hollywood round of the singing competition.
Team Perry supporters claimed that the pop star was acting professionally.
“Katy wasn’t being rude,” someone wrote. “She knew she has potential and Katy just pushed her to show it off.”
One more commenter compared Perry’s remarks’ acidic nature to former “American Idol” judge Simon Cowell.
On March 22, Perry still hadn’t addressed the online fray. A representative for Perry did not immediately respond to a request for comment from TODAY.com.
In her video, Liebe acknowledged concerned comments from mothers.
“I see you, and I hear you, and I am grateful for you,” she said.
“Keep loving your babies,” Liebe added. “Nobody deserves to feel crappy about that … if you’re a good mama and you love your babies, that’s all that really matters and other comments just don’t feel necessary.”
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