The Conversation (0)
Iana Murray
Nov 23, 2020
TikTok
TikTok’s biggest drama continues to brew.
Influencer Dixie D’Amelio is facing backlash after posting a video of her dancing the renegade to YouTuber Trisha Paytas covering NWA’s ‘F*** Tha Police’ and rapping the N-word.
The video comes after the release of a controversial YouTube video, which showed D’Amelio and her sister Charli (currently the biggest TikToker on the platform) acting disgusted by a snail served to them by a private chef.
The pair were criticised by many, including Paytas, who shared several videos blasting the sisters and fellow influencer James Charles who came to their defence.
In the immediate fallout of the video, Charli D’Amelio lost around a million followers on TikTok.
Paytas is no stranger to problematic behaviour, having been the subject of controversy numerous times this year alone. In March, the influencer claimed to have Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) in a video that was criticised for promoting offensive stigmas about the disorder. She also claimed to be transgender despite saying she also identified with her “natural born gender”, which sparked backlash and accusations that she was mocking trans people.
Since Paytas inserted herself into the controversy, the influencers have been engaged in a very public feud.
In an attempt to clap back at Paytas, Dixie D’Amelio shared a video on TikTok of her dancing to the N-word while smiling, but deleted it after she was met with swift backlash. She captioned the video: “I couldn’t find the sound for this dance so I chose a random one. Hope that’s okay!! Anyways let’s get back to the RENEGADE!!”
“I said this 10 years ago and have since apologised numerous times,” Paytas tweeted in response. You danced and smiled to it YESTERDAY! Where’s your apology? Not cool in 2020 girl.”
Many TikTok users accused D’Amelio of weaponising racism for an argument with another white woman.
“Dixie D’Amelio playing that insanely offensive audio to take down her rival or whatever is a mess,” one user wrote. “The N-word is not a fun tool to help white influencers take down other white influencers!”
“White people stop using Black people as the punchline of your petty white girl drama,” another added.
After removing the video, D’Amelio tweeted an apology:
“I posted a TikTok with the intention of making a point that didn’t need to be made. I took it down and I sincerely apologize for posting it in the first place and am so thankful for everyone.”
Still, the life cycle of TikTok drama is apparently short.
Charli D’Amelio regained her lost followers in a matter of days and reached 100 million followers, making her the first creator on TikTok to achieve such a milestone.