Ariana Grande’s appearance at the Queen of Soul’s funeral was the cause of some controversy yesterday.
For some, it was because of the little dress she wore… for others, it was over officiant Bishop Charles Ellis’ words and actions after her performance of “Natural Woman.” (which I thought she did a nice job with, btw. Don’t @ me.)
I have to admit that I thought her dress was inappropriate for a funeral, especially to be singing from the pulpit. But I also don’t think she realized that she was “breaking the rules”… plus I’m guessing it wasn’t important enough for anybody to say anything to her about it and the family surely had more important things to deal with.
But Bishop’s bad joke about her name being an item on Taco Bell’s menu was just wrong… I cringed and groaned when I heard it. And his hug seemed a little too familiar and looked like it made her uncomfortable, especially in the closeup photos that came out later. (You can see the video for yourself here if you missed it.)
Bishop Ellis did apologize yesterday evening after the burial to Ariana, her fans and the Hispanic community and later said, “The last thing I want to do is be a distraction to the day. This is all about Aretha Franklin.” Now THAT is truth.