Selena Gomez‘s disdain for Chris Brown was made evident during her attendance at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards last week. Her sour expression during the announcement of nominees for best R&B, especially after Brown’s name was mentioned, did not go unnoticed on social media.
The Only Murders in the Building actress, 31, has since refrained from apologizing for her apparent lack of fandom towards the controversial artist, 34. At the event, when Brown’s name was read, Gomez visibly scrunched up her face before ultimately offering polite applause to the other nominees in the category. She has since responded to the viral moment in an Instagram Story post for her 429 million followers.
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Selena Gomez Responds To Viral VMA Moment And Visible Reaction To Chris Brown’s Nomination
iHeartRadio Australia captured the moment on video and subsequently shared it on their Instagram account, captioning their post: “@selenagomez reacts to @chrisbrownofficial being nominated.” In the comment section, the Rare Beauty mogul quickly replied: “Who cares lol.”
Gomez appeared to acknowledge the incident’s virality on her IG Story, conveying her thoughts in concise text. “I will never be a meme again,” she wrote to fans. She added: “I’d rather sit still than be dragged for being myself. Much love.”
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At the show, Gomez was honored with the best Afrobeats award for her collaboration with Rema on the chart-topping track “Calm Down.” The song has recently crossed the 1 billion streams milestone on Spotify.
The “Lose You To Love Me” hitmaker’s on-camera expression of disgust upon hearing Brown’s name was most likely influenced by his 2009 attack on then-girlfriend Rihanna, which took place just prior to the Grammy Awards that year. As a result of this assault, Brown was found guilty of a felony charge and received five years’ probation and counseling for domestic violence.
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Brown also seemingly reacted to Gomez's moment, and wrote on his IG Story for his 144 million followers: "Let me mind my business."
In the days since the VMAs, fans on X (formerly Twitter) have stood by Gomez's initial reaction to seeing Brown being nominated for an award. "She was so right for that," one wrote along with a retweet of the viral clip, as another added: "I don't blame her."
