The 'What About Us' singer is slammed by 14-year-old Piper Rockelle after she expressed concerns about whether the young YouTube personality is being exploited by her parents.
- Sep 1, 2021
AceShowbiz - A 14-year-old YouTube star has denied singer Pink's claims she's being exploited by her mother.
In a tweet on Sunday (29Aug21), the "Get the Party Started" hitmaker worried about the young star being photographed by her mum while wearing revealing outfits.
"How many kids like Piper Rockelle are being exploited by their parents?" asked the singer. "And at what point do the rest of us say... 'this isn't okay for a 13 yr (sic) old to be posing in a bikini whilst her MOTHER takes the photo?!?!' "
Now Piper, a singer and dancer, is hitting back, telling U.S. morning show "Today" in a statement there's "nothing wrong" with her bikini snaps on Instagram.
"There's nothing wrong with being in a bikini," Rockelle said. "Why do we shame people for that? Pictures of teenagers in bikinis having fun are not sexual. They're only sexual if you view us that way."
Rockelle, who has more than eight million YouTube subscribers added, "I don't think Pink has ever seen one of my YouTube videos because if she did, she'd see it's just my friends and me having fun and acting like ourselves. The content we make is the kind of stuff anyone can watch."
The teen also noted Pink was 14 herself when she joined the all-female group Basic Instinct, a band that broke up before recording any music. The star, real name Alecia Moore, went on to join the R&B Group Choice when she was 16.
"Why was it OK for her to follow her dreams but not OK for me to follow mine?" Rockelle asked.
Her mother, Tiffany, meanwhile told "Today" she's been supporting and protecting her daughter, not exploiting her.
"Since Piper was a child, she has had a strong love of performing and she has always had a dream," she shared. "So long as Piper wants to do this and it's her passion, I'm here for her to follow that dream and protect her."
However, many Twitter users sided with the pop star, feeling her concerns were justified.
"The problem is the tone of the pictures. Piper is just 14. The poses in the photos are suggestive and are sending a very wrong message," wrote one site user.
"Yes! This has been going on far too long," replied another Twitter account holder, who agreed with Pink. "Parents who want to get rich off the back of child exploitation via social media. It's screwed up, big time."
