“People with eating disorders should be able to go in and feel safe where ever they
go to eat that’s all I’m asking.”
After this week’s feud between Demi Lovato and a local Los Angeles Frozen Yogurt shop,
Demi finally apologized and hopefully we all can move on from this social media battle
that went on for too long.
In case you missed it, earlier this week, Demi Lovato took to Instagram to call out
the frozen yogurt shop The Bigg Chill for selling and promoting what she referred to
as “diet foods.”
The Bigg Chill responded and clarified that they carry foods like sugar free, gluten
free, and dairy free items for people with diabetes, Celiac disease, and for vegans.
But the whole situation got blown out of proportion and Demi and this local business had a heated
back and forth on Instagram stories.
We covered all of that in another Clevver video that I’ll link above for you in case
you need to catch up on the drama.
Demi started to receive criticism from fans who said she was using her massive platform
to drag a small business and others who said they appreciate the options for people with
dietary restrictions.
And now, Demi has spoken out and put this social media war to rest and got real about
where she was coming from with her posts.
Before we get into everything Demi said, I just wanted to issue a quick trigger warning
here because in the rest of this video we will be discussing topics like disordered
eating, so please only continue watching if you feel comfortable doing so.
Ok, so Demi hopped on Instagram and admitted that she didn’t handle this situation as
best as she could.
“Because it wasn’t clear, I definitely jumped to conclusions and probably shouldn’t
have you know, gone about this the way that I have.”
She got real with fans about why she reacted the way she did.
Demi explained that as someone who’s struggled with eating disorders, frozen yogurt has always
been something she’s leaned on because it’s lower in calories and can be fat free.
So she found it particularly upsetting that she felt like The Bigg Chill was promoting
diet products.
“I know that people struggle with Fro Yo with eating disorders so that’s why I’m
super sensitive when I walk into a Fro Yo place and I see diet stuff, like I’m gonna
be protective.”
Demi revealed that she left the yogurt shop and because of this triggering experience,
she didn’t end up getting the yogurt and she struggled for the rest of the weekend.
Demi said that she’s only human and she struggles too, just like everyone else.
She clarified that it was never her intention to bad mouth a small business and she wants
to do whatever she can to work with them to help them align their messaging if they want
to work with her.
“And I’m passionate.
So I’m sorry that I got the messaging wrong.
I’m sorry that I may have disappointed some people.
But I’m not coming after a small business as someone with a lot of followers, that's
not what I’m doing here.”
Demi said she doesn’t feel good about the fact that the messaging got misconstrued and
she just wants to make the world feel like a safer place for people with eating disorders
to be able to eat wherever they want.
“I just want to continue to make the world a better place and if it upsets some people
I’m so sorry I will listen and try to understand how I can better be of support to all communities.”
And since Demi’s apology video, The Bigg Chill has taken to their Instagram stories
to share their weekly flavors, which yes, included language like “fat free,” “carbolite,”
and “dairy free.”
But longtime patrons of the shop know that while this might seem like they are trolling
Demi, this is how their flavors are always presented.
Additionally, The Big Chill reshared a post that says “support local hard working businesses
that accommodate dietary restrictions and allergies.”
And while Demi’s offer to work with the
fro-yo shop is on the table, the business didn’t respond publicly.
Hopefully this not-so-sweet dessert drama can be handled between Demi and the shop solely
moving forward.
As always, we’ll keep you posted if we hear anything else.
For now, if you want more on Demi Lovato, click right over here for another Clevver
News video.
Also, let us know down in the comments below what you think of Demi’s apology.
I’m your host Sussan Mourad, you can find me on TikTok @Sussan_Mourad, bye guys!