Rihanna Throws Shade at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show After ‘Insensitive’ Transgender Model Casting Comments

Rihanna subtly shaded the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show on Instagram this weekend.

The singer was responding to controversial comments made by Ed Razek, chief marketing officer for Victoria’s Secret parent company L Brands, when asked by Vogue why the VSFS employed no transgender or plus-sized models.

Asked if he should have transgender models in the show, Razek responded, “No. No, I don’t think we should,” adding, “Because the show is a fantasy. It’s a 42-minute entertainment special. That’s what it is. It is the only one of its kind in the world, and any other fashion brand in the world would take it in a minute, including the competitors that are carping at us.”

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But Razek didn’t stop there. He also took a swipe at Rihanna’s Savage x Fenty lingerie show, which included both plus-sized and heavily pregnant models on the runway.

“Everybody keeps talking about Rihanna’s show. If we had done Rihanna’s show, we would be accused of pandering, without question,” Razek said.

He later walked back his comments in a statement, saying, “We absolutely would cast a transgender model in the show. We’ve had transgender models come to castings.”

Please read this important message from Ed Razek, Chief Marketing Officer, L Brands (parent company of Victoria’s Secret). pic.twitter.com/CW8BztmOaM

— Victoria's Secret (@VictoriasSecret) November 10, 2018

Nonetheless, Rihanna took a jab at Razek by liking an Instagram post condemning his comments and praising her show.

“Prime example of why brands need to be careful of casting directors opinions,” the post read. “Thank god @rihanna brought us @SavagexFenty this year with genuine attention & love of diversity in her branding.”

Apart from the fact that both the VSFS and Rihanna’s show feature lingerie, the two shows had some models in common. Both the “Umbrella” singer and Razek cast Bella and Gigi Hadid in their respective shows.

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