Pharrell and Ellen Condemn Kim Burrell’s Homophobic Comments on Ellen

After announcing that Kim Burrell, a gospel singer who made a series of homophobic comments last week, would not be performing on her show as originally scheduled, Ellen DeGeneres sat down with Pharrell, who was set to perform with Burrell, to directly address her statements. “There’s no room for any kind of prejudice in 2017 and moving on,� Pharrell said. He was set to perform “I See Victory,� a song from the Hidden Figures soundtrack, with Burrell on the show. He and his collaborators on the movie have all condemned Burrell’s comments on social media. (Incidentally, Katonya Breaux, Frank Ocean’s mother, also spoke out against Burrell since Frank has a song with her on his album, while singer and pastor Shirley Caesar has defended her and blamed Obama for making homosexuality “all right.�) “As someone who has received a lot of hate and prejudice and discrimination because of who I choose to love,� Ellen added, “it gives me more empathy. I don’t want anyone to feel hurt because they’re different.�