Diversity’s Powerful BLM Routine On ‘BGT’ Has Earned Over 15,000 Complaints From Viewers
ITV Reading Time: 3 minutes
Over 15,000 people have complained to Ofcom after Britain’s Got Talent winners Diversity performed a routine about the Black Lives Matter movement. During the semifinals, the group danced to this powerful tribute, but some were not happy about the statement it made during the broadcast. Check out the performance below.
Ashely Banjo Joined Diversity For BLM Inspired Routine On ‘BGT’
In the performance, Ashley Banjo, founder of Diversity who is now filling in on the judging panel for Simon Cowell on ‘BGT’ took the lead. Simon is currently recovering from a electric bike accident that resulted in a six-hour surgery. If you want to know more details about what really happened to Simon, check out the video below. We breakdown everything from the surgery to his future on live television.
In the performance, a white police officer kneels on Ashley’s neck, echoing the killing of George Floyd. His death sparked worldwide protests and the spread of the Black Lives Matter movement. Diversity performed to a spoken word poem called “The Great Realization” by Tomfoolery. It also mentioned how the government handled the coronavirus outbreak leading up to the rise of BLM. Midway through the performance, Ashley and the other dancers took a knee as the words “I can’t breathe” repeated in the background.
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Other dancers were dressed in riot gear in imagery similar to what happened during some of the protests that took place around the world. Ashley proceeds to kick down a stack of riot gear shields during the routine. The judges gave the performance a standing ovation.
Ashley Responded To Criticism Of The Performance
Ofcom received it’s highest number of complaints since actress Roxanne Pallett appeared in Celebrity Big Brother in 2018. This prompted Ashley to post one of the complaints on Instagram and address it. He wrote, “For the people sending this: 1. You do not represent or speak for the Great British public. 2. Silence was never and will never be an option. 3. Change is inevitable… Get used to it #Diversity.”
He made another post addressing the criticism saying “I’ve always tried to create not only to entertain but also to inspire… That will never change.” He also reposted the performance saying “And for the thousands of messages of hate and ignorance I’ve received – Thank you… You highlight exactly what needs to change and why this was so important to me and the rest of @diversity_official.” Alesha Dixon also told critics of the ‘BGT’ performance that they could “‘kiss my black a**” in the comments on the post.
Ashley’s brother Jordan also responded to the criticism saying “I can’t speak for anyone else, but it’s sad. It’s sad, genuinely. I feel anxious and worried saying something like black lives matter when that’s all we want, man. It’s just love and positivity. No-one’s saying only black lives matter.”
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This was the first television performance of the year for Diversity who only had five days to prepare. Ashley said, “we put our heart and soul into this one” on Instagram ahead of the ‘BGT’ performance.
