The Weeknd has announced he will no longer work with H&M after the fashion retailer has faced a backlash for its 'racist' ad.
The fashion brand was blasted after using a black kid wearing a green hoodie with the phrase 'Coolest Monkey in the Jungle' on it. Pictures of the hoodie were quickly splashed across social media with people branding it 'irresponsible' and 'disgusting'.
Now, The Weeknd, real name Abel Tesfaye, has announced he's cutting ties with H&M. He has previously collaborated with the Swedish chain twice and put on a performance at its Spring 2017 fashion show.
In a tweet, he said: "Woke up this morning shocked and embarrassed by this photo. I'm deeply offended and will not be working with @hm anymore..."
In a statement, H&M said: "We completely understand and agree with his reaction to the image. We are deeply sorry that the picture was taken, and we also regret the actual print.
"We have removed the image from all our channels and the sweater is no longer for sale in our stores. We will also look into our internal routines to avoid such situations in the future. We will continue the discussion with The Weeknd and his team separately."
You've got really to wonder who signed off on this, haven't you? How many people saw this and thought, 'yeah, good to go'?
Following the backlash, the item has been removed from sale and the photos taken off the H&M site. H&M was forced to issue an apology after angry shoppers tweeted about the item:
H&M said: "We sincerely apologise for offending people with this image of a printed hooded top.
"The image has been removed from all online channels and the product will not be for sale in the United States.
"We believe in diversity and inclusion in all that we do and will be reviewing all our internal policies accordingly to avoid any future issues."
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