Colleen Ballinger's face was "green like a witch" when she sang Beyonce's 'Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)'.
Colleen Ballinger has denied the racism row she's been involved in
The controversial YouTuber – whose online persona Miranda Sings gained global fame when it was turned into the Netflix series ‘Haters Back Off’ - was hit by a racism row earlier this week when she was accused of using black face in old footage that surfaced of her singing the 2008 smash hit single, but her representatives have insisted the edited clip didn't show the full story.
Law firm Berk Brettler told NBC News in a statement she was wearing green face paint to look like Elphaba from 'Wicked'.
They said in a statement: "She painted her face green like the witch. After that number, she went right into 'Single Ladies' (while still wearing the green makeup). At that time, she closed all her shows with that Beyoncé number—it was one of her most popular bits."
The company also provided the outlet with a longer video of the performance, which showed Colleen singing on stage with 'Wicked' actor Oliver Thompsett.
It is not clear when the video was shot, but it was shared February 2018 on Colleen’s Miranda Sings YouTube channel – where it remains viewable but is unlisted.
In the video, Colleen, in her Miranda Sings persona, has dark-coloured greasepaint on her face as she performs the Beyoncé hit.
A clip from the video was shared earlier this week by social media influencer Paige Christie on Twitter.
She wrote online: “I’m gonna need someone to explain the black on her face… .”
Paige added said it appeared Colleen performed ‘Single Ladies’ at a show in London’s West End around the summer of 2010.
The resurfacing of the video comes after the 36-year-old star last week publicly responded to accusations that she formed inappropriate relationships with teenagers, denying that she had “groomed” fans who were children.
In a video posted on 28 June, she denied the “lies” and “gossip”, partly in song while accompanying herself on a ukulele.
She sang: “I’m sure you’re disappointed in my s***** little song, I know you wanted me to say that I was 100 per cent in the wrong, Well I’m sorry I’m not gonna take that route, Of admitting to lies and rumours that you made up for clout.”
She added: “The only thing I’ve ever groomed is my two Persian cats, I’m not a groomer, just a loser.”
An article on apologizetome.com written by former writers' assistant April Korto Quioh and published on 30 June claims Colleen displayed “cruelty” during the two seasons she worked on the ‘Haters Back Off’ show.
She said she was the “only black person in the office”, adding: “I recall overhearing (Colleen) once brag that a creator was being ‘cancelled’ for saying the n-word (and if you think she went with ‘n-word’ instead of hitting that hard ‘r’ then you haven’t been paying attention) and that she would never be stupid enough to get caught doing something like that.”
Tagged in Beyonce