Reneé Rapp Slams Betty Who’s Controversial Comments About Her Sexuality

Reneé Rapp is responding to Betty Who.

The “Somebody Loves You” singer, 33, recently came under fire for suggesting on the Made It Out podcast that Rapp, 25, who identifies as a lesbian, could ultimately find “the love of [her] life” in a man. She later apologized, and now Rapp is sharing her thoughts on the matter in a new interview with Cosmopolitan UK.

The Mean Girls star told the outlet she’s “never surprised” by comments like Betty’s. “People are always going for lesbians! Somebody’s gonna bring my name into the conversation if they want to be in the conversation,” she said.

“I mean, it’s just very similar to the whole, ‘She hasn’t found the right man.’ It’s incredibly similar, let’s be so clear. I’m just like, ‘What the f—? What makes you think I’m gonna end up with a man?’ Also, how about don’t talk about me when it comes to a man? I’m very publicly in a very loving relationship with a woman,” continued Rapp, who’s dating fellow musician Towa BIrd.

“So I’m not really sure what about that is so blurry,” she added. “I mean, I completely understand that identifying yourself can be really difficult. There is so much pressure when it comes to labelling yourself, but I think that pressure often comes from you. Like, no one ever had a gun to my head and was like, ‘Tell me what you are, right the f— now.’ I had a gun to my own head and I was like, ‘Tell me what you are, right the f— now,’ because I was trying to figure it out, because I didn’t know who I was.”

Rapp concluded on the topic, “So I’m always confused whenever people try to do that to other people. Just focus on yourself. Just literally focus on yourself. Don’t bring my big f—— lesbian name into your mouth and into this drama.”

On the Aug. 19 episode of the Made It Out podcast, Betty spoke about Rapp while on the topic of celebrities like JoJo Siwa and Fletcher, both of whom identify as queer and surprised fans by dating men over the past year.

“I have so much space and love for those women who are probably going through it right now,” said Betty, who’s married to photographer Zak Cassar and also identifies as queer and nonbinary. “I think it’s hard when you become representative of something to other people, and then you change or you are just following your heart, and then that means other people feel that they are not represented anymore. The pressure of that is so immense.”

The “Mama Say” artist continued, “A huge part of queerness is identifying yourself and putting yourself under, you know, the alphabet mafia. It’s like, ‘Which one are you?’”

“Reneé Rapp is like, ‘You’ll never catch me dating a man,’” Betty later added. “Like, ‘Go off, queen. I love that for you!’ But I also hold space for her in 10 years if she goes, ‘Oops, I met the love of my life and it’s this man, I didn’t mean to.’ It’s like, that’s okay!”

Many fans interpreted the comments as discriminatory against those who identify as lesbians. On Aug. 28, Betty shared an apology to her Instagram Stories.

“In recent days, I’ve taken time to sit with the conversation around my gender and sexuality. I recognize that the language I used poorly articulated my experience and unintentionally reinforced ideas that were harmful or dismissive, particularly toward the lesbian community,” she wrote. “That was never my intention, and I’m truly sorry. Everyone’s journey is deeply personal, and I shouldn’t have spoken in ways that generalized or spoke for others.”

Betty then spoke about her own identity. “I went into the interview to discuss my own journey specifically, how I figured out how to identify myself and how I ultimately landed on non-binary and bisexual, both assignments that live somewhere in-between,” she continued.

“I understand there is so much nuance in this conversation, and in other people’s lived experiences, that my comments did not reflect. I also recognize that I’m coming from a place of privilege, and I never meant to contribute to prejudice against the community,” added the performer.

“The LGBTQ+ community is my home; it’s where I came alive, found my people, and learned more about love, acceptance, and tolerance on a deeper human level,” concluded Betty. “I will do better.”