Twitter Was Not Having Jennifer Lopez’s Motown Tribute

By Nate Nickolai

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Jennifer Lopez paid tribute to some of Motown’s biggest names Sunday night, but Twitter didn’t exactly want an encore.

During a medley of classic Motown songs such as “Square Biz,” “Please Mr. Postman,” “Dancing in the Street,” and “My Girl,” several Twitter users criticized Lopez’s appearance alongside Motown legend Smokey Robinson, arguing that a Black performer should have taken the spot instead.

“Umm i could have thought of about a million other artist better for this performance other than @
JLo,” wrote one Twitter user.

Another wrote “I mean…was Khia not available for this Motown medley?”

Previously, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences sparked criticism after fans of Motown tweeted their confusion over why the Academy would honor the legendary Black music label with Lopez instead of a Black artist, especially during Black History Month.

At Saturday’s Clive Davis’ pre-Grammy gala, Robinson defended Lopez’ performance, pointing to the credibility of her youth  spent growing up in a Hispanic neighborhood in the Bronx. “Motown was music for everybody. Everybody,” he added.

Lopez also opened up about her performance on the Grammy red carpet, telling Ryan Seacrest that she wanted to dedicate the performance to her mother.

“I want to dedicate the performance to my mom; it’s the music we listened to in our living room – The Temptations The Supremes – this is her music and I grew up on it,” she said. “The performer I am today is because of that music.”

See more reactions below.

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