[jwplayer mgzBNoPb]YouTube star and beauty guru Nikita Dragun is facing backlash after texting fans about the current scandal surrounding her latest tan — a tan that some critics feel is racist in nature.
Nikita Dragun is one of YouTube’s biggest content creators, first gaining fame for documenting her transition over a period of time on her channel, at the beginning of her social media climb to stardom.
Sine then, the Belgian-born influencer has become a massively popular beauty guru and model on multiple social media platforms — but with internet fame comes intense scrutiny from online followers.
In mid-September, Dragun came under fire after posting a few photos to her Instagram stories that showed herself sporting a new, dark tan — and fans were not happy about the change.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CFIFne9FYIS/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Almost immediately, she was met with accusations of “blackfishing,” a term used to describe non-black people who darken their skin and otherwise change their appearance with the aim of passing as a Black person.
Although she didn’t respond to the issue immediately, it seems that she has since texted a few of her fans about the controversy — and leaked screenshots of the conversations are stirring up even more outrage.
“Omg everyone is so annoying online right now,” one of the purported texts reads. “Idk why they’re so obsessed with my skin tone. I swear they forget I’m Mexican and Vietnamese… Like sis that pic was months ago when I was tan. …but anyways, love you, f**k what the hating hoes got to say.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CFKvk5xnbUx/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
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While some questioned whether the texts were real or not, others hypothesized that the messages could have been a move from her PR team to help assuage the situation.
This wouldn’t be the first time Nikita has spoken out about such accusations, though; the star also commented on alleged blackfishing in early July during a paparazzi interview with the Hollywood Fix.
Explaining that she could no longer tan naturally due to a history of skin cancer in her family, Dragun claimed that she now spray tans, also citing her Mexican/Vietnamese heritage.
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“My mom is full Mexican and my dad is Vietnamese, and when I tan naturally, I get this dark. …I just have to spray tan. But people think in their minds that because, oh, it’s a spray tan, I can’t be this dark, but Latinas get dark. Asians get dark. People get tan. It’s just a tan.”
Dragun has yet to speak out regarding the outrage around the latest texts she’s sent to fans, leaving many hoping for further clarification from the star on an issue that seems to continually crop up among her viewers.
