Adele addresses cultural appropriation scandal for the first time: 'I didn’t read the f–king room'

close

Video

Fox News Flash top entertainment headlines for October 8

Fox News Flash top entertainment and celebrity headlines are here. Check out what's clicking today in entertainment.

Adele is breaking her silence over one of last year’s most viral examples of cultural appropriation.

During London’s Notting Hill Carnival in 2020, the pop star shared a much-anticipated new image after her reported 100-pound weight loss — at a time when Adele had all but disappeared from the spotlight for more than a year.

Unfortunately, the long-awaited update was overshadowed by her … um, enthusiasm for the festival. Rather than celebrate the occasion alongside fellow Brits of Caribbean descent, she went full-bore with a Jamaican flag-print bikini and bantu knots in her hair, a style worn traditionally by Black women in the region.

"I didn’t read the f–king room," she told British Vogue in a new interview for their November issue. In hindsight, she said, she "totally" understands why a backlash occurred.

ADELE BREAKS HER SILENCE ON DIVORCE FROM SIMON KONECKI, NEW RELATIONSHIP WITH RICH PAUL

Adele admitted she understood why she people accused her of cultural appropriation over an outfit previously worn by the musician to the Notting Hill Carnival. (Photo by: Will Heath/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)

Adele, 33, also believes in owning her mistakes.

"I could see comments being like, ‘The nerve to not take it down,’ which I totally get," she said. "But if I take it down, it’s me acting like it never happened. And it did. I totally get why people felt like it was appropriating."

In the end, the Grammy-winning artist — who will drop a long-anticipated new single, "Easy on Me," on Oct. 15 — was served a heaping helping of karma for her poor form, and not just in terms of bad press.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER

Rather, she learned that bantu knots aren’t just a hairstyle — indeed, they serve a functional and cosmetic purpose for certain hair types — and made the unfortunate discovery that they are novel to White women for a good reason.

"I was wearing a hairstyle that is actually to protect Afro hair. [It] ruined mine, obviously," she said.

Elsewhere, the "Hello" crooner’s extensive interview for British Vogue also revealed new details regarding her divorce with ex Simon Konecki, 47, and the forthcoming album — possibly titled "30" — it helped inspire.

According to Adele, the new record is a personal reckoning.

"I feel like this album is self-destruction, then self-reflection and then sort of self-redemption," she said. "But I feel ready. I really want people to hear my side of the story this time."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The "Rolling in the Deep" singer also recounted feeling "f–king disappointed" about "being objectified" over her 100-pound, two-year weight-loss that led people to call her "too skinny," or worse.

"My body’s been objectified my entire career," the 15-time Grammy-winner said in her Vogue cover story. "It’s not just now. I understand why it’s a shock."