It's just not Beyoncé Knowles' time right now. After being pestered on the internet for her alleged 2010 New Year's Eve performance hosted by Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's son Moatassem-Billah Gaddafi at a luxury Caribbean island resort, she's now being criticised for a fashion shoot she recently did for French fashion magazine L'Officiel.
Posing for the magazine's 90th anniversary issue in a tribute to Nigerian human rights activist and musician Fela Kuti, the singer is seen with deliberately darkened skin, wearing an African-inspired dress designed by her mother. The shoot will feature in a collector's edition of the magazine, to be made available at the end of the month.
The blogosphere has been actively debating the shoot, some calling it "offensive".
"It's as if what the magazine considers ‘African' is someone with the darkest skin possible," said the author of fashion and music blog Iluluonline.com. "It's beyond offensive; It's downright hurtful to see these stereotypes perpetuated."
Interestingly, this is not the first time Knowles has been involved in a controversy about her skin colour. In 2008, she and L'Oreal faced flak for allegedly lightening her skin for one of the brand's advertisements, a charge the beauty company denied.
Knowles father is African American and her mother is of Creole descent.
