R&B Recording artist Kelly Price was catching the blues following her performance of “As We Lay,” a single about a woman having an affair with a married man and waking up beside him after a tryst. The audience was shocked that Price would select such a song to sing during the gospel hour.
Immediately following her performance, Price posted a video and expressed her disbelief and disappointment on Facebook:
Church bigotry is unacceptable. Either truly represent Christ views and his love or shut up! Christians are the ones who make Christ look bad! We cannot win people because all they see is hate and shade. #ImGodsChildToo
In a statement from her publicity team, Price said a series of production errors led to her performing a song that was considered inappropriate to many audience members during the Indiana Black Expo on Sunday, July 17 in Indianapolis. The six-time Grammy Award-nominee revealed she was caught by surprise when the Expo organizers made a huge scheduling error during the “We Love Music” Conference. Price was also concerned about the negative feedback on social media before the Expo issued an apology for the mix-up.
In a statement released by the Indiana Black Expo, the organizers said, “Ms. Price was never scheduled to perform as part of the IBE’s Gospel Explosion. Ms. Price was originally scheduled to perform two songs at 3:00 p.m., an hour before the start of the Gospel Explosion. A last minute change in [the] schedule resulted in Ms. Price performing close to the start of the Gospel Explosion. IBE has much respect for Ms. Price and is a huge fan and supporter of her work. IBE apologizes to Ms. Price for the change in schedule that caused people to believe that performance was part of our Gospel Explosion.”
Price was inundated with negative comments on social media, especially Twitter, following the performance. Price added that she was not paid for the appearance, but accepted an invitation to perform by her friend Rico Love. Price wants to reassure the public that it was not her intention to insult anyone.
“I understand that some people in the audience were offended,” said Price. “Thank you, Indy Black Expo for standing in truth with me on this. I appreciate you for inviting me to be a part of this weekend’s festivities. I look forward to being with you again. Now that the facts are out there, maybe the real issue can be heard and dealt with. Why is it so hard for God’s people to display God’s love instead of viciously attacking people on social media? A REAL conversation needs to be had.”
