Tinashe has received widespread praise for sticking up to Lance Armstrong during a conversation on Fox’s latest celebrity competition series, Stars On Mars. The “2 On” singer went head to head with the former pro cyclist, pushing back on his views on transgender athletes participation in sports. “I think it’s just so important to always make sure that you speak up for communities that maybe aren’t represented in the room,” Tinashe told HollywoodLife in an EXCLUSIVE interview while attending the Shawn Carter Foundation 20th Anniversary Black Tie Gala on July 14th. “When I was given the opportunity to kind of stand up for somebody who wasn’t able to voice their own opinion or kind of present their own perspective, I thought that that was really important to share.”
The conversation with Lance went down on the most recent episode of the show, when the disgraced athlete brought up a recent episode of his “The Forward” podcast, in which he interviewed Caitlyn Jenner and discussed transgender athletes. He recalled to his fellow castmates, including Tinashe and Ronda Rousey, “You want to transition, let’s do it. You have your own category. We’re gonna have a whole new division. We’ll celebrate you just like we celebrate everybody else. Let’s go. What’s unfair about that?” suggesting that biological males shouldn’t compete in women’s sports. Tinashe was quick to defend the LGBTQ+ community, telling Lance, “To me, I think you just have to care about, if you ‘otherize’ people, it’s not good for their mental health…To kind of like, exclude them from the same spaces and places that everyone else is.” Fellow stars Adam Rippon and Ariel Winter also shared similar sentiments.
The singer then continued to rip into the cyclist in a confessional, revealing to the cameras, “I wasn’t really shocked to hear his opinions, but I definitely didn’t think that he should be the spokesperson for that.” Now, in a teaser for the upcoming episode, Lance threatens to leave the show due to the backlash he received from fellow contestants for his opinions.
“I think it’s great to continue to have these discussions and stand up for marginalized communities, queer people, black people, LGBTQ+, all of it,” Tinashe continued in her convo with HollywoodLife. She also praised Jay-Z and his mom, Mrs. Gloria Carter, for their work with the Shawn Carter Foundation, which aims to help individuals facing socio-economic hardships further their education at postsecondary institutions. The star, who just announced her new single ‘Talk To Me Nice,’ gushed over the “special occasion” and mentioned that Jay’s wife Beyoncé continues to be one of her biggest musical inspirations. “I’m just so happy to be here and be invited and be in the presence of greatness!” she beamed.
The event, held at NYC’s Pier 60 went on to raise over $20 million for the Shawn Carter Foundation, which was founded by Jay-Z and his mom in 2003.