Katy Perry’s ‘Blackface’ Shoes Pulled From Stores After Sparking Backlash

The singers fashion brand, Katy Perry Collections, has been forced to remove the ‘face’ footwear from its website after it sparked outrage online.

The $129 shoes had been available at Dillard’s and Walmart, but have now been pulled after the styles, compared to blackface, were considered racist

Katy Perry said she was ‘saddened’ that her shoe designs have been compared to blackface, issued apology and removed the offending designs from her website

The Mail Online reports:  Previously retailing for $129 per pair at Dillard’s and Walmart, as well as on the Katy Perry Collections website, the ‘Rue Face Slip On Loafers’ and ‘Ora Face Block Heel Sandal’ featured two eyes, a gold nose, and red lips. The slides came in black or beige while the sandals were available in either black or gold.

Following fierce social media backlash over the design, Katy, 34, and Global Brands Group released a statement to DailyMail.com explaining that the two shoe styles were part of a larger collection and were never intended to ‘inflict any pain.’

‘The Rue and The Ora were part of a collection that was released last summer in 9 different colorways (black, blue, gold, graphite, lead, nude, pink, red, silver) and envisioned as a nod to modern art and surrealism,’ the statement said.

‘I was saddened when it was brought to my attention that it was being compared to painful images reminiscent of blackface. Our intention was never to inflict any pain. We have immediately removed them from Katy Perry Collections.’

The shoes have also been removed from Dillard’s And Walmart’s websites.

On Monday, TMZ was the first to report the shoes were about to be removed from retailers as Katy faced scrutiny for the shoes, which bear a likeness to blackface makeup.

Sources told the site the two shoe styles are part of an entire line that she had designed and released and ‘were never intended to be offensive.’