"It's the sadness in her eyes" — Internet extends support to Kelly Rowland as singer opens up on Cannes Red carpet incident

On Thursday, May 23, actress, singer, and TV personality Kelly Rowland spoke to the Associated Press (AP) during her attendance at the amfAR Cannes Gala in France. She opened up about the viral altercation with a security officer that occurred on Tuesday at the film festival’s red carpet.

“The woman knows what happened. I know what happened. And, I have a boundary, and I stand by those boundaries, and that is it,” she told the interviewer.

Kelly Rowland, who appeared to be emotional, further continued:

“And there were other women that attended that carpet who did not quite look like me, and they didn’t get scolded or pushed off or told to get off. I stood my ground, and she felt like she had to stand hers, but I stood my ground. And, that was it.”

In response to Rowland's statements, the internet rallied in support of her. One Instagram user, @tiffany.denise, commented on @theashaderoom’s post about the incident.

“It’s the sadness in her eyes for me. STOP PLAYING WITH KELENDRIA!!!!!! #rootingforblackwomen.”

A fan reacts to Rowland's altercation at the Cannes Film Festival (Image via Instagram/@tiffany.denise)

Here are some of the other reactions from X, showing solidarity with the Mea Culpa star.

“Beautiful Queen holding her ground. We love to see it!” a person wrote.

“NOBODY PUTS KELENDRIA TRENE ROWLAND IN THE CORNER,” another person wrote.

“This is actually a very mature way to react,” one person wrote.

“I believe her,” another person wrote.

“Love this woman,” an individual wrote.

“You can see the hurt in her eyes… Kelly minds her business and is so unproblematic, yet these people keep trying her,” another individual wrote.

“I need to know that the woman was fired so I can have some peace of mind. I see the hurt on her face. Smh,” a person wrote.

As of now, the Cannes Film Festival has not issued a statement regarding the incident. The identity of the woman involved or whether she faced any consequences for her alleged actions remains undisclosed.

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Exploring Kelly Rowland’s Cannes red carpet incident

On May 21, Kelly Rowland walked the red carpet of the 77th Cannes Film Festival at the Palais des Festivals before the premiere of the French-Italian comedy drama Marcello Mio, directed by Christopher Honore.

She posed for the cameras, smiling and waving, as she made her way through the stairs. However, she stopped midway and was captured getting into a heated exchange with a female security officer. The officer appeared to grip her arm and seemingly rushed her off the carpet, inadvertently stepping on her dress in the process.

The video of the incident went viral on social media platforms, sparking widespread discussion among netizens. Most believed the staffer mistakenly stomped on her dress, and in response, Kelly Rowland nicely asked her to take a step back.

However, when the staffer failed to acknowledge her blunder, the former Destiny’s Child member reportedly told her, “Don’t talk to me like that.”

Some observers claimed that Kelly Rowland’s custom-made, strapless, and flowy Anamika Khanna's red gown got accidentally stuck on the red carpet, which she reportedly blamed on the security officer, thus leading to a verbal altercation.

Eventually, the 43-year-old was seen moving along the carpet, accompanied by others who intervened during the incident.