Hey Hey It’s Saturday were left red faced today after last nights Red Face’s segment saw a group paint their faces black and mimic the Jackson Five.
Harry Connick jnr, a guest on the second reunion show, was immediately offended by the act and gave the group a zero for their performance, labeling it ‘racist’ and ‘bad taste’.
The incident has triggered a worldwide lashing at the producers of the show, with headlines making the major publications of many overseas nations.
The famous singer and actor kept his calm at the end of the performance but was notably upset and when asked for his opinion on the act he said:
“If they turned up looking like that in the United States, it’ll be like hey hey there’s no more show.”
Later on the show however, he was less impressed, demanding a formal apology from the shows host Darryl Somers.
“If I knew that was going to be part of the show I definitely wouldn’t have done it,” Connick Jr said.
Connick Jr was raised in New Orleans and learned to play alongside African-American jazz musicians.
The singing group called the Jackson Jive is made up of numerous ethnic backgrounds including an India and a Lebanese.
Dr Anand Deva, who played Michael Jackson in the skit, said the act was meant to be a tribute to Michael Jackson and apologized if anyone was offended.
“It certainly was not meant to be racist in any way at all,” Dr Deva said.
“I think he (Connick Jr) is taking it the wrong way.”
The Hey Hey It’s Saturday reunion series will continue next week after it recorded a massive 2.7 million viewers last night.
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