Anita Baker Asks Babyface To Tell His Fans To Stop Harassing Her, Babyface Removed From Her Tour

Paras Griffin/Getty Images for Tyler Perry Studios

Anita Baker Asks Babyface To Tell His Fans To Stop Harassing Her, Babyface Removed From Her Tour

Paras Griffin/Getty Images for Tyler Perry Studios

Quiet storm legend Anita Baker has been touring with her fellow R&B icon Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, and now they’re feuding — or rather, Babyface’s fans are feuding with Baker. As TMZ explains, last month Babyface’s opening set at the pair’s show in Newark was cut short after starting nearly two hours late, and now she says his recent sets have been going too long, pressing well into the timeframe when the headliner is supposed to be onstage. According to Baker, her complaints about this trend have led to a wave of online harassment from Babyface fans who won’t concede that he’s booked as a special guest on her Songstress Tour, not a co-headliner.

In a series of expressive tweets over the past two days, Baker has argued that Babyface is breaching his contract and needs to make way for the headliner in a timely fashion. She also has called on Babyface to tell “Kenny’s Crazies” to stand down. “Out of Kindness & Community, you Gift🎁 them $200k worth of Production/that YOU Pay for…” Baker wrote in the first of these tweets Sunday afternoon, which also invoked the history of American slavery. “And, Still, they Complain & hold up, the show⏰ Annnd, Slander & *Villanize, Your name to social media blogs & press.” Today Baker asserted, “There is A White man, behind these Grown Black Men… harrassing Me & Gaslighting, My Fans. Because he Cant take over, this Tour… sO? He wants to Destroy it.” Plus, she alleged that Babyface hates Beyoncé.

It’s all a lot to take in, but you’ll get the gist by perusing Baker’s tweets below.

https://twitter.com/IAMANITABAKER/status/1667981640319270913

https://twitter.com/IAMANITABAKER/status/1667990645276049408

https://twitter.com/IAMANITABAKER/status/1668050356604129281

https://twitter.com/IAMANITABAKER/status/1668284012174135296

https://twitter.com/IAMANITABAKER/status/1668289043556343809

UPDATE: Baker has announced that Babyface will not perform on the remainder of her tour. “After Silently, Enduring Cyber Bulling/Verbal Abuse & Threats of Violence from the Fan Base, of Our Special Guest❤️/Support Act. In the Interest of Personal Safety. I will continue, The Songstress Tour, alone,” she writes on Twitter. “Appropriate refunds will be made.”

https://twitter.com/IAMANITABAKER/status/1668643068847980546

Babyface responded to being removed in a statement: “I am saddened by the news that Anita Baker has decided to remove me from The Songstress Tour. It’s unfortunate and disheartening to see how things have played out via social media,” he wrote. “While I was looking forward to the rest of the dates, I have nothing but love & respect for Anita and I wish her the best for the remainder of her tour.”

https://twitter.com/babyface/status/1668705182497259521

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