Who is Hannah Berner, whose Megan Thee Stallion interview went viral for the wrong reasons? The Giggly Squad host was criticised for her comment during a red carpet interview with the rapper
Comedian Hannah Berner just apologised for a comment to Stallion at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party that sparked an online backlash – but did you know the influencer used to play tennis professionally?
Comedian Hannah Berner has apologised for her interaction with rapper Megan Thee Stallion during an interview on the red carpet of the Vanity Fair Oscar Party on March 2.
Berner, who was doing red carpet interviews with her Giggly Squad podcast co-host Paige DeSorbo, was visibly excited to meet the artist.
The three-time Grammy winner responded by turning the conversation back to her outfit “You wanna throw that fighting s**t out the window. You want to get cute and be a bad b***h.”
The latter part of their interaction immediately received backlash online as people called out Berner’s “fighting” comment as micro aggression and claimed she was perpetuating the stereotype of Black women being aggressors.
Taking to her Instagram stories on March 6, Berner apologised, saying: “Looking back at the interview, I wish I used any other word except ‘fight’ to describe how her songs impact me,” Berner said. “It was a careless choice of words and though there was no ill intent, I recognise and acknowledge that what I said has a deeper meaning and I am so sorry to Megan.”
Shortly after Berner’s apology, Rolling Stone published an article suggesting that the trend of using influencers instead of journalists for red-carpet interviews was part of the problem. “Pushing untrained creators out onto the red carpet in the hopes of virality is making a bleak media landscape even worse,” the piece said.
But who is Hannah Berner? Here’s what you need to know.
She was a professional tennis player
Hannah Berner was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. Before she found TikTok fame and became a comedian, the 33-year-old was on track to become a professional tennis player. She played tennis as a collegiate athlete while attending the University of Wisconsin. However, after struggling with burnout and later getting into a car accident, Berner decided tennis wasn’t the right path for her, and turned to comedy.