Demi Lovato Called out for Promoting Diet Soda After 'Diet Culture' Blowup

Demi Lovato is getting some heat on social media for promoting diet soda during the iHeartRadio Music Awards last week, despite calling out a Los Angeles frozen yogurt shop as contributing to "diet culture" last month for offering sugar-free options. The "15 Minutes" singer gave an interview at the awards ceremony with a microphone promoting Dr. Pepper Zero Sugar, and people still thinking about last month's drama were quick to call them out on it.

Lovato previously took to Instagram to call out the small business The Bigg Chill for offering what they called "diet foods," which Lovato said were "triggering" for people who have dealt with eating disorders. When people on social media pushed back on the star for condemning foods that are helpful for people with specific medical needs such as diabetes or Celiac disease, the singer took to social media to admit they may have "jumped to conclusions."

Demi Lovato in April: “Finding it extremely hard to order froyo from The Big Chill when you have to walk past tons of sugar free cookies/other diet foods before you get to the counter....”

Demi Lovato in May: pic.twitter.com/JkvXWl3uTh

— Jesper 🌈 (@Jespervw) May 28, 2021

demi lovato: tries to ruin a small business because they serve sugar free ice cream
also demi lovato: pic.twitter.com/hihiMuOFqw

— grace🪴 (@graussias) May 28, 2021

"I am very outspoken about the things I believe in. I understand that sometimes my messaging can lose its meaning when I get emotional... I've lived through enough to know when to speak up for people who don't have a voice," Lovato said in an eight-minute Instagram video. "When I messaged this froyo place, originally, I wanted to make a point, and I wanted to call out behaviors or branding, things that didn't sit right with me."

Lovato has been speaking out from their heart a lot recently, coming out earlier this month as nonbinary, which they discussed in a conversation with Jane Fonda for Fire Drill Fridays livestream. "After years of living my life for other people, trying to make myself smaller for the patriarchy — they run the industry, they are at the center of everything," Lovato said. "When I realized that, I thought, 'What are the ways that the patriarchy has been holding me back?' And for me, it was putting me in a box telling [me], 'You are a female, this is what you're supposed to like, this is what you're supposed to do, don't dream bigger and don't speak louder.' ...That didn't vibe for me because I'm too outspoken for that."