Usher Finally Addressed His Viral Keke Palmer Serenade, A ‘Pop Moment’ That Stays In The Back Of His Mind

Roughly one month ago, Keke Palmer did what countless people have done since Usher started his ongoing Las Vegas residency: She enjoyed herself. She danced with Usher while he sang “There Goes My Baby.” Darius Jackson, the father of her infant son, publicly ridiculed her for the outfit she wore to the show.

“It’s the outfit tho.. you a mom,” Jackson wrote in since-deleted posts to X (formerly known as Twitter). “We live in a generation where a man of the family doesn’t want the wife & mother to his kids to showcase booty cheeks to please others & he gets told how much of a hater he is. This is my family & my representation. I have standards & morals to what I believe. I rest my case.”

Palmer appeared to stand up for herself by posting a video of her serenading her son with Stevie Wonder’s “Isn’t She Lovely” and offering up merchandise with “I’M A MOTHA” written across the front.

Last Friday (August 4), People published an interview with Usher, and he offered his perspective on the situation — calling it a “pop moment” that is “worth talking about.”

“I think everybody’s vision or a version of what they felt happened there just leads you back to just really having a good time in Las Vegas. And that’s what I hope came out of it,” Usher said. “Rather, it was a conversation of what was going on with us having fun in front of the audience or conversation about that song.”

He added, “Every night I’m thinking about how the world now is going to react to this moment that I’ll have with whoever I’m choosing to sing to. But it was a pop moment, and it was fun to have at least conversation going, and we just keep it light.I don’t see anything negative happening in Las Vegas.”

Since Palmer, Usher has chosen to serenade Saweetie and Winnie Harlow, though the latter was not interested.