Zara Larsson Loses $5.2M brand deal over controversial joke

Zara Larsson has revealed she lost a 5.2 million NZD (£2.3 million) brand deal after making an abortion joke on TikTok.

The Swedish singer-songwriter has stated that she missed out on the lucrative opportunity following her response to a fan video shared on the platform.

In the clip, a fan posted footage of Larsson performing on stage, alongside the caption, "I didn't know I was pregnant here but at least my baby got to hear Midnight Sun before I aborted it."

Responding in the comments, Larsson wrote, "I killed the performance and then you killed it after the performance purrrrrr."

The 28-year-old later faced backlash for appearing to make light of abortion, and has since revealed that a brand partnership was cancelled as a result.

Addressing the controversy in a new video, the Lush Life singer defended her remarks, describing the joke as "funny" and stating she would not want to work with a brand that "didn't agree" with her views.

"I mean just lately, the abortion joke, which is very funny by the way, I lost a $3 million (USD) deal which is like what the f**k," the Lush Life singer stated.

She continued, "If you don't agree with me thinking women should have access to abortion or that we can have a joking conversation about it then we are not meant to be partners."

Larsson also insisted that the backlash has not affected her.

"I don't give a f**k about it," she said. "You can send me a million DMs and send me a million comments about me being a bad person or a wicked witch, but I don't give a rats a**e because I'm so sure in my stance in that."