Pop singer Chappell Roan has said she “does not hate children” in response to former Chelsea and Arsenal player Jorginho’s claim that his family suffered “a deeply upsetting situation” involving her security guard.
Jorginho, who plays for Flamengo, posted an Instagram story on Saturday explaining that his wife and daughter were in Sao Paulo for the Lollapalooza musical festival to see the headlining Roan, who his daughter is a big fan of.
The midfielder explained his wife and daughter were having breakfast in a hotel when they spotted Roan eating at a nearby table and his excited daughter simply walked past her, smiled, and went back to her seat.
“A large security guard came over to their table while they were still having breakfast and began speaking in an extremely aggressive manner to both my wife [Catherine Harding] and my daughter, saying that she shouldn’t allow my daughter to ‘disrespect’ or ‘harass’ other people,” Jorginho said.
“He even said he would file a complaint against them with the hotel, while my 11-year-old daughter was sitting there in tears.
“My daughter was extremely shaken and cried a lot.”
The Italy international explained he too has received lots of attention in his career and understands respect and boundaries, but this was not an acceptable reaction.
“What happened there was not that. It was just a child admiring someone,” Jorginho said.
“It’s sad to see this kind of treatment coming from those who should understand the importance of fans.
“I sincerely hope this serves as a moment of reflection. No one should have to go through this, especially not a child.”
Jorginho also posted to social media: “WITHOUT YOUR FANS, YOU WOULD BE NOTHING. AND TO THE FANS, SHE DOES NOT DESERVE YOUR AFFECTION.”
Roan has since responded with a video explaining her “half of the story” after receiving backlash on social media.
“What happened today with a mother and child who were involved with a security guard who is not my personal security,” Roan said.
“I do not hate people who are fans of my music. I do not hate children. That is crazy.
“I’m sorry to the mother and child that someone was assuming something, that you would do something, and if you felt uncomfortable that makes me really sad. You did not deserve that.
“I didn’t even see. I didn’t even see a woman and a child. No one came up to me. No one bothered me.”
Rio de Janeiro’s mayor, Eduardo Cavaliere, has jumped to Jorginho’s defence, writing in a post on X that he intends to ban the singer from performing in his city.
