'White means pure': African singer defends 'Whitenicious' skin-bleaching cream after being accused of encouraging people to change skin tone

  • African pop singer Dencia has created a beauty cream called Whitenicious
  • She says it is a dark spot remover which lightens blemishes in seven days
  • However the advertising campaign shows her with her entire body lighter
  • Asked about the product's name Dancia replied that 'white means pure'
  • Critics have branded the product an 'abomination', warning it will harm the self confidence of 'girls of colour' by making them ashamed of dark skin

By Chris Pleasance

PUBLISHED: 16:08 EST, 22 March 2014 | UPDATED: 16:11 EST, 22 March 2014

An African singer behind a skin-bleaching cream called 'Whitenicious' has tried to justify the name of her product in a TV interview, saying: 'white means pure.'

Asked what the product's name meant to her, Nigerian and Cameroonian singer Dancia appeared to contradict herself by saying: 'White means pure, not necessarily skin, but in general.'

She insisted that the cream is only for covering blemishes, despite an advertising campaign showing her entire body appearing lighter, adding: 'Some people they don't feel confident, they don't feel pure, they don't feel clean with dark spots.'

Pop singer Dencia, who created a skin-bleaching cream called Whitenicious, has attempted to defend the product's name in an interview, saying 'white means pure'

Pop singer Dencia, who created a skin-bleaching cream called Whitenicious, has attempted to defend the product's name in an interview, saying 'white means pure'

The Nigerian and Cameroonian singer insist that the cream is only intended as a dark spot remover
The advertising campaign features Dencia with her entire body appearing lighter

The Nigerian and Cameroonian singer insist that the cream is only intended as a dark spot remover, despite an advertising campaign featuring her looking several skin tones lighter

Asked whether the message behind the product was that being white is more beautiful than being black, Dencia replied: 'If [customers] think that their whole body is a dark spot then fine, because that's not how I feel'

Asked whether the message behind the product was that being white is more beautiful than being black, Dencia replied: 'If [customers] think that their whole body is a dark spot then fine, because that's not how I feel'

Critics have branded the product an 'abomination' saying it teaches young 'girls of colour' to be ashamed of their skin.

In an interview with Channel 4, Dancia was asked whether she thought the message behind the product was that being white looked better than being black.

She replied: 'I was not selling that message, the media are selling that message. I didn't say, buy the cream and look like Dancia.

 

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'I said seven day, fast acting dark spot remover. It's called reading comprehension. If people missed that class then it's not my fault.

'If they think that their whole body is a dark spot then fine, because that's not how I feel.'

Among Dancia's critics is oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong'o who spoke out against racism in beauty and fashion and warned young black girls not to use bleaching products.

Nyong'o, star of 12 Years A Slave, admitted that when she was younger she wanted to wake up 'just a little bit lighter', because she was ashamed of her dark skin.

 
Critics have branded the cream an 'abomination' saying it will make 'girls of colour' ashamed of having dark skin

Critics have branded the cream an 'abomination' saying it will make 'girls of colour' ashamed of having dark skin

When asked whether she accepted the point made by Nyong'o, Dancia responded: 'I don't accept that. I don't care about her story. I don't know her.

'I'm an adult and if I lighten my skin then that's my choice, the same as bleaching my hair.'

Skin bleaching is a growing trend in Dencia's native West Africa, and critics are angered that it appears she is promoting it with her product.

Specifically, the pop star has been criticised for using her own changing skin tone as a marketing technique. Pictures of Dencia taken in 2011 show her with much darker pigmentation compared to the Whitenicious campaign where she appears several shades lighter.

In another attempt at justification, Dencia explains that 50 per cent of her customers are African-Americans, not Africans, adding: 'I have girls calling me up and crying, thanking me for Whitenicious.'

Dencia insists that skin-bleaching should be a free choice for adults, and is no different to bleaching hair

Dencia insists that skin-bleaching should be a free choice for adults, and is no different to bleaching hair

However, Phinniah Ikeji, from Black Role Models UK, said: 'This is about the young girls.They see you, they love your music, they love you as a person and they have seen that you were darker before and now you're much lighter, what's the message going to be to them?

'They're going to think, OK I want to be like her as well and then that affects their self esteem.'

Commenting on the video on YouTube, user AC MC said: Indians and Africans and people of colour need to stop trying to be white and be happy with themselves. This woman needs mental help.'

Another user, tpl89 added: 'Fake accent, fake hair, fake skin colour. It's so sad, she must really hate her African heritage.'



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Enter your commentThe chemical used in these skin lighteners can cause patches of a rare kind of cancer. But in addition, they can damage the skin and lead to dark blochy permanent pigment patches. Some of them can also cause liver damage. These lighteners are probably safe for fair skin people to fade the odd dark spot, but when darker skinned people use large amounts over large patches of skin, it is incredibly dangerous. That is the bottom line. It is VERY sad that anyone is made to feel that the natural color of their skin is not acceptable and very sad how our obsession with appearance causes so much unhappiness.

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Whitening products are a serious health problem here in the Philippines, most contain Mercury and the government is forever removing them from the shelves only for them to be replaced in a different package. The beautiful golden brown girls here are bombarded with ads convincing them that white girls attract better boys. My wife spotted a product the other day called (quote) 'Pink Nipple Cream', I ask you! Meanwhile, in the UK, girls want to get golden brown. Harmful madness.

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'who created a skin-bleaching cream called Whitenicious,' Really? So she personally formulated the cream did she?

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I encourage deleting this article

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Over here in Thailand the women buy skin lightening creams as its "posh" to be light skinned ,in the west we buy skin darkening creams as its "posh" to be dark ,its the same the world over people always want something different ,but then there are always those who moan and complain.

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shoot, that fool will not make me feel ashamed of my chocolate skin, I assure ya! feel sorry for the poor thing!

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What about ppl with paler skin and tanning? Does that mean that they too are not happy with their skin colour; and need to make their skin darker? Works both ways, don't you agree?

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Can people stop comparing white people who tan to bleaching. Sun tans are natural so long as you don't burn or turn red. Bleaching is terrible for the skin and it doesn't look nice when bleached either it looks a kind of ashy greyish complexion so I don't like to see it.

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I bought this stuff in Thailand for red spots left behind from acne. It worked really well!

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What's the problem here? people with white skin spend hours lying in the sun to get brown or use fake tan. It is the same with hair!!! people with straight hair use rollers and people with curly hair use straighteners. We are a fickle lot!!!

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