UPDATE 6/6 10:00am EST: Lifetime has canceled its plans to air Abby’s Virtual Dance Off after multiple racism accusations were made per Entertainment Weekly. A premiere date was never announced for the series however it was supposed to start airing this summer.
“At this time, I do not accept [Abby Lee Miller’s] apology because her apology was not sincere,” Adriana Smith tells HollywoodLife in an EXCLUSIVE statement. Adriana recently accused Abby, 53, of making racist remarks towards her and her daughter, Kamryn, on season 8 of Dance Moms. A second mom, Camille Bridges, also came forward with allegations of racism, prompting Miller to make a public apology on Twitter. However, Adriana tells us that this social media mea culpa wasn’t good enough.
“My daughter and I have yet to hear directly from Abby Lee. Moreover, she didn’t even bother to tag me or Kamryn in her post. How else would we know she apologized? My friends and peers informed me of the apology. How sincere could it be?! What happened to a phone call or at least a personal direct message?”
“Her failure to appropriately address me and my daughter personally points to the fact that she is disingenuous,” Adriana tells HollywoodLife. “My purpose with my original post was to share my story and how it negatively impacted my daughter, and it resonated with many others because of the distressing times in our country. At this point, this is bigger than me and Kamryn. It’s about the potential effect that she has on the future of dance and negative, stereotypical influences on young, aspiring dancers of color.”
“I firmly believe that if Abby was truly sorry, she would have apologized a year ago when she exposed my then 7-year-old daughter to her first account of racism,” adds Adriana. “So, no, I don’t accept her apology. I also fully support and stand by [dancers] Nia [Sioux], Camryn [Bridges] and Nicaya [Wiley] as well as any others who have been victims of racism at the hands of Abby Lee Miller or in the industry.”
Adriana made her allegations in a June 2 Instagram post. She accused Abby of insulting her upbringing (“I know you grew up in the HOOD with only a box of 8 crayons, but I grew up in the country club with a box of 64 — don’t be stupid”) and claiming that her daughter was only on the team because “they need a sprinkle of color!” In her IG post, Adriana also included a picture of her and Kamryn. Her daughter wore a shirt that looked like a Crayola box, showing that she was proud of her “8 Crayons” background.
Camile Bridges also accused Abby of similar behavior, claiming Miller “tried to spin Camryn as being the poor one and there on scholarship” and often put her daughter “in afros.”
Abby apologized on June 4. “I genuinely understand and deeply regret how my words have affected and hurt those around me in the past, particularly those in the Black community. To Kamryn, Adriana, and anyone else I’ve hurt, I am truly sorry,” she wrote. “I realize that racism can come not just from hate, but also from ignorance. No matter what the cause, it is harmful, and it is my fault. While I cannot change the past or remove the harm I have done, I promise to educate myself, learn, grow, and do better.”
