'How blessed are we': Justin Bieber and Kendall Jenner spark backlash with 'tone-deaf' Instagram Live

'Thank you for acknowledging that there are poor people'

Justin Bieber and Kendall Jenner are the latest celebrities to face criticism over comments made in regards to the coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier this week, Bieber and his wife Hailey Baldwin joined Jenner for an Instagram live, where they discussed what they have been doing in quarantine and how “blessed” they are.

“How blessed are we... a lot of people obviously in this time… have a crappy situation,” Bieber said, as Jenner cut in: “I think about it all the time.”

The Baby singer then continued, explaining that he and the two models “can’t feel bad” about their lifestyles because they “worked hard,” but that they should take the time to think about those who are struggling.

“And, you know, they look at us, and obviously, we worked hard for where we’re at so it’s like we can’t feel bad for, you know, the things that we have, but I think just us taking that time to acknowledge that there are people who are struggling is important,” the 26-year-old said, prompting Jenner to add: “Yeah.”

The Instagram Live conversation, which was recorded and shared on social media where it has been viewed more than 3m times, was met with backlash from fans and followers of the celebrities, who accused them of being “tone-deaf” and “clueless”.

“Did Justin Bieber literally just say they are blessed for what they have during isolation because they worked hard for it? Yeah I’m sure Hailey and Kendall worked hard being born into rich families. Losers,” one person tweeted.

Another said: “So glad that @justinbieber feels bad for everyone who is poor. All of a sudden that makes all of this so much easier to deal with… knowing that him and Kendall take at least 10 seconds out of their day to think about how much better they have it then us poor people.”

Someone else asked the trio to consider donating money to those who are having a “crappy time”.

“Hey @justinbieber, @KendallJenner, @haileybieber! I’m redistributing funds to people who are having a ‘crappy time.’ Please feel free to send some money over so these hard-working people can eat and pay rent! If you think about it all the time, it should be a no brainer,” they wrote alongside screenshots of their PayPal account.

Earlier in the Instagram Live, Jenner told the couple that she was quarantining in her “literally favourite place on the planet,” her Beverly Hills home, which she reportedly purchased for $8.5m.

“I worked for, like, so long to get it to the point it’s at,” the supermodel said. “I renovated it for about a year.”