Janet Jackson‘s ex-stylist has claimed that there was no “wardrobe malfunction” when she was exposed by Justin Timberlake during his infamous 2004 Super Bowl halftime show.
Wayne Scot Lukas has insisted in a new video interview that Jackson’s top was supposed to be ripped by Timberlake but that the production crew failed to cut the lights to blackout in time, leaving her naked breast exposed on camera. Salli Frattini, who worked on the halftime show, has denied Lukas’ claims.
Lukas, who revealed that he was formerly charging $10,000 a day back when he was Jackson’s stylist, told Access Hollywood that he “did exactly what I was supposed to do”.
Instead, he claimed that the production team flunked the apparent stunt. He also took the opportunity to call out Timberlake, whom he criticised for publicly blaming the incident on a “wardrobe malfunction”.
“I was a work-for-hire. I was hired to do a job. I did exactly what I was supposed to do,” Lukas told the publication.
“If I work with someone who’s a dancer, you have to be able to dance in a wardrobe, and it has to never fall apart. My job is to have snaps and pins and velcro so that, even in her quick change, if she forgets to snap something, it stays on. That’s my job.
“I stand 100 per cent by my story that I did exactly what I was supposed to do, what I was hired for” [quotes transcribed by Yahoo! News].
Lukas pointed out that he retained work with Jackson for some time after what became known as ‘Nipplegate’, suggesting that the pop star would have fired him if he hadn’t done his job properly.
“And if I ever hurt my friend, I wouldn’t have worked with Janet for six years after the Super Bowl. I would’ve been fired that day,” he said.
He added of Timberlake: “We haven’t spoken since he blamed me. He came off the stage and said, ‘It’s just a little wardrobe malfunction. We all want to give you something to [talk] about.’
“And when he said that, I thought, ‘Friendship over. Friendship over! Wardrobe malfunction? I don’t malfunction. I was a professional stylist, [charging] $10,000 a day back then. I can’t fail! Why did you say that?'”
On the alleged production failure, he said: “You were never supposed to see a movement where a breast was out, a body part was out. It was never supposed to be lingering on something that they say was this terrible thing for such a long time. They were supposed to cut to black. You were supposed to get the idea of ‘I’m gonna have you naked by the end of this song.’ Nobody was supposed to be naked.
“Somebody didn’t push the button. Somebody didn’t protect my friend.
“No one knows this. You ready for this? When you do the Super Bowl [halftime show], this is the secret, you shoot it twice. You shoot the performance twice because the first time you shoot it, you shoot it in case the satellite goes down and they have to cut to the original rehearsal.
“So they had a second performance that the minute that happened, they could’ve pushed the button and cut to the tape. And they didn’t.”
Salli Frattini, who worked on the halfterm show, refuted Lukas claims, saying: “This is a false statement as per all of my comments previously written and now broadcast.”
The post Janet Jackson’s Super Bowl stylist denies Justin Timberlake incident was a “wardrobe malfunction” appeared first on NME.
0 Comments