Selena Gomez slammed for “ripping off” artist Sarah Bahbah again

In an Instagram reel, Palestinian Australian artist Sarah Bahbah claimed Selena Gomez ripped off her work again.

In 2018, Instagram users accused Selena Gomez of plagiarizing the work of Palestinian Australian artist Sarah Bahbah. From lighting and composition to the use of captions overlaying images, Gomez’s work surrounding her ‘Back to You’ video drew ire from all corners of the internet.

“I don’t claim to own the use of subtitles on images either, but it’s definitely a signature of my work that has further established me in this industry,” Bahbah said at the time.

Now, Gomez comes under fire again for allegedly ripping off Bahbah’s short films and other works.

Artist Sarah Bahbah claims Selena Gomez ripped her off again

Palestinian Australian artist Sarah Bahbah took to Instagram on March 1 with a side-by-side comparison to demonstrate that Selena Gomez allegedly copied her work for the ‘Love On’ video.

“What I’m about to share happens so often to women of color in this industry,” Bahbah said in a reel. “On Friday morning, I woke up to a text from friends being like, ‘Um, have you seen Selena Gomez’s music video “Love On”? She’s ripping you off again.’”

Among other things, Bahbah pointed out that Gomez’s ‘Love On’ visual borrows specific elements from her own short films, as well as a video directed for Kygo. She also alleges Gomez filmed her music video in the same location as one of her many projects.

“I used to believe imitation is the highest form of flattery,” she continued. “When does one artist inspiring another cross the line into possible using someone else’s work without permission? Where is the line between inspiration and a motherf**king IP lawsuit?”

Soon after posting the reel, Bahbah was forced to turn off comments due to a flood of hateful responses allegedly coming from Selena Gomez fans. “I don’t really feel like being abused on this lovely Sunday,” she wrote before turning attention to the positive conversations her post sparked.

“I really appreciate the love, the intellectual responses, the discourse, the conversations on Inspiration vs IP infringement,” she said. “I believe these conversations need to continue being had across the entertainment industry.”