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Singer Monica reportedly jumped off the stage in order to defend a female fan who was being “attacked” in the audience.
During her performance at Riverfront Music Festival in Detroit on Saturday (22 July), the 42-year-old singer is said to have jumped off the stage to confront a male attacker.
“You don’t hit no f***in’ lady like that,” Monica apparently said before the man was kicked out of the festival.
She then got back up on stage and apologised for losing her cool.
“That s*** triggered me,” she said. “I seen him punch that lady in the face, I lost my f***in’ temper. I apologise ya’ll. I apologize from the bottom of my heart.”
Monica added: “I was gonna knock [his] ass out with this f***in’ mic.”
The “Angel of Mine” singer addressed the incident in a comment on The Shade Room’s Instagram post about the incident on Sunday (23 July).
“I apologised there and I’m apologising here for my actions but no one would take action!” she wrote. “I was so triggered, I watched and she didn’t appear to even know him!
“It appeared to be about space during a packed concert!” Monica dded. “He punched her with all his strength! My intentions were to prevent her from being hit again and she wasn’t! I asked for help, it fell on deaf ears! It was like seeing my mother or an aunt be assaulted!! This woman was 50 plus, I pray she’s ok!”
In a statement to CBS News, Riverfront Music Festival’s spokesperson Andrus Macdonald praised Monica for standing up for the woman.
“We want to extend our heartfelt gratitude to Monica for her courage and decisive intervention during an unfortunate incident at our Festival,” he said.
“Her actions demonstrated a commitment to the safety and respect of her fans, reinforcing our belief that she is not just an extraordinary talent, but an extraordinary individual as well.”
He continued by saying organisers were “truly saddened that an event meant to bring joy and unity to our community was marred by an act of violence”.
The festival organisers are reportedly working with law enforcement to hold the attacker accountable.