FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Food

The Internet Originally Wanted to #BoycottAdele Because of How She Made Tea

We can trace the origins of this hashtag back to a cup of tea.

Why would anyone want to boycott Adele?

Apparently, there are actually quite a few reasons. Most recently, the fact that she absolutely crushed it at the Grammys; winning Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Solo Pop Performance. That alone is enough to draw the ire of online haters—particularly those who would have rather seen her victories go to Beyoncé.

@Brianna_Olivia #Boycottadele #MakeGrammy'sGreatAgain#fakenewsfakegrammy's

— Taylor Shelley (@Taylorsshelley) February 13, 2017

Advertisement

Not only did she dominate, but she also pulled the ballsy power move of literally breaking her award for Album of the Year in half and offering part of it to Queen Bey, proclaiming, "What the fuck does she have to do to win Album of the Year?" and "My Album Of The Year is Lemonade," and suggesting, perhaps, that race was the issue.

Needless to say, all of these factors combined was enough for #BoycottAdele to reemerge on social media. "Reemerge?" you may ask. Thanks to a bunch of tweets re-discovered by NPR, we can now trace the origins of this hashtag back to a cup of tea.

It all surrounds the cup of tea from her "Hello" video, which now has almost two billion views. Back when it was released in late 2015, it was watched under the microscope, with the Internet flipping out over flip phones and, fatefully, the proper way for a British person to make tea.

What kind of a MONSTER puts the hot water in before the teabag? Adele has lost the run of herself. #boycottadele pic.twitter.com/BvxFfuC8CZ

— Aoife (@aoiph) October 23, 2015

About a minute and a half into the video, she can be seen preparing a cup of tea while reeling in the pain of obsessive thoughts about a past lover. Perhaps in a moment of breakup-induced confusion, she pours the boiled water and then puts the tea bag in, thumbing her nose at centuries of British tradition.

What kind of a MONSTER puts the hot water in before the teabag? Adele has lost the run of herself. #boycottadele pic.twitter.com/BvxFfuC8CZ

— Aoife (@aoiph) October 23, 2015

Advertisement

Apparently, this is sufficient grounds for a boycott of sorts and led to a bunch of randos condescendingly telling a pop superstar how to properly make tea.

Finally just watched #AdeleHello.

THE WATER GOES IN *AFTER* THE TEA BAG, ADELE! *AFTER!* — (((Dame JudiHench))) (@drop_of_indigo) October 23, 2015

And to make racist comments, obvi.

Ugh oh, lead actor in #Adele's new video is black. Is #StarWars to blame for that too? #BoycottAdele

— Jonathan Hughes (@heeereeesjonny) October 23, 2015

Speaking of racism, Trump supporters have also brandished the hashtag in the past, after the singer dared voice her political opinions.

#boycottadele and other non citizen celebrities that espouse their political views while performing and making money in America.

— guncontrol (@guncontrol) December 24, 2016

@PoliticWorldONE .#BoycottAdele justed started! Don't piss off @realDonaldTrump supporters…. we have lot of #BuyingPower … just ask #CNN

— C. W. Crawford (@tweetybird2009) October 30, 2016

But Adele doesn't really give a shit, because she's Adele and she can rip Grammy Awards in half if she wants and share them with Queen Bey if she wants and put her tea bag in after the water if she wants. Good luck with that hashtag, but it probably won't make even the tiniest of dents.