Kesha has opened up about the moment Jerry Seinfeld refused to hug her in 2017, with the singer calling the interaction the “saddest moment” of her life.
During a new episode of The Best Show with Tom Scharpling, the 36-year-old reflected on the viral moment, which took place at the National Night of Laughter and Song, a charity event host by David Lynch, in Washinton, DC.
At the event inJune 2017, Kesha approached Seinfeld while he giving an interview on the red carpet and asked to give him a hug. In response, he repeatedly told her “no thanks,” before Kesha walked away - at which point he told the interviewer that he had “no idea” who she was.
Speaking to Scharpling, Kesha noted that she wasn’t too excited about attending the event in 2017, but that she’d been looking forward to seeing Lynch and Seinfeld.
“I was in the middle of tour. I was exhausted, but I really love David Lynch, and I heard that Jerry Seinfeld’s going to be there,” she recalled.
The “Praying” singer then explained that she was a huge fan of Seinfeld as a child, as she said that she had “little DVDs” of the show when travelling.
“When it got bumpy on planes, I’d pop in Seinfeld and I’d be like: ‘Everything’s okay in the world’ and watch my buddy,’” she continued, referring to the comedian.
Although Kesha said she was happy to see Seinfeld at the charity event, she revealed that it was the “most depressing” thing that he then wouldn’t hug her.
“I got really excited because he brings me peace and love and all things good in the universe, and then he didn’t hug me in front of cameras,” she said. “It was the most depressing and hilarious, but also so sad, it was, like, the saddest moment of my life.”
Shortly after his awkward red-carpet interaction with Kesha, Seinfeld explained that he didn’t hug the singer because they never met before. He also noted that at his age, he didn’t “know every pop star”.
“I was right in the middle of an interview, it was a little off,” he told Extra in June 2017 about the viral moment with the singer. “When you get to be my age and you’ve done a couple things, you have your own reality, in my reality. I don’t hug a total stranger. I have to meet someone, say hello. I gotta start somewhere.”
He then further explained his stance on hugging strangers, adding: “A hug isn’t first moment of a human, two humans. I never did that.”
The writer also said that he’s sure he “would’ve liked” Kesha, but that he needed to “know who” she was before hugging her. However, according to the actor, he and the pop star later “laughed” about the moment after it happened.
Kesha previously spoke about the interaction going viral during an appearance on SiriusXM’s Hits 1.
“I felt like I was five years old,” she said during the interview, according to People. “I instantly was like: ‘Oh f** me.’ And I like somehow ended up in my very own mini-episode of Seinfeld for like five seconds.”
The “TikTok” singer also said that she “should have known better” when trying to hug Seinfeld, before noting that it’s “fine” that he isn’t “a huggy guy”.
