RuPaul's Drag Race contestant Pearl apologizes after being accused of wearing blackface - but claims she was just parodying '90s Britney-esque' tanned white people

Pearl, a finalist on season seven of RuPaul's Drag Race, shared an apology on Thursday after she was accused of wearing blackface in photos she had recently shared on social media.

But the 32-year-old drag queen (who is also the record producer Matthew James Lent) also made it clear in a since-disappeared Instagram Stories post and a later post on her main page that she didn't intend to do blackface at all.

Instead, she claimed that the photos she posted were a parody of overly tanned '90s Britney-esque' white people.

She offered up her mixed apologies after social media users lashed out after taking the pictures to be instances of offensive blackface, while fellow Drag Race competitors The Vixen and Silky Nutmeg Ganache also spoke out against the photos.

Pearl quickly deleted the offending images of herself with darkened skin, though screenshots continued to circulate on social media.

Online outrage: RuPaul's Drag Race season seven contestant Pearl (real name: Matthew James Lent) was accused of wearing blackface after posting since-deleted photos of herself with darkened skin and large fake lips on Thursday

Sorry, but: The drag queen (seen here in usual style) later apologized on her Instagram Stories but also claimed she was parodying '90s Britney-esque' tanned white people rather than Black people

The photos depicted Pearl in a hot pink long-sleeve top with blue, pink and green athletic pants as she sipped on a Dunkin' iced coffee.

She wore a long platinum blond wig styled up in a beehive-like hairdo, and she sported piercing gray–green eyes with heart-shaped pink-tinted sunglasses drooping down to her nose.

The look also featured a pair of enormous pink heart-shaped lips, which appeared to be a prosthetic applied to her face.

'The character i posted this morning was not meant to resemble any other background other than my own. she's platinum blonde/blue eyes & meant to have 2000's britney-esque tan,' Pearl wrote Thursday in her original Insta Stories apology. 

'I certainly didn't mean to hurt anyone and will refrain from using any kind of tan at all when creating characters in the future. i've removed the post as to not continue to offend people,' she concluded.

The Vixen joined the chorus of critics calling the photos out as blackface with their own post, though she also focused on the personal hurt she and others felt.

'When people carelessly play with blackface and using slurs etc I think the public outrage overshadows the private hurt that we go through. These daily reminders that this world isn't safe, welcoming or sensitive to our feelings is overwhelming,' she wrote.

Later, she appeared to respond dismissively to Pearl's claims that she was parodying extremely tan white people.

Speaking out: Fellow Drag Race stars The Vixen and Silky Nutmeg Ganache both called out the photos as an instance of blackface. Vixen was unmoved after apparently seeing Pearl's claims that she wasn't trying to do blackface

Clarification: 'It was not my intention to do blackface, i thought the concept of the character would be clear to anyone who saw it, which was ignorant on my part, for which i am sorry,' Pearl said in a longer apology on her main Instagram page

'White people paint their skin the shade of people who have to defend their skin shade and their surprised they have to defend their choice,' she wrote.

Silky elevated the photos' reach by reposting one. She also referenced an argument Pearl had with the Drag Race host RuPaul in the Werk Room during her stint on the competition series.

'RuPaul should've just talked to her off camera cause now she mocking RuPaul in her younger years,' she said of the pictures. 

Another poster also called out other drag queens for commenting approvingly on Pearl's photos.

'So y'all just gonna stay silent while Pearl from RuPaul's Drag race posts photos of themself in Blackface, all the while other non-Black queens were hyping it up like it wasn't clearly blackface?' they wrote.

One Twitter user thought Pear's photos were clearly an example of blackface and wrote that it was 'NOT some Y2K tan y'all.'

A comment on Silky's post criticizing Pearl appreciated 

After Pearl's initial Insta Stories apology had expired, she shared a lengthier apology and explanation to her main Instagram page, which was illustrated with a photo of a rocky outcropping in nature.

She began by saying she was 'not trying to drag this out but i’d like to address the drag character i posted this morning.' 

'It was not my intention to do blackface, i thought the concept of the character would be clear to anyone who saw it, which was ignorant on my part, for which i am sorry,' she wrote.

'Just to be clear, every aspect of the character was inspired by caucasian people, there was no black-influence going on in my mind during the time of conception. but now i see the people that inspired the character are/have been problematic, and by dressing up and parodying as them, i to am contributing to the issue in its own way, something i hadn't thought of and don't want to contribute to,' she continued.

Defense: 'Just to be clear, every aspect of the character was inspired by caucasian people, there was no black-influence going on in my mind during the time of conception,' she wrote, before admitting the character was still 'problematic'

New looks: Pearl also indicated that the controversy had jumpstarted her desire to find new creative directions. 'i’ve felt creatively stumped for a while and it may be due to the fact that some of these characters are kind of tired and just aren’t aging well...'

Pearl also indicated that the controversy had jumpstarted her desire to find new creative directions.

'with that being said, i’ve felt creatively stumped for a while and it may be due to the fact that some of these characters are kind of tired and just aren’t aging well, so i’m going to look at this as an opportunity to grow from the experience and expand myself creatively,' she wrote.

She added that she was 'happy' to respond further if her fans or critics had more questions about her alleged blackface photos.

'hopefully this can be a positive and safe space to learn and grow,' she concluded.