Ellen DeGeneres’ protégée Greyson Chance doubled down on his claims that the comedian is “manipulative” and “opportunistic” in a scathing new TikTok video.
“I stand behind all of it,” the singer, 25, said on Thursday, shortly after his bombshell Rolling Stone interview about the talk show host, 64, was published.
“I’ve been wanting to tell this story now for multiple years and was repeatedly told not to,” Chance explained.
“But the truth is, what you saw on TV and what was pitched out to the mainstream just wasn’t what was happening behind the scenes.”
The songwriter added that “what happened to [him] as a kid was not cool,” leading to “PTSD” and “trauma.”
Chance said, “I’m sure people will have a lot to say about the article and how I maybe appear ungrateful for [DeGeneres’] efforts in the beginning, and the truth is that I am grateful for her giving me a start, but I’m more grateful to myself for the moments when I got dropped and everything went awry when I was a kid.”
He thanked his teenage self, who was able to “pick up the pieces” and “fight.”
In his Rolling Stone interview, Chance reflected on DeGeneres vowing to “protect” him after she signed him to her label, eleveneleven, and helped him secure managers, a booking agent, a publicist and a brand agent.
The Daytime Emmy winner — who was previously accused of creating a “toxic” work environment before wrapping her show in May — allegedly became “domineering” and caused the “Shut Up” singer to feel like “a pawn in [her] game.”
Chance alleged that DeGeneres was often “degrading,” writing, “My whole week, my whole month, my whole year could change [with] one text message from her. That was horrible.”
While the musician acknowledged that his former mentor had a big part to play in his early success, he accused her of being “nowhere to be found” when he was dropped from her label in November 2021.
Chance released his latest album, “Palladium,” on Thursday, which a source close to DeGeneres told Page Six exclusively was “convenient[ly]” timed to his interview with the music magazine.
The insider went on to deny the former child star’s portrayal of their working relationship, claiming that DeGeneres went above and beyond for Chance.
Social media users showed the “Timekeeper” singer support in his TikTok comments, writing that they are “proud of” Chance for “being vulnerable.”
Other followers, however, noted that the situation didn’t “seem that bad.”
One explained, “all I [see is] a business relationship. She was investing in you so that’s why she wanted to be involved in every aspect.”
