Few industries are quite as shamelessly ageist as the glitzy, glamorous and often exclusionary entertainment industry. The fact is, a huge part of the appeal of the stars in the spotlight - aside from their talent - is their youth.
Younger generations of stars constantly emerge on the scene to essentially take the place of their older counterparts, while the latter are often branded as ''washed up'' or ''irrelevant''.
And while it might not seem like singer-songwriter, Bebe Rexha, has been around for that long, it turns out that someone had the audacity to declare that the artist - who is still in her twenties - is "too old to be sexy".
On Monday, the 29-year-old Meant To Be singer took to Instagram to relay a story to her fans explaining that she had recently been told by a music executive that she was "too old to be sexy" and that, as a result, her image was "confusing".
Now, Bebe isn't exactly shy when it comes to clapping back against haters, and so she responded to his comments by posting a provocative pic of herself clad in nothing but lingerie - a stinging reminder that she has every right to embrace her sexuality, no matter what her age.
"Picture dedicated to the music executive who said I am too old to be sexy," she wrote alongside the snap;
"I recently had a music executive tell me that I was getting too old and that my brand was 'confusing.' Because... I’m a songwriter and I post sexy pics on my Instagram and that’s not what female songwriters are suppose to do, especially for my age. I’m 29. I’m fed up with being put in a box. I make my own rules. I’m tired of women getting labeled as 'hags' when they get old and guys get labeled as sexy with age."
Bebe then went on to say that although she would be turning 30 later this month, this was not something she was feeling particularly anxious about.
"I’m not gonna lie about my age or sing songs that I feel will sell better because they sound 'younger'," she wrote. "I’m gonna celebrate my age because you know what, I’m wiser, I’m stronger and TRUST ME I’m a much better lover than I was 10 years ago."
Concluding on a sassy note, Bebe finished her post by asking the exec at the centre of her showbiz story, "Is this too sexy for you?" Well, is it?
