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Golden Globes host Jerrod Carmichael came under fire for a joke he made about the late Whitney Houston during a rather lackluster awards ceremony Tuesday night.

“So, we are here, live, from the hotel that killed Whitney Houston, the Beverly Hilton,” Carmichael, 35, said to a stunned audience.

The host then continued his opening monologue in which he said the only reason he was selected as host was because he is black, a not-so-subtle jab at the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s highly panned lack of diversity.

Houston died in 2012, at age 48, after accidentally drowning in a bathtub at the hotel. A coroner later ruled that heart disease and cocaine played a role in the singer’s death.

The Whitney Houston estate, which is managed by the late singer’s sister-in-law Pat Houston, told TMZ that the joke was in “poor taste.”

“The Whitney Houston Estate is disappointed in the joke,” the statement read, “and felt it was in poor taste.”

Twitter users did not wanna dance with Carmichael’s jokes.


  Golden Globes 2023 host Jerrod Carmichael has come under fire for making a joke about the late Whitney Houston. Rich Polk/NBC via AP Golden Globes 2023 host Jerrod Carmichael has come under fire for making a joke about the late Whitney Houston. Rich Polk/NBC via AP

  The host said he was selected to host because he is black.  Rich Polk/NBC via Getty Images The host said he was selected to host because he is black. Rich Polk/NBC via Getty Images

  “So, we are here, live, from the hotel that killed Whitney Houston, the Beverly Hilton,” Carmichael, 35, said to a stunned audience. Scott Gries/ImageDirect “So, we are here, live, from the hotel that killed Whitney Houston, the Beverly Hilton,” Carmichael, 35, said to a stunned audience. Scott Gries/ImageDirect

  Houston died in 2012 at age 48, after accidentally drowning in a bathtub at the hotel. Jean Cummings/Fotos International/Getty Images Houston died in 2012 at age 48, after accidentally drowning in a bathtub at the hotel. Jean Cummings/Fotos International/Getty Images

“Okay that Whitney Houston joke was… yikes. Not good,” tweeted one viewer.

“I didn’t like that Whitney Houston joke at all. That was so tasteless and disrespectful to her,” slammed another.

“‘The hotel that killed Whitney Houston’?? Pls never hire this guy again. Horrible host,” wrote a third person.

The comedian also took some jabs at other celebrities as well as the anti-Semitic remarks made by Kanye West recently.

“I saw [‘The Fabelmans’] with Kanye,” said Carmichael, referencing Steven Spielberg’s film that was up for five awards. “And it changed everything for him. That’s how good you are.”

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