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Mary J. Blige chicken advert for Burger King is pulled
Page last updated at 13:50 GMT, Thursday, 5 April 2012 14:50 UK
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A Burger King advert featuring Mary J. Blige singing about chicken has been pulled after critics complained it was racially "stereotypical" of the black community.
But the fast food chain is blaming music licensing issues for the decision, not criticism of the ad.
The clip, released on Monday, shows the R&B star soulfully singing about the fast food chain's new chicken snack wraps.
It was removed on Tuesday (3 April).
Burger King said it pulled the commercial over what the company said was a "music licensing issue".
The company said it "hopes to have the ad back on the air soon" although a spokeswoman would not comment on whether the ads would be the same.
But as the video went viral, some in the black community criticised the ad as "stereotypical".
The US website Madame Noire said it was "buffoonery", and there was a backlash on Twitter.
In a statement, Mary J. Blige said she understood why fans were upset: "The ad didn't come across the way it was planned and she would never put out an unfinished spot."
Burger King said it was released too early and hoped to have the final version out soon.
It also said that it wanted to point out that other celebrities Salma Hayek and Jay Leno were also are advertising the snack wraps.
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