The way the internet responds to a woman’s body changing has a subtly revealing quality. At the 2026 American Music Awards in Las Vegas, Bebe Rexha walked the red carpet sporting a dramatic belted skirt, fishnet tights, strappy heels, a black corset-style top with silver buckle details, and loose platinum curls around her shoulders. To be honest, she looked like a rock star. In the worst way possible, what transpired online was predictable.
A user on X asked followers for their “first thought” after posting a side-by-side image of a much older photo of Rexha next to a video of her at the AMAs. It was clear what was implied. However, Rexha’s response did not meet the expectations of the critics. “I’m thinking that my new album, “Dirty Blonde”, will be released on June 12. Preorders are now being accepted. Over five million people viewed the post. It’s difficult not to interpret that as one of the most effective retorts in contemporary pop culture history, effortlessly transforming body-shaming fuel into a promotional engine.
| Full Name | Bebe Rexha |
| Date of Birth | August 30, 1989 |
| Age | 36 |
| Nationality | American |
| Profession | Singer-songwriter |
| Known For | “I’m Good (Blue),” “Meant to Be,” “Me, Myself & I” |
| Grammy Nominations | 3 |
| Health Condition | Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) |
| Weight Gained (reported) | Approximately 30–35 lbs following PCOS diagnosis |
| Latest Album | Dirty Blonde (June 12, 2026) |
Beneath the humor, however, is a tale that has been developing for a number of years and merits greater attention than the trolls have been able to produce. Rexha revealed her diagnosis of polycystic ovarian syndrome, or PCOS, during an appearance on “The Jennifer Hudson Show” in 2023.
She recalled gaining about thirty pounds in a short amount of time “so quickly” as a result of the diagnosis, with a kind of measured disbelief that suggests she hasn’t fully come to terms with how quickly her body changed. The Cleveland Clinic states that insulin resistance and PCOS are closely related, making weight control much more difficult than just calculating calories.
According to estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, up to five million women of reproductive age in the US alone suffer from PCOS, and many of them never get a formal diagnosis.
Beyond the obvious fact that it is none of anyone’s business, the criticism of Rexha is particularly annoying because it completely ignores the medical reality that she has been transparent about for years. In 2023, she posted on X, feeling more worn out than angry, saying, “I know I got fat”. “I’m just so sick of people talking about it” .
“Human beings go through weight fluctuations, it’s life and you don’t know what people are going through”, was the second post that appeared shortly after. medications, illness, etc. Later, she posted a screenshot of her name and the word “weight” automatically appearing in a TikTok search bar, describing it as “so upsetting”. The openness there felt more like a person at the end of their patience than the polished vulnerability of a celebrity media moment.
It’s important to consider the challenges Rexha has faced, both from people in her own industry and from strangers on the internet. In an interview with Gayle King in 2024, she recalled being informed early in her career when she was first signed that she needed to shed twenty pounds before she could take the job seriously.
She talked about a lifelong battle with food that started practically as soon as she started working in the music industry. Social media was not the source of the weight pressure. It began in a record label office at a time when people were debating whether or not to take a chance on her in terms of her commercial viability.
More recently, Rexha shared and then removed what seemed to be a private text message from a close friend or relative, in which the sender made comments about how her face was changing and mentioned that she had gained 35 pounds. The message seemed to be criticism disguised as candor. The idea that someone who cares about you has the right to keep an eye on your body is a cultural pattern that many women will recognize, regardless of whether the particulars of that situation are exactly as they appeared online. It doesn’t.
Rexha performed and walked that carpet at the AMAs without showing signs of regret or nervousness. She acknowledged in a 2023 TikTok that she was “not really loving myself right now” and that she was “anxious and stressed” about going public. Since then, something appears to have changed.
In a different video, she acknowledged the peculiar disconnect of being recognizable but not really seen, saying, “I know that people know my songs but don’t know me”. “But instead of letting all that just break me down, it’s actually made me feel more powerful” .
Rexha seems to have gone through something, not completely past it, but enough to emerge in a different way. The shift in album promotion during the body-shaming frenzy was intentional. If anything, it served as an example of what five million views look like when they are redirected.
She has experienced years of having her physical appearance treated as public property, a career built despite being told she was the wrong size for it, and a health diagnosis that rewired her body. She continues to write, perform, and tell people when to place preorders.
i) https://people.com/bebe-rexha-responds-internet-comments-about-appearance-2026-amas-11985718
ii) https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/music/articles/bebe-rexha-claps-back-weight-204849212.html
iii) https://abcnews.com/GMA/Culture/bebe-rexha-opens-pcos-diagnosis-addresses-comments-recent/story
iv) https://pagesix.com/2025/02/27/celebrity-news/unbothered-bebe-rexha-admits-to-gaining-weight-after-troll-says-she-looks-like-she-ate-lizzo/