(USA TODAY) -- It might as well be one of the Pop Star 10 Commandments: Thou shalt never say 'I hate America.'
But say it, Ariana Grande did, in a video caught by a donut shop's security camera in Lake Elsinore, Calif.
Perhaps the shop might not have handed the video over to TMZ, should the One Last Time chanteuse restrained herself from daring her new boyfriend, backup dancer Ricky Alvarez, to lick a tray of the shop's donuts – and taking the dare herself. (The two are also seen kissing.)
Then an employee brings out a tray of fresh donuts, causing Grande to spew: "What the (expletive) is that? I hate Americans. I hate America."
Baseball fans were probably not her next best target market. Following the incident, Grande backed out of a planned performance at the Major League Baseball All-Star Concert this weekend, citing her wisdom teeth removal. Demi Lovato stepped in as a replacement.
Now Grande wants you to know: She does not hate America. "I am EXTREMELY proud to be an American and I've always made it clear that I love my country," said Grande in a statement sent to USA TODAY. "What I said in a private moment with my friend, who was buying the donuts, was taken out of context and I am sorry for not using more discretion with my choice of words."
She clarifies she just got upset about how fattening fried dough is.
"As an advocate for healthy eating, food is very important to me and I sometimes get upset by how freely we as Americans eat and consume things without giving any thought to the consequences that it has on our health and society as a whole."
So to recap: Eating donuts is bad. But licking them before you pay for them – that's just carb-free fun.
Here's her full statement:
"I am EXTREMELY proud to be an American and I've always made it clear that I love my country. What I said in a private moment with my friend, who was buying the donuts, was taken out of context and I am sorry for not using more discretion with my choice of words. As an advocate for healthy eating, food is very important to me and I sometimes get upset by how freely we as Americans eat and consume things without giving any thought to the consequences that it has on our health and society as a whole. The fact that the United States has the highest child obesity rate in the world frustrates me. We need to do more to educate ourselves and our children about the dangers of overeating and the poison that we put into our bodies. We need to demand more from our food industry. However I should have known better in how I expressed myself; and with my new responsibility to others as a public figure I will strive to be better. As for why I cannot be at the MLB show, I have had emergency oral surgery and due to recovery I cannot attend the show. I hope to make it up to all those fans soon. That being said let me once again apologize if I have offended anyone with my poor choice of words."
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