Usher unveiled the much-anticipated music video for his song "Boyfriend," starring Keke Palmer, on Wednesday.
The new video shows Palmer singing and prepping for what seems to be a night out with her girls. She soon meets up with Usher at a casino where, in baggy pants, a T-shirt and a jacket, she breaks out into a dance routine.
"Usher! I remember when I was 12 and auditioned for 'In The Mix'"," Palmer wrote in a post shared Wednesday, along with a clip from the music video. "You have been killing it all my life."
She continued, "As a true lover of the arts, your talent and craftsmanship are a rare combination that I aspire to achieve as a performer. You are a living legend who is worthy of awe! Thank you for encouraging me and seeing me as the entertainer I am."
She added, "I know I'm a gUrL but when I watched your videos, I never wanted to be the girl in them, I wanted to be YOU. Thank you for making a dream come true."
The music video collaboration comes just over a month after a video of Palmer dancing with Usher during a performance at his Las Vegas residency went viral, prompting criticism from Darius Jackson, the father of Palmer's 6-month-old son. In a since-deleted tweet, Jackson criticized how Palmer was dressed, questioning if it was appropriate attire for a mother, which fueled further backlash online.
Palmer has not yet addressed the controversy publicly.
