Selena Gomez has been taking it slow on Instagram since returning from her hiatus in November—she's shown off behind-the-scenes photos from her tour, pictures with her fans and teased her upcoming Coach collaboration. But early this morning, the singer and actress caused a stir when she posed in a nearly-naked pic for Mert Alas. The renowned photographer snapped her getting ready for a photoshoot, wearing nothing but a towel and barely-there gold thong. It's unclear what the shoot is for—whether for a magazine or perhaps an upcoming album cover—but regardless, the shot is steamy.
Her loyal fans were quick to react to the photo with enthusiasm:
And apparently, a number of her fellow A-listers, like models Karlie Kloss, Taylor Hill and Candice Swanepoel, have liked the picture on Instagram:
However, some fans expressed concern that Selena's latest pic contradicts a message she declared in her AMAs acceptance speech: "I don't want to see your bodies on Instagram. I want to see what's in here," she said, touching her heart. The reactions were mixed between calling out the singer for the contradiction and defending her against body-shaming.
This won't be Gomez's first stripped-down photoshoot. The cover of her 2015 album Revival featured a black-and-white topless portrait of the star. If she's continuing the trend for her next record, could this mean new music is coming sooner than we think?
Erica Gonzales is the Senior Culture Editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage on TV, movies, music, books, and more. She was previously an editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com. There is a 75 percent chance she's listening to Lorde right now.
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