Bleona wore a "naked dress" to an Oscars afterparty to make a statement for equality.
The 38-year-old singer turned heads at the Vanity Fair bash in March with her daring chain-mail outfit that left her bare breasts in full view and she claimed her red carpet wear highlighted the double standards shown to nudity in men and women.
She said: "Everybody talks about equality and everyone thinks it is OK that [a male pop star] comes out on stage shirtless but when a woman comes out in a naked dress, it’s a problem. What happened to equality? I want to do something about it, I don’t want to say it for the sake of saying it."
And the Albanian star – who moved to the US in 2010 – claimed she only received a negative response to her controversial outfit because of her background.
She exclusively told BANG Showbiz: "The statement piece of dress that I did on Vanity Fair [was] because I refuse to be a victim of the double standard.
"For example, I believe there is a double standard in all these red carpet appearances. If Kim Kardashian [West] or Lady Gaga wore the same dress as I did, everyone would be like ‘Look at this dress, look at this body’.
"When I wore the dress, because people know I’m from a different country, they’re all like, ‘Oh she needs attention’.
"And I’m like, ‘Sure I need attention’, but what you guys don’t understand is that I’ve been the Kim Kardashian or Lady Gaga in my country even when Kim Kardashian or Lady Gaga didn’t really exist.
"I’ve been doing this since I was five years old … I’m just trying to merge my brand from back home into the world.
"But by any means, I’m not trying to compete with anyone because I think there is no competition when you’re making your own lane. I’m in my own lane."
Despite the public backlash, the ‘Wicked Love’ singer claims many of the guests at the party loved her "amazing" dress, but Bleona understands why they wouldn’t wear something similar.
She said: "People all loved it at the Vanity Fair party. I remember Tracee Ellis Ross, Diana’s daughter, she was like, ‘You go girl! This is an amazing dress. Where did you get this?’ And I was like, ‘There’s a designer from Russia, I can put you in contact [with them].’
"This is what I love about American people, they embrace it. Once you have the courage to go out and do it, 99 per cent of them embrace it, even if they wouldn’t want to take the chance themselves … They’re supporting me because deep inside, they would never get the courage to do that.
"I feel that from all the celebrities. I don’t blame them, they’re in a system and they’re afraid to take chances. Most of them are fitting to the rules."
Bleona’s latest single, ‘Wicked Love’, is out now.
Bleona’s fashion statement for equality
