Sophie Grégoire Trudeau Criticizes Tate McRae's Victoria's Secret Performance: 'Nothing Empowering Here'

Sophie Grégoire Trudeau is criticizing Tate McRae's debut performance of "Housewife."

The Calgary-born pop sensation took the stage at the Victoria's Secret fashion show on Sunday night (Oct. 18) to perform her new single "Housewife" live for the first time, along with her hit singles "Sports Car" and "Dear God," wearing a sleek red lingerie ensemble that drew criticism from the author and mental health advocate formerly married to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Under Billboard Canada's Instagram post of the performance, Grégoire Trudeau writes, "Really? This is what we need to do now to make a mark as an artist? I like her music and she's talented but I see nothing empowering here; more like falling into the mold of people pleasing."

Sophie Grégoire Trudeau via InstagramBillboard Canada/Instagram

Ahead of its release, McRae described her song to Jimmy Fallon as an empowerment anthem, one that's "kind of about a woman who can’t be contained." The Canadian pop star has explained the song is about wanting to be her own provider, to be rich, successful and her own housewife. “I just wanna make a lot of money/ be my own housewife/ You could be the one I’m calling honey/ Be my sex on the side,” she sings over the song's mellow, 2000s-inspired production.

She also recently laughed about not fitting any of the criteria for being a housewife in a short clip with W Magazine, doubling down on the track's themes of defying the typical "housewife" mold.

Not everyone agrees with Grégoire Trudeau's criticism.

One user defended McRae by saying her outfit choice was event-appropriate, given she was performing at a lingerie-focused fashion show. "It’s a lingerie show. If she’s comfortable and confident who cares." Another user comments that it worked for previous pop stars, including Katy Perry. "Now THAT is how u make a debut," one user writes. "THIS this will change the world!!!" writes another.

The viral hit is already breaking career records for the Canadian artist, having earned McRae's largest streaming debut to date with 5.67 million streams in one day and landing at No. 1 on the Global Spotify chart. Her previous record was held by "Tit for Tat," which garnered 4.31 million streams in a day and landed at No. 3 on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100, becoming her second-highest-charting solo hit in Canada. "Housewife" is McRae's first new single of the year and her first since releasing her Canadian and U.S. No. 1 album So Close to What and its deluxe edition in 2025.

McRae's performance has been the talk of the internet, with many fans raving over her catwalk strut to "Sports Car," as well as the brief moment she shared with Gigi Hadid while performing "Housewife," in which she saluted the renowned model with a "twinkle fingers" gesture and walked down the catwalk with her.