Paula Abdul has been accused of using their celebrity status to make a lasting impression on one struggling artist.
A now-renowned celebrity fashion designer who refused to let her work be devalued by their unfair requests is speaking out.
While discussing influencer PR abuse, Kelly Nishimoto brought up both actresses as she described celebrity encounters she claims put her small business in a difficult position.
“I’ve had a few celebrities who just didn’t like to pay, especially when I was first starting my business,” she began on “Hairbrush News with Kelly Nishimoto.”
“Straight up now tell me, do you really want to love me forever? Paula Abdul. Paula Abdul,” Nishimoto added.
She said Abdul borrowed some pieces from her collection through her stylist for “American Idol.”
“Before they returned them, the stylist called and said, ‘Paula would really like to keep these three pieces.’ I said, “No problem,” Nishimoto explained. “‘I’ll send you over the invoice.’ She replied, ‘Oh, she was hoping you would gift them to her.’”
“I’m like, she’s filming ‘American Idol’ and making who knows how much per episode. I’m over here struggling to pay my rent, my one employee, and my sewing lady, and you want me to give her $1,000 worth of clothes for free?”
Nishimoto said Abdul should be lucky she didn’t charge her $2,000 for borrowing the clothes she later had to take to the dry cleaners.
“And what did she pay? Nothing. They sent everything back. They said, ‘Oh, she doesn’t want it.’ They returned everything. I thought that was so tacky,” she shared.
The fashion designer then remembered another encounter with Kate Hudson during her early promotional run with Fabletics.
“When Fabletics launched and attached her as the face — her stylist called and wanted some cute booty shorts for her,” Nishimoto recalled. I said, “Well, she has her own brand.”
They replied, “Well, she promotes that brand. It is her brand, but she likes the way yours feel when she actually works out.”
Again, Nishimoto told Hudson’s team, “She can buy them. What would she like? I’ll send over the invoice. Then I never heard back. I mean, come on. Really?”
Fashion designer Kelly Nishimoto has criticized celebrities Paula Abdul and Kate Hudson for allegedly requesting complimentary clothing instead of paying for the items. pic.twitter.com/QRS0Wmf400
— charts Original (@Chartsoriginals) June 26, 2026
Fans were overwhelmed with the details, but it wasn’t hard for anyone to believe Nishimoto’s story. “We believe it!! Pathetic,” said one Daily Mail reader.
Another said, “Everyone knows that STARS/CELEBRITIES are cheap, and expect everything for free. Only those who are silly – hand out free stuff. Unless you are a major fashion house, and your brand name is being promoted. Then – it’s business.”
A third person inquired, “Why is the assistant’s job to try and get the clothes for free and not to order and PAY for them? Do Abul and Hudson work for free? Why would they expect someone else to do so?”
Critics leaned into the idea that Nishimoto didn’t have a more blossoming career since her encounters with Abdul and Hudson
One Yahoo reader wondered, “So they shut her down because they couldn’t get the stuff for free – that’s how it is with people with money. They are so used to suck ups and free stuff they believe it is beneath them to pay for anything.”
Has she had dealings with Meghan Markle yet
She obviously doesn’t know Fergie yet!
