NEW YORK, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- Fellow Destiny's Child alumnus Michelle Williams defended Beyonce to former Fox News host and potential presidential candidate Mike Huckabee during an appearance on The View Thrusday.
Huckabee has come under fire in recent weeks for controversial comments about Beyonce and husband Jay Z published in his new book God, Guns, Grits and Gravy, in which he questioned if Jay Z was "pimping" his wife as a "sex object."
"Beyonce is incredibly talented -- gifted, in fact," Huckabee wrote.
"She has an exceptional set of pipes and can actually sing. She is a terrific dancer -- without the explicit moves best left for the privacy of her bedroom. Jay Z is a very shrewd businessman, but I wonder: Does it occur to him that he is arguably crossing the line from husband to pimp by exploiting his wife as a sex object?"
Huckabee clarified his position on The View, telling the panel of hosts he was critical of her "because she's such a role model for so many young women."
"Half a page in a 270-page book, and I'm thinking, my gosh, that's all I've heard about this week."
Williams quickly defended her friend's career, first by reminding Huckabee he has yet to attain the level of cultural credibility to be critical of Beyonce's highly-regarded body of work.
"You definitely can't mess with her," Williams informed Huckabee.
The former Destiny's Child singer went on to objectively discuss Beyonce's artistic growth, telling Huckabee it was offensive of him to oversimplify her music and career based on his personal sensibilities.
"That album and those songs is that one moment where she decided to probably do some songs she's always wanted to do to shed that 'I'm a good girl...' She had some freedom and she owned it and she took it, so I was definitely offended. To hear some of those comments that you said, I thought were very, very, very low. I respect you and this is not to throw mud and tomatoes."
