Nick Jonas to replace Iggy Azalea as Pittsburgh Pride headlining artist

PITTSBURGH, June 11 (UPI) -- Nick Jonas will replace Iggy Azalea as the headlining artist for the Delta Foundation of Pittsburgh's "Pride in the Street" concert Saturday.

The Wednesday announcement comes in response to Azalea pulling out of the event Monday, citing that her presence would "only serve to further distract from the true purpose of the event."

The "Fancy" singer had been facing intense criticism from the LGBT community for early tweets she had posted that were considered homophobic. In a statement, she announced she was backing out of her headlining spot days before the scheduled event.

"This has been a difficult decision as I truly support the event and LGBTIQA communities, however I feel my participation at this point would only serve to further distract from the true purpose of the event," Azalea wrote.

A message to Pittsburgh pic.twitter.com/Jm6ZyX0Xyc

— IGGY AZALEA (@IGGYAZALEA) June 9, 2015

She continued to express regret toward tweets written when she was "a young person" that have been considered offensive, insensitive and at times, racist. "I am a firm believer in equality," Azalea said. "The last thing I want is for something so carelessly said to be interpreted as reflective of my character."

When Nick Jonas heard about the incident, Delta Foundation of Pittsburgh President Gary Van Horn said the "Chains" singer called on Tuesday and offered to perform. "He has been a supporter of the LGBT community, and he wanted to make sure that the community and Pittsburgh had a Pride event that they could be proud of," he said in a press release.

"I'm excited to do what I can to support the LGBT community in Pittsburgh, and I look forward to seeing you this Saturday as we celebrate together," Jonas added.