Lady Gaga‘s choreographer has dismissed claims he’s a bully, and says his accusers were embittered by honest criticism about why their dancing was sub-standard.

Richy Jackson, who has worked with Gaga on several of her tours as well as her 2018 hit film ‘A Star Is Born’, was allegedly abusive to his backup dancers in the lead up to the singer’s 2022 Chromatica Ball tour. 

It was claimed he bullied and intimidated the talent as they auditioned for the tour, with some even saying he drove them to quit the industry for good. 

But Jackson has fired back, saying his accusers made up claims about him out of revenge for not making the cut for Gaga’s high-octane performances. 

‘I think to save face, for their pride, for their ego, they said, ‘We walked away,’ as opposed to, ‘I just wasn’t asked back,” he told Page Six.

‘I feel like they threw me under the bus for that.’ 

Richy Jackson (left) was accused of bullying the backup dancers ahead of Lady Gaga’s (right) 2022 Chromatica Ball tour

Jackson said he has kept quiet over the allegations since last year because he didn’t want to distract from Gaga’s ongoing tour. 

He remains employed by the megastar, and is regarded as one of the most talented choreographers working today. 

But last summer, ten dancers made complaints against Jackson shortly before the tour began in July 2022, claiming he was a nightmare to work with.

Among the varying allegations included claims he purposefully embarrassed the dancers, bullied them, and created a hostile, ‘toxic’ work environment. 

One dancer, Caroline Diamond, told Rolling Stone at the time: ‘He abused me; he embarrassed me; he made me feel terrible in the workplace, just because he could.

‘Gaga was my dream … I chased it and I got it, and she is the dream, and then you get there, and this man makes your dream a nightmare.’ 

Two others told the outlet his behavior made them turn their backs on professional dancing, while French dancer Celine Thubert said she had her ‘dream job crushed by a toxic person’. 

Thubert also claimed Jackson made fun of her accent and called her names, and had previously cut her from the filming of the Poker Face music video without warning. 

However, Jackson now says he was left baffled by the rumors of his behavior, feeling that the accusers made up the claims about him because they were hurt by not being taken on tour.

While several dancers claimed he iced them out and left their careers hanging in the balance, the choreographer claimed that only one of the accusers was even hired for the Chromatica tour in the first place. 

Jackson has worked as Lady Gaga’s lead choreographer since 2011 

The choreographer allegedly intimidated Gaga’s backup dancers and purposefully embarrassed them 

While his constructive criticisms may have sparked fury among the backup dancers, Jackson insisted that the accusers weren’t dismissed for their lack of ability. 

Instead, he opted for other performers because they better suited the moves he had planned for Gaga’s tour. Because some had worked with the star before, Jackson said they were likely lashing out. 

‘Maybe I took something away from them that they felt: ‘This is who I am now’,’ he said.

‘In their own world, they were ‘Gaga dancers.’ Because she’s at the height of the artist world… And that’s now been taken away, I feel like that’s why we’re here.’ 

Jackson lent his moves to countless Gaga performances over the years, including her 2017 Superbowl Halftime Show

The choreographer slated the dancers for focusing too much on their one chance with Gaga, which he feels devastated the accusers when they didn’t have other jobs to fall back on.

‘If there’s ten choreographers, I danced for eight,’ he said, noting his varying jobs over the years as the reason he maintained his success early in his career.

‘I went from Missy Elliot to N’Sync to Will Smith, to the iPod commercials, to the iPod billboard to dancing for Jessica Simpson, for Usher,’ he continued.

‘I was going from job to job, artist to artist, so one thing wasn’t who I became… I don’t believe that they worked as much as me as a dancer outside of them being dancers for this job.’ 

Among the accusations levied against Jackson is that he ‘talked down’ to his dancers, and would often give reasons they wouldn’t make it in the industry based on ‘their personas and energy’. 

But he claimed that while some choreographers dismiss dancers without reason, he would make a point to give feedback to explain why they didn’t get the job.

Jackson also brushed off allegations he would ‘not consider the dancer’s time or the toll extensive rehearsing was taking on their bodies’, feeling the performers were only asked industry norms of working in elite-level dance. 

Lady Gaga (center) has not commented publicly on the allegations, which are denied by Jackson (right) 

Jojo Siwa (right) jumped to Jackson’s defense, calling him ‘one of the most uplifting, and inspirational humans in my life’

Jackson has worked as Lady Gaga’s lead choreographer since 2011, lending his moves to several tours alongside her 2017 Superbowl Halftime Show. 

While Gaga has not commented publicly on the allegations, another star who has worked with him, Jojo Siwa, jumped to his defense after he spoke out.

Siwa told Page Six that the choreographer is ‘one of the most uplifting, and inspirational humans in my life.’

‘I’ve worked with so many choreographers throughout my life, and my career… no one compares to Richy,’ said Siwa, who first worked with Jackson when she was 15 before enlisting him for ‘every project’ she has done since.

‘He doesn’t create dances…. He creates masterpieces. Every rehearsal I’ve been in with Richy, my dancers, and I always leave inspired and excited to come back the next day.’