Why Selena Gomez Allegedly Feuded With Friend Who Gave Her A Kidney
What a sad situation.
Instagram Selena Gomez and her close friend, Francia Raisa shocked fans after making headlines in 2017 after Raisa donated her kidney to Gomez.
The pair, who have been friends since 2007, first opened up about the procedure during an interview on TODAY in 2017.
Gomez, who suffers from Lupus, a chronic and debilitating condition that affects the immune system, needed a kidney transplant to save her life.
"One day [Selena] came home and she was emotional. I hadn’t asked anything. I knew she hadn’t been feeling well,” Raisa recalled. “She couldn’t open a water bottle one day. She chucked it and she started crying.
"I said, ‘What’s wrong?’ and that’s when she told me. And she goes, ‘I don’t know what to do. The list is seven to ten years long.’ It just vomited out of me: I was like, ‘Of course, I’ll get tested.’”
However, fans were then shocked after reports emerged two years later that Gomez and Raisa were no longer friends.
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In 2019, Radar Online reported that Gomez and Raisa stopped speaking in October 2018 after Raisa was allegedly left hurt by the choices Gomez was making.
Raisa allegedly stopped speaking to Gomez when the star started drinking again.
A source told the news outlet that Gomez had been drinking alcohol and partying following the life-saving transplant, which wasn't making Raisa happy.
"Yes, she has a drink from time to time. It is not every day, and she is not using drugs. She is enjoying her life and living it how she wants to live it," the source claimed, adding that Gomez was tired of "feeling indebted" to Raisa.
Fans also noticed that Raisa started to seem less enthused when speaking of the transplant.
In a 2018 interview with SELF, Raisa spoke about the shock she felt after the doctor said she and Gomez were a match to proceed with the kidney transplant.
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Following the interview, fans noticed that the actress didn't seem as enthused while telling the story as she had been in the past.
The speculation of a falling-out between Raisa and Gomez seemed to reach a head after Gomez failed to refer to Raisa as her friend.
During a 2019 interview with Capital, while Gomez was explaining her and Raisa's matching tattoos of the date of the kidney operation, she referred to Raisa as "the girl who gave me a kidney."
Raisa and Gomez are on speaking terms again.
In January 2020, following Gomez's release of her album, "Rare," Raisa gushed to Entertainment Tonight about the singer's new music.
Gomez herself seemed to shut down rumors of a feud between the two friends after posting a birthday tribute for Raisa in July 2020.
"Happy birthday to an incredible human being that I’ve known since I was 14,” Gomez wrote via Instagram Stories. “Your grace, strength, and passion for who you love and what you do has always inspired me. I love you always.”
On World Kidney Day in March 2021, Raisa penned a lengthy Twitter post about her experience donating a kidney to Gomez.
"If you've been following me for a while, you know that I've kept my kidney donation process pretty private," Raisa wrote on Twitter alongside a photo of herself in the hospital.
"However, I think I've gotten to a point in my life where I feel comfortable and confident in speaking about my experience, and using my platform to raise awareness for the various kidney diseases that affect our population."
Gomez later shared the post, writing, "Thank you for blessing me. I am forever grateful for you."
Eagle-eyed fans also noticed that Raisa had attended Gomez's 30th birthday celebrations in July 2022.
During that same month, Gomez and Raisa reunited publicly after some time in a TikTok video Gomez posted of the two of them participating in the trend of "He's a ten, but..."
"He’s a ten, but he hates your best friend,” Gomez said in the video, waiting to hear Raisa's answer.
“Mmm, I hate her too, sometimes,” replied Raisa, much to Gomez's shock. After letting out a laugh, Gomez admitted, “Honestly, fair enough.”
Nia Tipton is a writer living in Brooklyn. She covers pop culture, social justice issues, and trending topics. Keep up with her on Instagram and Twitter.