Iggy Azalea has defended herself after she came under fire for finishing a live performance despite one of her backing dancers suffering a seizure mid-song.

The 28 year old Australian rapper was performing at the massive Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Thursday (December 27th), when one of her back-up dancers suddenly collapsed on stage during the performance of ‘Black Widow’. According to TMZ, an ambulance was quickly summoned and driven to the side of the stage, where the dancer was treated.

However, Azalea attracted massive criticism for apparently failing to even notice or acknowledge what had happened, finishing not only the song but then the rest of the set. Less than a day later, though, she quickly went on to social media to defend her decision and give an update on the dancer’s condition.

“Just want to let everyone asking know my dancer is OKAY! The light & heat caused her to have a seizure. She is backstage feeling much better,” she wrote.

Iggy AzaleaIggy Azalea faced criticism for powering on with her set

Azalea explained that made the snap decision to carry on singing because she thought the dancer had “fallen / twisted her ankle”. She conceded it “may sound harsh” but you “keep singing until the music stops and ask for a medic which is what I did. We are all really shaken up by what happened & just thankful she is okay.”

More: Iggy Azalea blames lack of promotion for Britney Spears duet ‘Pretty Girls’ flopping [archive]

The ‘Fancy’ rapper, who has endured some difficult years with the cancellation of her second album Digital Distortion, then urged her fans not to share memes of the dancer that had already proliferated.

She wrote: “I know it's easy to make memes of someone 'passed out' but someone having a seizure isn't funny, it's really scary! So I hope my fans do not repost some of the memes I’m seeing about my dancer.”

More: Iggy Azalea disappointed over shelved plans to release another single [archive]