Grammy-winning artist, Ne-Yo, issued an apology after being criticized due to his comments about parents who affirm their transgender kids’ gender identities.
On August 7, he posted a statement on his Twitter account about “expressing his deepest apologies” to those who have been offended by his ”insensitive and offensive” remarks on parenting and gender identity.
I’d like to express my deepest apologies… pic.twitter.com/M5aTFN40tn
— NE-YO (@NeYoCompound) August 7, 2023
During a recent appearance on VladTV with host Gloria Velez, Ne-Yo sparked conversation about transgender people, claiming that he has no issue with the LGBTQ+ community. “Love who you love. Do what you do. I just personally come from an era where a man was a man and a woman was a woman, and it wasn’t but two genders,” he said.
He commented, “You could identify as a goldfish if you feel like, I don’t care. That ain’t my business. It becomes my business when you try to make me play the game with you. I’m not gonna call you a goldfish. But if you wanna be a goldfish, you go be a goldfish.”
He added that “we live in a weird time” where people were “so sensitive” and that comedians can’t tell jokes anymore without the risk of offending anyone.
On the issue of gender identity, Ne-Yo expressed that parents, especially of transgender kids, have seemed to forget what the role of a parent is. “If your little boy comes to you and says, ‘Daddy, I want to be a girl.’ And you just let him rock with that? He’s 5 … If you let this 5-year-old boy decide to eat candy all day, he’s gonna do that. When did it become a good idea to let a 5-year-old, let a 6-year-old, let a 12-year-old make a life-changing decision for themself? When did that happen? I don’t understand.”
According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, gender-affirming care is defined as social, psychological, behavioral, and medical interventions that are “designed to support and affirm an individual’s gender identity” when it conflicts with the sex assigned at birth. This greatly aids transgender people in aligning the emotional, interpersonal, and biological aspects of their lives with their gender identity, and is proven to be linked to a decrease in depression and harmful behaviors, such as substance abuse.
Ne-Yo acknowledged in his apology that gender identity is “nuanced.” He admitted his plans to educate himself on the complexity of those matters to equip him to “approach future conversations with more empathy.”
He added, “At the end of the day, I lead with love and support everyone’s freedom of expression and pursuit of happiness.”
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