Ne-Yo. Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for BET
Ne-Yo has offered an apology for anti-trans comments he made in a podcast discussion with VladTV's Gloria Velez about gender identity. Shortly after a clip from the interview began going viral, the R&B singer tweeted an official statement to "express my deepest apologues to anyone that I may have hurt with my comments on parenting and gender identity."
He continued that he "plan[s] to educate myself on the topic, so I can approach future conversations with more empathy."
In a clip posted to YouTube yesterday (August 6), Ne-Yo said, "Parents have almost forgotten 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 five! When did it become a good idea to let a five-year-old, six-year-old, twelve-year-old make a life-changing decision for theyself?"
Speaking more broadly on the subject, he added: "I just personally come from an era where a man was a man and a woman was a woman. And there was two genders, and that’s just how I rocked. 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."
Initially, Ne-Yo defended his comments: “I’m not asking anybody to agree with me nor am I telling you what you can and cannot do with your children," he wrote in an Instagram reply seen by The FADER. "I stated my opinion on a matter and that’s that. Why should I care if my opinion upsets you when you don’t care if yours upsets anyone?"
