LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: One of the most famous singers of the 2000s is now facing the wrath of the internet after commenting on culture and sharing opinions on gender identity. Ne-Yo said that parents have “forgotten” their roles in childrearing. The Grammy-winning singer’s comments during a recent interview with Gloria Velez of VladTV irked several social media users, with one saying, “This is so unfortunate.”
The ‘So Sick’ singer, who is a father of seven children with different women, talked about culture and its influence on a child and the roles of the parents in shaping gender identity. He further said that he is not on the same page with the people who ask him to use the pronouns they identify with.
What did Ne-Yo say?
While Ne-Yo started the interview by saying that he has “no issue” with the LGBTQ+ community, he revealed that he did not agree with times on the issue of pronouns. He went on to say that it’s beyond his understanding why parents allow children to make “life-changing” decisions at a young age. In the interview, he also slammed those who have “forgotten” their roles as a parent.
The ‘Closer’ singer stated, “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, and that’s just how I rocked,” before adding, “You could identify as a goldfish if you feel. That ain’t my business; it becomes my business when you try to make me play the game with you.”
He said, “I feel like the parents have almost forgotten what the role of a parent is,” before asking, “If your little boy comes up to you and says, ‘Daddy I wanna be a girl,’ you just let him rock with that? He’s five.” He then questioned, “When did it become a good idea to let a five-year-old, let a six-year-old, let a 12-year-old make a life-changing decision for themself?”
Sharing an anecdote, the ‘Mad’ singer said, “I heard somebody say one time, he’s like, ‘Alright if your son comes up to you and says Daddy I want to be a girl, ask your son what is a girl?’ What is he going to do? He’s going to say, well he might want to play with dolls. Alright you want to play with dolls? That’s fine, play with dolls, but you’re a boy. You want to wear pink? Alright cool, wear pink, but you’re a boy wearing pink.” The ‘She Knows’ singer concluded the segment by saying, “When did that happen? Like, I don’t understand that.”
The singer, who went through a divorce from his ex-wife earlier this year, also talked about contemporary trigger warnings and the sensitivity of the culture, per Just Jared.
Ne-Yo is a father of seven children including three with his ex-wife Crystal Renay, Shaffer Chimere Jr, 7, Roman Alexander-Raj, 5, and Isabella Rose, 2. He is also the father to Madilyn, 12, and son Mason, 11, with ex-fiancee and “RHOA” star Monyetta Shaw. He has another son named Braiden and a daughter Brixton with an ex-girlfriend, per Page Six.
'Trying to become relevant again'
A heartbroken fan wrote, "This is so unfortunate, seeing as i usually turn to Ne-Yo for parenting advice." Another slammed him by saying, "Nobody cares about Ne-Yo, let alone his opinion on anything." A third said, "Coming from the man who is literally an r kelly apologist you don’t care about kids at all neyo."
Another castigated him saying, "This made up celebrity thinks anyone cares about his transphobia." Someone else wrote, "Trying to become relevant again, wrong topic!" to which another quipped, "Mind you this man hasn’t been relevant since the early 2000’s."
"This mentality is how parents end up burying their children," a social media user said. Someone else called him out by saying, "Maybe he should be focusing on how to not cheat on the women he's had children with. Acting like he knows how to be the best father!" A third said, "Just saying anything to be relevant at this point, considering his last #1 was almost 2 decades ago."
