Throughout her career, R&B star Kehlani has spoken up about her identity time and time again. But in a new set of videos posted to her TikTok on Sunday (June 30), the “After Hours” singer shut down anyone who still hasn’t gotten the memo.
In the first clip, the singer spoke about the importance of prioritizing female voices in her life in order to find happiness. “I was bisexual my entire life, and then I came out as a lesbian almost four years ago now,” she said. “But when I realized, recently actually, all of the f–king elevation in my life that has come from de-centering men in every f–king area of it … when I prioritized women and also just centered myself and women? When all the bad b—hes decide what planet we’re going to after we f–k this one, invite me, because I will thrive.”
While most fans in the comments section were supportive, a few began questioning the star’s sincerity, saying that she’d been in multiple relationships with men. So Kehlani made a second video responding to the claims, clapping back at those attempting to invalidate her sexuality.
“Bringing up the fact that I had a child, or bringing up ex-boyfriends from four years ago or before, bringing up situations from when I was 20? I’m 29. I will be 30 next year,” she said. “I don’t know why there’s this inability to fathom that I’m a raging lesbian.”
She continued, adding that her identity as a lesbian naturally bleeds into her artistry. “And yes, my music is gay! Who I perform to and for is the gays,” she said. “And if you’re stuck in the past, it’s between you and your god. If you’re a man still bringing up my ex-boyfriends, just say you want to f–k ’em.”
In a since-deleted TikTok from April 2021, Kehlani let her fans know that she identified as “gay, gay, gay, gay, gay,” adding that it seemed everyone in her life seemed to know already. “When I want to have these heart-to-hearts with my family and my friends, and I’m like, ‘Guys, I finally know that I’m like gay gay,’ and they’re like, ‘We know, duh,’” she said. “I want you to fall on the floor and be like, ‘Congratulations, we had no idea!’”
Kehlani recently debuted her fourth studio album Crash, which officially debuts at No. 25 on the Billboard 200 dated July 6. The album’s lead single “After Hours,” meanwhile, reaches a new high of No. 72 on this week’s Hot 100, just two slots under Jordan Adetunji’s viral single titled “Kehlani.”
Check out Kehlani’s TikTok videos below:
