Nigerian singer and songwriter Seyi Shay has stirred conversation online after revealing the reason she stopped attending her former church — a stance rooted in history, faith, and music.

In a post shared via her Instagram story, the award-winning singer recounted how a church leader discouraged the congregation from singing modern gospel songs and urged a return to old-school hymns and scripture-based worship music.

However, Seyi Shay said she found the request deeply troubling, particularly because many of the traditional hymns in question were written by slave owners and, according to her, passed down through generations while “torturing African ancestors.”

“One leader like dat at my former church said something like, ‘We need to stop singing all these new age gospel songs in praise and worship and go back to singing hymns and only songs that are direct scripture…’” she wrote.

“Guess what, I stopped going to that church. Periodt.”

She went on to criticize what she sees as blind worship, calling on Christians to research the origins of hymns before singing them.

“I don’t know how or why you would feel blessed and happy by singing some of the songs that slave owners wrote and forced [our ancestors] to sing while bearing and torturing them. Makes no sense,” she stated. “Ignorance is not godly.”

The post has sparked mixed reactions on social media, with some supporting her call for deeper awareness, while others view her comments as controversial and divisive.

Seyi Shay, known for her outspoken personality, continues to use her platform to challenge conventional narratives and promote critical thinking — even within religious spaces.