Nigerian singer addresses social media outrage, says comments were misinterpreted

 

Nigerian singer-songwriter Simi has broken her silence following intense backlash over a resurfaced tweet she posted in 2012 that referenced a four-year-old boy.

 

The tweet, originally shared on March 14, 2012, mentioned a young boy identified as David who allegedly had a crush on her. In the now-deleted post, Simi described the child getting physically close to her, acting as though he wanted to kiss her, and resting his head on her lap. She had asked in the tweet whether she should give him attention — a comment that has since sparked outrage online.

 

The post recently went viral on X, drawing sharp criticism from some users who accused the singer of sexualising a minor and called for further scrutiny.

 

In a statement shared via her X page on Sunday, February 22, 2026, the singer said the resurfaced tweets were brought to her attention, prompting her to publicly address the controversy.

 

“Fourteen years ago, I was 23, so I was definitely not a child,” she wrote. “I’m not here to make excuses because I don’t have anything to make excuses for. What I can’t let anyone do is twist my story to fit false narratives.”

 

Simi explained that at the time, she was living and assisting at her mother’s daycare while pursuing her music career. According to her, she frequently tweeted about everyday experiences — including interactions with children — as was common practice on social media at the time.

 

“In 2012, I lived and helped out at my mom’s daycare while I was hustling my music. I tweeted everything that happened in my life, as we all did at the time. Kids can be mischievous. If a child did something I found funny, I tweeted about it,” she said.

 

She added that her comments were not rooted in inappropriate intent. “Kids are cute and lovable. I want to hug, kiss, and cuddle them. I tweet about it. Nothing I tweeted was from perversion.”

 

The singer noted that she was not widely known in 2012 and may not have anticipated how posts could later be interpreted or amplified.

 

“My team has been deleting some of my tweets because of how sensitive they are to my family. To be honest, I did not want to,” she wrote. “I have always spoken against rape and sexual assault, even before you knew I existed. It’s not a costume I’m wearing, it’s who I am. I’ve never claimed to be perfect.”

 

As debate continues online, the incident has reignited conversations about digital footprints, context, and how past social media posts are judged years later in a vastly different online climate.