Why I Wanted to Die in My 20s – Adekunle Gold

Afrobeats singer Adekunle Gold has spoken publicly about the stigma he faces as a sickle cell patient.

During a recent interview with media personality Angela Yee, the Orente crooner explained that people often assume he is close to death whenever he mentions living with sickle cell disease.

He recalled that at the age of 20 he wished for death after experiencing an intense sickle cell crisis.

Gold said the pain was so severe that his mother—who normally rebukes him when he expresses a wish to die—was unable to intervene that night.

"At 20, I had the craziest crisis of my life. I told God to end my life. And my mom couldn’t even rebuke me. Normally, she would, but that night it felt like the only thing that made sense was to let it happen," he recalled.

The singer expressed gratitude to God for allowing him to continue fighting and surviving sickle cell disease.