Award-winning Nigerian singer, Adekunle Gold, has opened up about his lifelong struggle with sickle cell anemia, revealing that he still experiences crises even as an adult.
The “Sinner” crooner made this emotional revelation during a recent interview on Nandoleaks: Real Talk, where he spoke candidly about the health challenges he has faced since childhood.
“I still have crises,” he said, explaining that the disease has been part of his life since he was a child.
The 38-year-old singer disclosed that he has been on lifelong medication since the age of five, saying:
“They told me that I will be taking folic acid and B complex for the rest of my life. And that’s my life for a very long time, even till now.”
Adekunle Gold recounted one of his earliest memories of pain; a night when he fell critically ill, and his mother had to carry him on her back for miles to the hospital because his father wasn’t home.
“The first time I noticed that I had it was the night I fell sick and my dad wasn’t home. My mum put me on her back, and we walked miles to the hospital. I don’t remember how old I was, maybe 5 or 7. That was when the doctor told me about it.”
The singer described the crises as “pains on your joints, legs, and sometimes your stomach”, calling them “really crazy”.
Despite the challenges, Adekunle Gold said he has learned how to manage the condition better as an adult, expressing gratitude for the ability and resources to take care of himself.
“I still have crises once in a while, but not as bad as I had it when I was a child, maybe because I’ve found a way to take care of myself more properly. And I’m grateful to God for the resources to be able to do that.”
Beyond sharing his story, Adekunle Gold used the opportunity to advocate for genotype awareness, urging people to take genotype testing seriously to prevent more children from being born with sickle cell disease.
“My vision is to make more noise about it because a lot of people don’t know about it. And the important organisations are not making so much moves regarding it. Knowing your genotype is very important because the point is you should not bring many more kids that have sickle cell.”
Adekunle Gold revealed that both his parents carried the sickle cell trait (SS), and that was how he inherited the condition.
“Unfortunately for me, my parents are sickle cell, and they brought me to the world.”
Despite living with the condition, Adekunle Gold continues to shine, turning pain into purpose and inspiring millions through his story and music.