STREAM EXCLUSIVE ORIGINALS

Young M.A Reveals That She Doesn’t Identify As Lesbian

"To me, it just doesn't make sense."

It’s no secret that Brooklyn rapper Young M.A is a masculine-presenting individual of the music industry whose public relationships have all been with other women.

But despite the assumptions of her identity preferences, what isn’t so common knowledge is that the Herstory emcee doesn’t identify as lesbian, as she explained in a recent Hollywood Unlocked Uncensored interview.

  • The show’s host, Jason Lee and Melyssa Ford, discussed the subject matter in detail with Young M.A, sparked by Lee’s question of whether she’s lesbian. “No,” she replied. “I’m just Young M.A.” Explaining that she doesn’t do labels, she continued elaborating on the statement. “That’s it! I just wouldn’t date a guy… I just don’t date dudes. I love women.”

    Moreover, M.A also doesn’t believe in the construct of “female rap” as a label either. “First of all, female rappers alone seem to be the only one in a box because you don’t say, ‘men rapper,’” she said. Ford likened the idea to that of women in the film industry and their preference to simply be addressed as “actors” instead of “actresses.” M.A agreed with the sentiment, citing it as one of the reasons for her rejection of any labels. “That alone right there—that’s one of the reasons why [I don’t identify as a female rapper],” she said.

  • “If we don’t want to be separated, if we uniting and we doing all this type of thing where we want people to accept us for us, as people—just like you’re human, and I’m human—why still separate yourself?” she positioned. “To me, it just doesn’t’ make sense. If you just want to be accepted for who you are, just say, ‘Yo listen, I’m me.’” M.A. made it clear that she didn’t approach the industry as someone who was pushing to open doors for a particular group nor align herself with any particular movement. The 27-year-old entered with the mindset that she would only represent and reflect who she was as a person, and deal with the results of whether people accepted that or not, she said.

  • With the support of some of her fans, many people agreed with her stance of centering her individuality instead of a title connected to her sexuality. Others, however, were left confused or conflicted with the commentary. See their discourse on the subject matter below:

Latest News

Subscribe for BET Updates

Provide your email address to receive our newsletter.


By clicking Subscribe, you confirm that you have read and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge our Privacy Policy. You also agree to receive marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers) and other information from BET and the Paramount family of companies. You understand that you can unsubscribe at any time.