(Adekunle Gold And Simi. Photo by Pulse Nigeria)
Afrobeats singer Adekunle Gold has revealed that checking his wife’s genetic makeup was crucial to his decision to marry her.
The singer, who has sickle cell disease, said he would not have pursued the relationship with fellow artiste Simi if she did not have the AA genotype.
He explained that his main concern was having healthy children and that he put this ahead of romantic feelings when deciding whether to continue the relationship.
Adekunle Gold said he would not have married someone with the SS genotype because he did not want to bring a sickly child into the world.
When he and Simi first met, he said the first thing he did was find out her genotype.
Since she was AA, he went ahead with the relationship.
The couple married in January 2019 and have two children together.
Since publicly sharing his own SS status, Adekunle Gold has become an advocate for sickle cell awareness in Nigeria.
“I wouldn’t have married my wife Simi if she were SS or AS. She’s AA. I don’t think it makes sense to bring a child into this world and make them go through all that. We did a genotype test before we got married.”
—Adekunle Gold pic.twitter.com/ZOLveV94Uy
— carter🌚 (@carter8f) September 10, 2026