Adina recounts how recent xenophobic attacks affected her family

Ghanaian singer Adina Thembi has opened up about how social media posts during the recent xenophobic tensions involving South Africans sparked panic among her family and led to online attacks against her.

Speaking in an interview on Pulse Ghana, the singer explained that although she is half South African, the narrative circulating online misrepresented her identity and fueled unnecessary backlash.

According to Adina, the posts were designed as clickbait rather than genuine attempts to seek her opinion on the issue.

Yaw Dabo recalls how he nearly disgraced himself during an interview

“The comments at me were more like clickbait. It didn’t say, ‘You are half South African, what do you have to say?’ It said, ‘Look at her, she’s full South African. Her whole family is living in Ghana, and we are not doing anything to her,” she said

She noted that many Ghanaians are unaware of her South African heritage because she speaks Twi fluently, causing some social media users to believe she was entirely South African.

“People in Ghana don’t know I’m half South African because I speak Twi very well. So now my fans, people in Ghana, were attacking me in my DMs,” she added

The ‘Too Late’ hitmaker said the misinformation extended beyond social media, creating anxiety within her family in both Ghana and South Africa.

“And now it’s causing panic in my family. My South African family called me asking, ‘Are you okay? Do you need us to say anything?’” She said

She added that some South Africans also questioned her identity, with many saying they did not know her despite her heritage.

Reflecting on the experience, Adina urged social media users to be mindful of the impact of the content they create and share.

“Whoever did that, I always say when people are typing, they don’t know the extent of it. Nobody ever said, ‘Adina, do you have anything to say?’ Because obviously I have opinions, but nobody went through it the right way. Rather, they started to attack me and were using it for their own gain because it was blowing up on all platforms,” she expressed frustration

@pulseghana “My South African family were calling me, if I was okay, and Ghanaians were in my dm attacking me and it was causing panic” Adina opens up about conversation surrounding xenophobic attacks Our interview with her is finally live on our YouTube channel, go check it out #PulseOneOnOne ♬ original sound - Pulse Ghana