Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/Entertainment
EntertainmentMusic

Ciara Responds to Criticism Over Message Telling Women to Stop ‘Walking In the Spirit of a Girlfriend’

Posted byBy Kiersten Willis | Published on: CommentsComments (0)

https://www.instagram.com/p/BeLQ2QWnAMS/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=embed_ufi

Singer Ciara’s message about what women should do to find a husband was meant to inspire but instead it ignited the wrath of Twitter. And now, the “I Bet” singer is clearing the air about what she meant by telling folks to “#LevelUp.

On Saturday, Jan. 20, the former single mom turned wife of Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson tweeted and Instagrammed a 2016 sermon from pastor John Gray who gave advice to singles who hope to get married. Although the full clip saw Gray addressing men, the portion Ciara posted was directed at women.

“Too many women wanna be married but you’re walking in the spirit of a girlfriend,” he said. “When you carry yourself like a wife, a husband will find you. But if you keep walking like a girlfriend, boys will play with you.”

The tweet triggered a storm of responses. And even though she had some support, by Sunday, Jan. 21 Ciara posted a message explaining how her faith led her to find love … with herself.

“I was a single mom sitting at home and then I realized that the perfect love I was looking for was how God loves me,” Ciara wrote before concluding, “That’s when I realized married or not, I need to love myself.”

https://twitter.com/CiCiAdams_/status/955096113106837504

https://twitter.com/KimberlyNFoster/status/955087150541926400

https://twitter.com/daniecal/status/955101774305726464

https://twitter.com/LovePeaceMakini/status/955107282286768129

https://twitter.com/taylorbhatchett/status/955468802900353024

https://www.instagram.com/p/BeOemWmH__y/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=embed_ufi

Still independent.

We hope this story was worth your time. For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed Black-owned and independently run. We didn't get here by waiting on ad budgets that were never built to prioritize us. Our readers did that.

Corporate support for Black media has always been thin. Outlets like ours get roughly 1% of the $170 billion spent on U.S. advertising each year, and that margin is shrinking further as advertisers walk back the DEI-linked commitments they made in 2020. That's the backdrop. It's not why we're asking.

The wider picture isn't any steadier. Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under, it's rarely the ones built to center a Black perspective from the ground up that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Related Stories

Back to top