Summer Walker has spoken out about her social anxiety on numerous occasions and does her best to shy away from performing live. However, upon her slow return to the stage since the release of her sophomore album, Still Over It, the 25-year-old has found herself being criticized yet again.
At a recent show in Atlanta, Summer sat down to explain why she wasn’t—and couldn’t—sing certain songs like “Reciprocate,” “Throw It Away,” and “Session 33” from the LP. “I want y’all to know that this s**t is real,” she expressed. “I write a lot of my stuff. I write most of my stuff and it’s still a fresh wound. My baby, she not even 1 yet and I ain’t got time to be singing that s**t, crying in front of y’all. So, I sang what I could and I hope that y’all still enjoy the show.”
Not a disclaimer ??? pic.twitter.com/kzWv8Hr10k
— Hoodie Connoisseur BDAY 3/1 (@TxxRedd) February 22, 2022
Later in her set, she surprised fans with SZA and a live rendition of their hit single, “No Love.” However, some fans still felt “scammed,” taking their thoughts to Twitter. One person wrote, “I really tried to give a lil grace to her [because] I understand anxiety. But she really bout the laziest artist I’ve ever seen. She always got excuses.”
Another mentioned, “Aretha, Gladys, Pattie, Diana, Tina, Sade, Mariah, Janet, Whitney, Anita, Mary J, Bey…would NEVER!!!! Nowadays, some of these young talents really act like WE need THEM & they’re doing us a favor.”
Summer, though, took to Instagram to defend herself. Promoting her series on the wellness platform, Mindset, she captioned the video clip geared towards fellow introverts by saying, “For those struggling with social anxiety or feeling out of place, I just want to say that I hear you. I’ve experienced so much hate and scrutiny for my anxiety, and I hope that talking about my experiences through my Mindset series makes you feel less alone.”
Summer’s upcoming performances include the Billboard Women In Music Awards, the Sol Blume Festival, Broccoli City Fest, and the Roots Picnic.