Sam Smith decided to take to Twitter on Wednesday to reveal that he is straight.
Guys I have some news... I'm straight
He quickly followed this tweet with a confession that it was in fact, an April Fools' joke.
April fools π
While some fans thought it was crying-face-emoji levels of funny...
β@samsmithworld: Guys I have some news... I'm straightβπππππππππππ
β@samsmithworld: Guys I have some news... I'm straightβπππππππππππ
β@samsmithworld: Guys I have some news... I'm straightβ BEST ONE YET
@samsmithworld πππππππ can't contain myself
β@samsmithworld: Guys I have some news... I'm straightβ this got me real good oh god πππ
Others called him out on it, suggesting that it's damaging to the LGBT community to joke about sexuality.
@samsmithworld YOU THINK SEXUALITY IS A FUCKING JOKE? PEOPLE STRUGGLE WITH IT EVERY SINGLE FUCKING DAY HOW DARE YOU MAKE A JOKE OF IT. ASS!
β@samsmithworld: Guys I have some news... I'm straightβ this is the worst april fools joke u could've done
THIS IS WHY GAYS DONT HAVE RIGHTS RT @samsmithworld: Guys I have some news... I'm straight
β@samsmithworld: Guys I have some news... I'm straightβ The most unimaginative and flat April fools joke
@samsmithworld not funny
Sam has in the past been praised after speaking so openly about the abuse he's faced as a result of his sexuality.
Speaking to The Sun, Sam said:
A bunch of boys from a rival school would shout insults at me as I walked from my home to the train station. I remember walking to the station getting "f*****" shouted at me all the time. It was the most mortifying thing. Not so much for me. I knew these people were stupid, uneducated twats.
When I was 17 I decided to go gay clubbing in Soho in London. I remember walking in and this gay guy turned to his mate and said something really nasty about me. My whole world just crashed and I had a really lonely feeling. When I moved to London I got punched in the neck walking back from work. It was definitely homophobic. I was on the phone speaking quite loudly and had pink headphones on, so it was pretty clear I was gay.
However, he has also been criticised too, particularly after saying he didn't want to be the spokesperson for the gay community.
Speaking to Digital Spy, he said:
It's because I'm not trying to be a spokesperson. It sounds awful of me, but I'm really just trying to live my life and write music about it. That's what I do. I'm not trying to heal the world. From a young age I've always been like this, so it's been normal. My family and friends have made it feel normal and I'm not going to stop that now.
He went on to say that he believes sexuality is a "non-issue," which was analysed as well.
Speaking to Fader, he said:
I've been treated as normal as anyone in my life; I've had no issues. I do know that some people have issues in life, but I haven't, and it's as normal as my right arm. I want to make it a normality because this is a non-issue.
He was also criticised for suggesting LGBT people shouldn't "make their sexuality an issue," which many took to diminish the campaigns and efforts made so far for equal rights.
Don't make [your sexuality] an issue. If other's around you are making an issue, I understand. Fight for your rights, of course. But ... let's make it a normality. To make it equal, we kind of need to act equal.