Camilo responded to reports that he was raising his daughter Índigo as a non-binary child. On Saturday (January 28), the Colombian pop star dispelled the rumors while showing his support for the LGBTQ+ community.
During an interview in October 2021, Camilo referred to his then-unborn daughter as “hije,” which is the gender-neutral term for “child” in Spanish. In April of last year, Camilo became a father when his wife, Evaluna Montaner, gave birth to Índigo. At the top of this year, that old interview resurfaced with claims that the couple was raising a non-binary baby. In a statement in his Instagram stories, Camilo denied the rumors.
— Camilo (@CamiloMusica) January 28, 2023
“Several days ago we have been receiving a flurry of questions and intensity from the media and especially from gossip shows about alleged news claiming that we had decided that our daughter would be recognized as non-binary,” Camilo wrote in Spanish. “We deeply respect the people who make this decision, but it is not our case. They took some videos of interviews where we referred to Índigo in a neutral way out of context because, until the day she was born, we never knew her sex because we never did an ultrasound.”
Non-binary is when a person doesn’t identify with the gender binary of being a man or a woman. Janelle Monáe and Sam Smith identify as non-binary. Camilo used his statement to highlight the difficulties that queer people can face from just trying to live their truths. Camilo is known for spreading love and positive messages in his music. His statement also exemplified that compassion.
“We began to think about how people from the LGBTQ+ community might feel, for example, in the face of a world that points at them, judging them, with fingers pointing and condemning them,” Camilo wrote. “Imagine how intense and complex it can be for a person going through such a process to recognize who they are, and finding themselves with a society full of stones in their hands waiting for the first sign to throw them.”
“We believe and strive to create a world and a future where we create more ways to love each other, recognize each other, respect each other, and embrace each other with our differences.”