Key Takeaways
- D. Smith announced that he is detransitioning after living publicly as a transgender woman for 12 years and will now live as a man using he/him pronouns.
- “Those years weren’t a mistake,” Smith wrote, adding that his respect and support for the transgender community remain unchanged.
- The Grammy-winning producer made history as Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta’s first openly transgender woman and later directed the award-winning 2023 documentary Kokomo City.
D. Smith, the two-time Grammy-nominated producer and former Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta star, has announced that he is detransitioning after living publicly as a transgender woman for 12 years. Smith said he will now live and present as a man and use he/him pronouns.
“This isn’t about erasing my past,” Smith wrote on Instagram. “Living my life as a woman for 12 years showed me the man that I wanted to become.” He described the decision as a new chapter that developed over several months but did not address whether it involved any medical changes.
Smith also rejected the idea that he should regret his previous identity. “Those years weren’t a mistake. They were real,” he wrote. “They introduced me to extraordinary people, profound experiences, and lessons that I will always carry with me forever.”
He added that he intends to tell the fuller story when he is ready.
The announcement marks another major turn in a career that has moved between music, reality television, and filmmaking. Smith joined Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta in 2016 as the franchise’s first openly transgender woman.
During Season 5, he had tense confrontations with Tammy Rivera, Deb Antney, Bambi, and Scrappy before leaving the series and skipping the reunion, citing concerns about how producers handled his boundaries.
Smith already had an established music career before appearing on VH1. He earned Grammy recognition for his contributions to Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter III, producing, co-writing, and singing on “Shoot Me Down.”
His résumé also includes Lloyd’s “Dedication to My Ex (Miss That)” and work with artists including Ciara, Fantasia, Estelle, Monica, and Billy Porter.
He later directed the acclaimed 2023 documentary Kokomo City, which follows four Black transgender sex workers in Atlanta and New York. The film premiered at Sundance and won two awards, with Lena Waithe serving as an executive producer.
Smith stressed that his detransition has not changed his support for transgender people. “My respect and love for the transgender community remain unchanged,” he wrote. “Every person deserves to live with dignity, safety, and compassion and have the freedom to become themselves.”
