T.I.’s daughter Deyjah felt like she ‘couldn’t say no’ to having yearly ‘virginity test’

‘Things are completely awkward and uncomfortable between me and my dad’, says 19-year-old

T.I.’s daughter Deyjah Harris has opened up about how it felt to hear her father publicly discuss making “yearly trips to the gynaecologist” to check the status of her virginity.

Last year, the rapper received widespread criticism after revealing he would attend appointments with his daughter to “check her hymen” and make sure it’s “still intact”.

Now, in a new episode of T.I. & Tiny: Friends and Family Hustle, Harris has spoken about the immediate fall-out of the rapper's remarks.

Speaking to her family members about the incident, the 19-year-old admitted that her father’s comments left her feeling “shocked, hurt, angry and embarrassed”.

She added that she found being around T.I. “uncomfortable” and that she felt she couldn’t say no to attending the appointments because of her age.

“Things are completely uncomfortable for me right now. We’re all together in this house, so I have to see my dad and be around him. And we’re in a foreign country [the family were on holiday] so it’s not like I can leave and get away,” Harris said.

“I mean, honestly, I’m embarrassed definitely for sure. I’m trying to put it in the back of my mind so I’m not really thinking about it. I know it’s not healthy. But I’ve been doing that since I was a child.”

The teenager revealed the gynaecology appointments had been happening since she was “14 or 15”, adding: “It’s not like I could have said no.”

Harris went on to explain how her father treats her differently to her brothers when it comes to sex, revealing that he often jokes with her siblings about becoming a “baby daddy”.

She also admitted that the incident has negatively impacted her relationship with her father and that she hopes to be a “better parent” one day.

Deyjah Harris became emotional as she spoke about her relationship with her father (YouTube: VH1)

“I just don’t really care to be around him right now. I’ll be a better parent. I mean, I’m not saying he’s a bad parent. I’m just saying when it comes to stuff like this, I’m just gonna be more connected mentally, emotionally,” Harris said.

“I don’t want to say I’m looking at him differently, but…Really, I mean more so our relationship, I’m going to look at differently. This situation is just a little traumatising for me.

“Things are completely awkward and uncomfortable between me and my dad. Prior to all of this happening, our relationship was pretty decent, but after all of this, it’s changed, honestly.”

Deyjah Harris and her father T.I. at the 68th Annual Tony Awards in June 2014 (Getty)

T.I., whose real name is Clifford Harris Jr, sparked outrage with his comments last November, when he told Nazanin and Nadia of the podcast Ladies Like Us: “Not only have we had the conversation, we have yearly trips to the gynaecologist to check her hymen.

“And so then they come and say, ‘Well I just want you to know that there are other ways besides sex that the hymen can be broken, like bike riding, athletics, horseback riding and just other forms of athletic physical activity.’ I say, ‘Look doc, she don’t ride no horses, she don’t ride no bike, she don’t play no sports. Just check the hymen please and give me back my results expeditiously’. I will say as of her 18th birthday, her hymen is still intact.”

Following the backlash, the rapper appeared on Jada Pinkett Smith’s Red Table Talk to apologise publicly to his daughter and explain his comments.

“Let me set this record straight. I never said I was in any exam room, that was an assumption. That is a falsity. I never said it was being done present day as an 18 year old,” he said.

“I never said that her mother wasn’t present. She was present every time. All of this false narrative has just been sensationalised.”

Addressing his daughter’s feelings about the check-ups, T.I. continued: “There was never any objection. She did have a problem with me talking about it, however, and I understand that. And I am incredibly apologetic to her for that.”