Summer Walker has revealed that she came close to dying during childbirth, bringing attention to the issue of Black maternal mortality in the United States.
In an interview with Mariah The Scientist for Summer Walker’s Over It Radio show, Walker opened up about her experience.
“The second one, it sucked bad. Real bad,” Summer told her guest. “But, believe it or not, the second birth was shorter than the first one.” She went on to say that giving birth to her twins the second time around lasted “seven hours.” The 29-year-old admitted that giving birth the first time around lasted over 52 hours long.
Walker added, “That s—t was bad. All of it’s bad.” She admitted that she “almost died both times.”
The Grammy-nominated artist is mom to three. She welcomed her first child, daughter Bubbles Renee Walker, in 2021 with rapper London on Da Track. A year later, she gave birth to twin boys with rapper LVRD Pharoh. Their names have not been shared publicly.
Walker has been open about choosing home births for all of her children. She’s also used her platform to advocate for better parental support, including paid leave policies for families.
In January 2024, she posted a video montage on Instagram sharing her partnership with Bobbie and highlighting the lack of support many parents face in the U.S.
“One in four women living in the US returns to work within two weeks of giving birth. At two weeks I was just beginning to physically, mentally and emotionally heal from giving birth so to know that parents are going back to work in this fragile state is just devastating. It’s time for the government to pick up the slack. 84% of all Americans support federal paid leave, and yet 73% of private sector employees don’t have it,” she began her caption.
She concluded, “This is why I’m proud to partner with @bobbie to help put money in the pockets of families who need it: $580, to be exact—the minimum monthly benefit under the Family and Medical Insurance Leave Act, if passed. All you have to do is tell us your leave story and what $580 would mean to you. Link in our bio to apply. This is no way sponsored by Instagram. Applications are open until January 26, 2024. #parentspushharder #passpaidleave #bobbiepartner.”
Photo: Summer Walker Instagram; GuyXPhoto/Instagram
