Jahazeil Myrie Faces Backlash After Saying He Almost Turned Gay

Jahazeil Myrie, son of Buju Banton and a self-described spiritual artiste, found himself at the center of a heated social-media debate after a one-minute clip from an almost one-hour Sheena Power Talk interview circulated in late February and early March 2026. In the excerpt he said, "Mi literally almost tun fish," a patois line other transcriptions render as "Mi nearly turn fish" to describe what he called near same-sex sexual thoughts tied to spiritual warfare. The Sheena Power Talk episode was uploaded to YouTube on a Sunday, and the clip began to draw attention about 19 hours later.

In the fuller interview Myrie framed the episode as part of a larger testimony about spiritual struggles, baptism and health concerns. He spoke about a "spirit spouse" that he said affected relationships, health and his music career, and he described seeking medical help for symptoms he initially thought were physical before turning to prayer and lifestyle changes. In one passage he said, "Because you know seh Satan a manipulate yuh mind and yuh character, but because a mi father song drag back mi memory, mi seh wait but nuh mi father sing bum bye bye," a partial quote from the nearly one-hour chat that links his turn toward baptism to his father's music.

Reaction on social platforms split quickly. Many Jamaicans expressed anger or discomfort over the sexuality-related remark, while others praised Myrie's openness about mental health and spiritual pressure. A widely shared social-media cascade began within a day of the upload and centred on that one-minute excerpt rather than the full interview, amplifying both critics' and supporters' responses across Instagram, TikTok and other networks.

Hours after the clip spread, Myrie addressed followers on Instagram Story, urging people to watch the complete interview on YouTube. He wrote exactly: "If you guys could take the time out to actually sit watch the video on YouTube don’t just run with a clip you saw on media. The interview is there go watch it have a blessed day 1." That post appeared Monday afternoon, hours after the Sheena Power Talk upload, and remains his main public clarification beyond the interview footage.

Media reports have used variant spellings of his name, with some editions using "Jaziel Myrick," while Myrie's public posts and most coverage use "Jahazeil Myrie." There has been no public statement from Buju Banton or the Sheena Power Talk host to expand on the context, and no full transcript linked with the viral excerpts has been published alongside engagement metrics for the clip.

The episode underscores how a single one-minute excerpt from a near one-hour conversation can dominate public reaction: the clip itself, not the full testimony, has become the defining record for many viewers. Until further comment from Myrie, Buju Banton or the show producers, the interview, the one-minute excerpt and Myrie’s Instagram Story remain the public materials shaping the debate.