D. Smith Announces Return to Living as a Man After 12 Years as Trans Woman

Grammy-nominated music producer and filmmaker D. Smith, a former cast member of Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta, announced on Instagram on September 17 that he is detransitioning and will now live and present as a man, using he/him pronouns.

Smith, who publicly lived as a transgender woman for the past 12 years, shared a photo of himself in masculine attire alongside a personal statement. “For most of my life, I’ve followed my heart, even when the path wasn’t easy to understand,” he wrote. “Over the last twelve years, I lived my life publicly as a transgender woman. Those years weren’t a mistake. They were real. They introduced me to extraordinary people, profound experiences, and lessons that I will always carry with me forever.”

He continued: “Over the past several months, I’ve begun a new chapter in my life. Going forward, I’ll be living and presenting as a man and using he/him pronouns. This isn’t about erasing my past. Living my life as a woman for 12 years showed me the man that I wanted to become. My respect and love for the transgender community remain unchanged, and I continue to believe that every person deserves to live with dignity, safety, and compassion and have the freedom to become themselves.”

Smith rose to prominence as a songwriter and producer, contributing to Lil Wayne’s 2008 album Tha Carter III, which won a Grammy for Best Rap Album and earned an Album of the Year nomination. He collaborated with artists including André 3000, Kendrick Lamar, Lloyd, Katy Perry, Ciara, and CeeLo Green before publicly coming out as transgender in 2014.

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Following his transition, Smith has said the music industry largely distanced itself. Collaborators stopped returning calls, and projects in the works were shelved, according to earlier accounts he shared with outlets including Out. In 2016, he joined season five of Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta as a supporting cast member, becoming the first openly transgender woman on the long-running reality series. His time on the show involved tense exchanges with cast members over transgender issues; he later described the experience as one of his biggest regrets, saying producers pushed him toward more confrontational behavior that did not align with his personality. He left the series before the reunion.

After the show, Smith faced personal and professional setbacks, including a period of homelessness while couch-surfing in New York. He later reinvented himself as a documentary filmmaker. His 2023 debut feature, Kokomo City, follows four Black transgender sex workers and premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, earning critical attention for its candid portrayal of its subjects.

Smith’s announcement marks a significant personal shift after more than a decade of public life as a transgender woman. He has emphasized that the decision does not diminish his past experiences or his support for the transgender community. As of the latest available reports, the implications for his ongoing work in film and music remain unclear.