Bebe Rexha appeared to signal strife in her relationship with boyfriend Keyan Safyari by revealing an alleged private message in which he called her out for gaining weight.
The pop star shared a screenshot of the message to Instagram stories on Sunday. The sender describes her as “beautiful,” but nonetheless adds that they wanted to be “honest” about her weight.
“I never said you weren’t beautiful and I never said I didn’t love you. In fact I said how beautiful you are and how much I loved you,” the message read. “But I always said I would be honest with you and your face was changing so I told you it was … that was the conversation we were having and you asked. Because I care, would you rather I lied to you?”
The sender continued: “You gained 35 pounds obviously you gained weight and your face changes? Should I just pretend it didn’t happen and that it’s OK? Come on I gain 3 pounds and you call me chubbs and fat. Doesn’t mean you don’t love me.”
Needless to say, Rexha’s post set off a flurry of speculation online that she and Safyari, a Los Angeles-based filmmaker, had split after about three years. The couple were first romantically linked in 2020.
Shortly after Rexha shared the message, many fans came to her defense.
“Good for her … Men can be so cruel in the name of being ‘honest.’ Fuck that,” one person wrote.
Added another: “Lots of misogynists showing their true colors lately!”
Others, however, felt Safyari’s alleged remarks were justifiable, given the context of the conversation.
“No shade but Bebe Rexha might be wrong here,” one person wrote. “This is the most respectful rant from a guy I’ve seen too. He kept it real I fear. You asked for his honest opinion AND you call him chubs when he gains weight too?”
Representatives for Rexha did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s requests for comment.
Jerritt Clark via Getty Images
As of Monday afternoon, Safyari’s Instagram account was set to private, though it was unclear if this setting had recently changed.
Earlier this year, Rexha shared that she had been diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome, which she said was responsible for her weight gain.
“I literally jumped, like, 30 pounds so quickly, maybe a little bit more,” she said on “The Jennifer Hudson Show” in May. “But we gotta just be positive and just show people love.”
She addressed her weight once again in the caption of a short video uploaded to Instagram last month.
“I know I’ve gained weight. Humans go through fluctuations,” she wrote. “Not gonna lie it does suck and bother me when I read some comments but it comes with the territory. I’ve been learning not to judge myself and accept myself while also trying to make healthier decisions in my life.”
She then added: “What I have learned though is numbers don’t define you, your heart does.”