The king of twinks has weighed in on an age-old discourse: Is “twink” a slur? Troye Sivan chimed in on the topic after an offensive rumor was spread about him over the weekend.

On Saturday, the “Rush” singer kicked off his North American Sweat Tour, which he’s co-headlining with Charli xcx. But a rumor posted to the TikTok account Celebritea Blinds caught saw the tour as a chance to throw shade at Sivan.

“He doesn’t really care about sales,” read the rumor in the since-deleted video. “He is just happy to be on the road and hitting Grindr at every stop.”

Sivan didn’t let the accusation go unaddressed. Perhaps taking a page from Chappell Roan’s book, he took to TikTok himself to call the rumor what it was: homophobia.

“Straight people are getting way too comfortable,” he said. “I released an album. I am touring the album with Charli xcx. We are playing 22 shows across the country (that are 95% sold out, by the way).”

“To say that I am touring the country to go on Grindr at every stop — that’s genuinely homophobic,” he continued. “It’s like a stereotype. Don’t sex shame me.”

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The rumor was nonsensical for a number of reasons, which Sivan was quick to point out. First of all, he’s a veritable queer sex symbol — Sivan doesn’t need to go on a cross-country tour to find a hookup.

“I can get laid wherever I want. I can get laid in LA!” he said. “I’m going on tour because I released an album, and because people are buying tickets to come to see the show. So, f*ck you.”

While he was on the topic, Sivan took the chance to call out another area where straight people are crossing a boundary: the way they’re using the word “twink.” 

“If you say ‘twink’ where you meant to say ‘f*ggot,’ that’s still a slur,” Sivan said. “That’s, like, our word. I don’t think straight people should be using that.”

@troyesivan

#stitch with @Celebritea Blinds

♬ original sound – Troye Sivan

Sivan’s comments section (and the rest of social media) was in full agreement. Bottoms actor Rachel Sennott wrote, “Louder for the people in the back!” Fellow pop star Tove Lo wrote, “YES!!” Hookup app Grindr itself simply commented, “Period.”

Clearly, it’s time for the general public (read: straight people) to choose their words a little more carefully. Is “twink” itself inherently a dirty word? No — but if it’s meant as an insult, it’s liable to cross into homophobic territory.

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