Rapper T.I. explains truth behind taking his daughter for yearly virginity test

T.I. has defended himself after he revealed that he subjects his daughter to regular checks to see if she is still a virgin.

Earlier this month the musician caused outrage when he admitted he accompanies 18-year-old Deyjah Harris to the gynaecologist to make sure her 'hymen is still intact.'

He now claims that the examination happened when she was a younger teenager, and he exaggerated the story for comedic effect.

Speaking to Jada Pinkett Smith on the latest episode of Red Table Talk, he said: "First of all, I came to clear up any misconceptions there have been surrounding how we parent and what is appropriate and inappropriate."

He went on: "I think all of this comes from a conversation I was having in a very joking manner when asked how I deal with parenting in this day and age.

"From a place of truth, I began to embellish and exaggerate and I think a lot of people took it extremely literal because if you put any of my reputation, who I am as a father, who I’ve been, I honestly thought people knew me better than that."

T.I. continued: "I never said I was in any exam room, that was an assumption.

"That is a falsity. I never said it was being done present day as an 18 year old."

He also said that her mum was at the examination, which happened when she was around 15-years-old.

T.I. said he was regretful that he had told everyone about it, but he still defended his actions.

He claimed Deyjah only objected to him telling everyone [Photo: @princess_of_da_south]

He said: "In the age and the time, our women, black women, are the most unprotected, unattended, disregarded women of the planet.”

"I'm being criticized because I'm willing to go above and beyond to protect mine and I'm talking about all the little slimy, grimey, chubby-fingers little boys who want to just come and defile and destroy the sanctity that I have …"

T.I. had said Deyjah had signed a waiver that allows the doctor to share information with her dad, including whether her hymen is broken.

Asked on the Ladies Like Us podcast about sex education for his children, he said: "Not only have we had the conversation, we have yearly trips to the gynaecologist to check her hymen. Yes, I go with her … I will say, as of her 18th birthday, her hymen is still intact."

When it was pointed out that a woman's hymen can be broken outside of sexual activity, T.I said: "So then they come and say, ‘Well, I just want you to know that there are other ways besides sex that the hymen can be broken like bike riding, athletics, horseback riding and just other forms of athletic physical activity’. So I say, ‘Look, Doc, she don’t ride no horses, she don’t ride no bike, she don’t play no sports. Just check the hymen, please, and give me back my results expeditiously.