If someone presented you with an item that looked, felt, and sounded exactly like what you had been searching for, would you accept it simply because they confidently told you it was authentic? Or would you inspect it first? Check the label? Ask where it came from.
What if, instead of an item, what was being sold to you was a person?
Social media has made it remarkably easy to sell people exactly what they want to believe: a relationship that looks healthy, a family that appears whole, a man who speaks confidently about masculinity, protection, and love. When the packaging looks right, we rarely stop to question what is inside.
Yahdan Yada, known publicly as Yada Awakening, is a self-proclaimed minister, healer, wellness influencer, and entrepreneur who built his platform around relationships, masculinity, women, and family. His wife, Aja Yada, known as Divine Queen Yada, announced Aug. 24 that she was divorcing him after nearly eight years together.
“I gave my all to our home, our children, our businesses, and even protecting his reputation,” she wrote. She alleged domestic violence and shared images of bruising around her eyes, along with screenshots of a conversation in which she alleged an assault damaged her tooth.
She said that at eight weeks postpartum, she looked at a bruise on her face and realized she could no longer describe what she was experiencing as simply a “difficult season” and that she spent years forgiving, leaving, returning, and hoping things would eventually get better before ultimately choosing to leave for her safety, peace, and children.
Her account presents a stark contrast to the image audiences can encounter online.
And Yada Awakening isn’t the only content creator to be accused of faking it for likes and monetization. Ace Metaphor and Derrick Jaxn have both been accused of misrepresenting their values and beliefs for the sake of fame.
Ace Metaphor has been publicly accused, most prominently by former Tonight’s Conversation panelists Kita Rose and Randi Rossario. Kita Rose alleged psychological abuse, manipulation, wage theft/financial mistreatment, workplace sexual affairs, and a divisive work environment; Rossario also described gossip and unhealthy internal dynamics. Ace Metaphor has denied the allegations, including claims that he had inappropriate relationships with cast members.
Derrick Jaxn was publicly faced with allegations of infidelity by Candice De Medeiros, who said she had an affair with him and believed he and his wife were separated at the time. Jaxn subsequently acknowledged that he had been involved sexually and romantically with women outside his marriage, so the central infidelity allegation was later confirmed by his own admission.
Even the once-renowned psychology expert, Dr. Cheyenne Bryant, found her credibility, expertise, and even her doctorate called into question after refusing to publicize proof that she completed the coursework to earn the title and degree.
Influencers routinely adopt titles such as relationship guru, healer, wellness coach, spiritual leader, and masculinity expert. Some have legitimate credentials; others build authority through the camera, confidence, and an audience willing to listen.
These situations should serve as reminders that we can listen to someone’s message without surrendering our discernment to the messenger. A person can tell us who they are, but that in itself does not make it true.
Curated content works because it offers what audiences want to believe in. Add pandering and sugarcoated reassurance, and the performance can become easier to accept than reality.
Audiences should demand more than charisma: Who gave this person that authority on a specific matter? What qualifies them to have it? What evidence supports the person they claim to be? The creator is responsible for the image they sell; the audience is responsible for how readily they believe it to be true.
Do we accept the version of reality that looks exactly like what we hoped to find, or do we stop, question the packaging, and look a little closer? Because sometimes the hardest thing to swallow isn’t that we were deceived. It’s realizing that we never checked the label.
Na’ilah Burston
