Seven years of celibacy worked favorably for R&B singer Mýa.
The Grammy winner was a guest on Way Up with Angela Yee last week, where she discussed refraining from sex to improve her mental health. Around the 23-minute mark of the video below, co-host Jasmine Brand asked Mýa about the longest she's gone without sex. Her answer was "seven years, like a divine number."
Among her reasons for going celibate, the "Fallen" singer, 44, said that it was for partly for "mental clarity."
"It shifted my mindset. It was no longer a focus," she said. "The rush to be in a relationship, the rush to be married, the rush to be in something because that's what you're taught to do–to have kids or to procreate. There's a lot of pressure on women to be able to do that. Why are we taught we have to be taken or made an honest woman?"
The artist, who hasn't married and doesn't have children, went on to explain that developing self-love is key to preparing for a relationship.
"Love is beautiful, and I think the world always needs more of it, but I think you must start with yourself," she stressed. "I have to start with self always, versus expecting from other sources. It was just reconditioning. It's something that was necessary, because it's a very spiritual thing. You must be very selective if you want better results. That self-accountability started with me by shutting that part of my life off."
Another singer who has gone nearly a decade without sex is rock musician Lenny Kravitz, who told The Guardian earlier this year that his celibacy journey was "spiritual." Not everyone agrees with the practice, as rapper/actor Ice-T judged Kravitz's decision, calling it "weirdo shit."