Adekunle Gold Reveals How Sickle Cell Crisis Left Him In A Wheelchair

(Adekunle Gold. Photo by Vanguard News)

Afrobeats singer Adekunle Kosoko, known as Adekunle Gold, has opened up about a severe sickle cell crisis that hit him on a flight to Tanzania.

He said it left him unable to walk and he had to use a wheelchair when the plane landed in Ethiopia.

He shared the story in an interview with BBC Radio 1Xtra.

He said it was his last major crisis and not the one he spoke about at age 20.

He was headed to Tanzania with a layover in Ethiopia when he felt cramps in his stomach.

He first thought it was something he ate at the airport, but the pain kept going.

He said he went to the toilet and nothing came out, and that it got so bad the crew almost landed the plane because of him.

When the flight reached Ethiopia, he could barely move.

For the first time in his life he was put in a wheelchair and taken to the hospital, where a doctor told him he was having a crisis.

He said the only crisis he had known before was in his stomach, but this was the first time he heard of it.

The doctor advised him to drink lots of water when flying, since his oxygen level was low after he did not drink enough that day.

Adekunle Gold said managing sickle cell while travelling so much is hard.

He said he feels like he lives on the plane, and that anyone who knows someone with sickle cell will know it is about oxygen levels, which is tough when you are up in the air.

“The last major crisis I had was on a plane, I was going to Tanzania. They almost landed the plane because of me because it was really that bad”- Adekunle Gold pic.twitter.com/4ORUuAKwbI

— Nollywood Citadel (@Nolly_Citadel) September 30, 2026