"Nobody Can Take Your Power" by Megan Thee Stallion

Megan Thee Stallion assumed she would be believed. But after coming forward about her shooting by fellow rapper and onetime friend Tory Lanez after a Los Angeles party in July 2020, she faced vitriol from gossip blogs, online strangers, and even peers. Here, for the first and only time since her assailant's guilty verdict on three felony counts, she talks about moving past what happened.

- By Evette Dionne. Photographed by Adrienne Raquel

I don't want to call myself a victim. As I reflect on the past three years, I view myself as a survivor, because I have truly survived the unimaginable. Not only did I survive being shot by someone I trusted and considered a close friend, but I overcame the public humiliation of having my name and reputation dragged through the mud by that individual for the entire world to see.

For years, my attacker laughed and joked about my trauma. For years, my attacker peddled false narratives about what happened on the night of July 12, 2020. For years, my attacker tried to leverage social media to take away my power. Imagine how it feels to be called a liar every day? Especially from a person who was once part of your inner circle.

When I was younger, my parents warned me about being too trusting. My daddy used to say, "Just because somebody smiles in your face doesn't mean they're really down for you." My parents emphasized the importance of protecting my spirit, but even as I went to school every day, I naïvely believed that everyone came with pure intentions and wanted to be my friend. Over the years, I realized that certain people didn't need a logical reason to be hateful or mean, but my sympathetic side still wanted to give others the benefit of the doubt. Unfortunately, it took until this devastating experience for me to fully grasp the magnitude of my parents' message back then.