Musician Oliver Sim Reveals He's Been Living with HIV Since Age 17

Oliver Sim, vocalist and bass player for The xx, recently revealed that he’s been living with HIV since he was 17 years old.

In a recent Instagram post, Sim explained the meaning and content surrounding his brand-new solo song, “Hideous.”

“I’ve been living with HIV since I was 17 and it’s played with how I’ve felt towards myself, and how I’ve assumed others have felt towards me, from that age and into my adult life. So, quite impulsively, I wrote about it on a song called ‘Hideous,’” he wrote.

Sim continued:

“Since writing ‘Hideous,’ I’ve spent the last two years having conversations, which was difficult and uncomfortable to start with, but has allowed me to feel a lot freer and has only strengthened my relationship with myself and with the people in my life.”

Despite still being an active part of The xx, Sim has also been releasing music in 2022 as a solo artist. In “Hideous,” which was released on Monday, the British singer wrote lyrics such as, “Why don’t you leave me in the dirt? / That I’ve been sick and I’m perverse / Oh, I’m hideous.”

The song’s outro goes, “Radical honesty / Might set me free / If it makes me hideous / Been living with HIV / Since seventeen / Am I hideous?”

For context, Sim is about to turn 33 years old in June, which means that he’s been living with HIV for 16 years. Overall, The xx bandmate has felt like now is the right time to share his HIV status and remark on his experiences through music.

Watch the music video for Oliver Sim’s “Hideous” below: