Matt Baron for ShutterstockMichael Clifford is apologizing for a series of offensive tweets that recently resurfaced online.
"Hi. I am so f--king sorry for all the dumb s--t I did when I was younger," the 5 Seconds of Summer musician wrote on Twitter. "I am a different person now with a much better understanding of the world. Some people have access to a digital megaphone a bit earlier than they should, unfortunately, I was one of them."
He then tweeted he's "so sorry for hurting anyone."
"It was never my intention," he continued. "I was so naive and I am embarrassed and I am beyond sorry. I will continue to be better and I will continue to change. I never want to hurt anyone again."
Last week, a social media user shared screenshots of a number of posts the 24-year-old artist allegedly shared in the past and then deleted. One screenshot, for instance, appeared to show Clifford telling a follower in 2012 to "get a woman" after the follower claimed to be "hopeless in the kitchen."
"I am so bad at making sandwiches," another screenshotted tweet from that year read, "I would be a terrible woman."
The Twitter user also shared photos of tweets Clifford allegedly shared in 2012 and 2013 that contained homophobic language.
"Luke5SOS lol f-g," one screenshotted message read.
"Luke5SOS Oh gee willickers this is so excitingabubble!" another read. "You tweet like a f-g hahaha."
In addition, the Twitter user shared an image of Clifford wearing a T-shirt with the confederate flag on it.
Clifford did not reference any specific tweets in his apology.
The next day, Clifford shot down a different accusation.
"Holy s--t. I am heartbroken to read these things that are being said—they are just BEYOND untrue," he tweeted. "I was never allowed in the crowd I only ever watched at front of house—and I would've never EVER done that. I [would] NEVER do anything like that. I'm so f--king upset."
When a follower asked him to elaborate, Clifford said he really didn't know what he could even say.
"People are asking me to explain but how can I explain something that I was never involved with in the first place?" he wrote. "I truly want to give you what you're asking from me but what more can I say?"
He then shared an old video of the band being mobbed by fans in Montreal.
"This is what life was like in 2013," he wrote. "Please understand it would've been logistically impossible for me to get through a crowd at a show. I just played at! I'm not trying to be defensive I promise this is just so completely false."
Clifford didn't specify what accusation he was referring to. However, several outlets, including The Daily Mail and People, reported a social media user had claimed to have been inappropriately touched by Clifford at age 14 while attending a 2013 concert. Per The Daily Mail, the accuser has since retracted the allegations.