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Actress and singer Keke Palmer candidly discussed her views on marriage after experiencing a tumultuous breakup with ex-boyfriend Darius Jackson.
For context, the former couple dated for over two years until their split in 2023, which was prompted by instances of abuse. Palmer and Jackson also share a one-year-old son named Leodis Jackson. The 30-year-old touched on the subject of dating and marriage during the latest episode of her Baby, This is Keke Palmer podcast.
The Akeelah and the Bee star revealed that getting older and becoming experienced in relationships has made her reevaluate the entire concept and whether it should be a part of her journey.
"As we get older, as women, is a relationship for me? Do I care about getting married?" she said. "Like, my personality has changed so much in terms of who I thought I was. Like, at 18, I was like, 'I'm going to be married at 25.' You know what I mean? And then it was like, 'You know, I only had one boyfriend my whole life.' Then it's like, 'He's crazy as hell.' Like, now I've got five boyfriends, and now I'm already 27. I ain't even realized that I need to pick one. Like, it was always this different thing."
Palmer wrapped up the conversation by disclosing that despite the hardships she has faced in the past regarding love, she doesn't regret it because those instances have helped mold her into who she is today.
"So it's really interesting how our experiences continue to challenge who we think we want to be," she said.
In light of the mother of one's recent comments, xoNecole looks back at Palmer's dating history.
Quincy Brown
Palmer and Qunicy Brown were romantically linked in 2013, years before the pair starred as love interests in Brotherly Love.
Although Palmer and Brown never publicly confirmed their relationship, the 2015 project further fueled the romance allegations when viewers saw their on-screen chemistry. Despite conflicting reports regarding the duo's dating timeline, it is alleged that Palmer and Brown were in an on-and-off relationship until 2017.
Ty Dolla $ign
In 2016, during an alleged break with Brown, Palmer and rapper Ty Dolla $ign ignited dating rumors when they were reportedly seen kissing in a Los Angeles club. That same year, the duo joined forces for the remixed version of Palmer's track "I Don't Belong to You."
The alleged romance between Palmer and Ty Dolla $ign's appeared to be brief because it shortly fizzled out.
August Alsina
A few years later, in 2020, Palmer and singer August Alsina made headlines after the duo were involved in social media drama. The commotion began when Palmer denied dating the "Make It Home" singer after a throwback photo of the pair resurfaced on Twitter.
Alsina immediately clapped back in various tweets when he was informed of Palmer's remarks.
"U absolutely right. I was NEVER ur man, he wrote. "You could possibly never shortie. It seems u mad u got curved, but ur "friends" r the reason 4 that.Dey showed me an endless thread of txt/pics of me dat u sent, wrry'd abt who i date &BEGGED me 2 not further disturb ur mental instability."
In a follow-up post, Alsina revealed that he addressed Palmer head-on because he was frustrated by being indirectly mentioned in situations and shared that he harbored no hard feelings toward the Nope star.
This event occurred when Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith opened up about the actress' entanglement with Alsina. Palmer responded to Alsina's tweets by saying she refused to stoop to his level and offered him empathy because of the flack he was experiencing.
Styn
Romance rumors between Palmer and Mae Seven member Styn Derksen began in 2019 after the pair were spotted leaving flirty comments on social media.
Over the years, the dating allegations heightened when Palmer and the Dutch rapper were seen on numerous outings and appeared on each other's social media accounts. Despite Palmer being very discreet about her personal life, she did, however, publicly mention Derksen indirectly a few times.
The pair's relationship would come to an end in 2021.
Darius Jackson
Shortly after her split with Derksen, Palmer began dating Darius Jackson.
Although the timeline of when the former couple started their union is unclear, Palmer and Jackson reportedly met in May 2021 at a party that Issa Rae and Diddy hosted. The following year, in December 2022, Palmer announced that she and Jackson were expecting their first child. The duo welcomed a son, Leodis Jackson, in February 2023.
In July of that same year, Palmer and Jackson's relationship made headlines after the model publicly shamed her on Twitter for wearing a revealing ensemble to Usher's Las Vegas residency. In addition to the post, Jackson removed all of Palmer's photos from his social media profiles.
Despite the chaos, Palmer didn't publicly address Jackson's remarks, and it appeared that the pair mended their relationship until November 2023, when the Alice star filed a restraining order against him. In the court documents, Palmer accused Jackson of abuse throughout their entire relationship and listed several occasions when it occurred. The actress had also requested sole custody of their son Leodis.
Palmer's request was granted immediately after filing. One month later, in December, Jackson filed a counterclaim accusing Palmer of abuse. At the time, the case between Palmer and Jackson was still pending, and both parties needed to appear in court.
However, in May 2024, it was reported that the hearings were removed from the court's calendar per Palmer and Jackson's request.
No other information has been released to the public at this time.
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