You may be familiar with Nivea through her hit songs “Don’t Mess With My Man” and “Complicated,” but thanks to her reality television arrival, we are seeing the woman behind the music. The singer stars in the Will Packer-produced Peacock dating series Queens Court alongside Tamar Braxton and Evelyn Lozada. The series features the three women being courted by several men in an effort to find love. From day one, Nivea captivated viewers with her infectious laugh and down-to-earth personality, with many people wanting to see more of the Atlanta native on our TV screens. However, Nivea never expected to have this newfound fame.
“I never thought of myself as no TV personality chile, like never,” Nivea admits to xoNecole. “But watching the show back, I’ve literally catching myself laughing, falling out, screaming, and laughing at myself. So with that being said is that I’m always so uncontrollably myself like it could be shocking, I guess even for me. But I’m glad I made people laugh, or they could relate to me because I was definitely being myself.”
*Spoiler alert*
While the dating series was a unique experience for all the ladies involved, Nivea found herself in quite a conundrum throughout most of the show. Unlike Tamar and Evelyn, who were both able to narrow down their options to one guy by the finale, the “Laundromat” singer had two guys she couldn’t quite shake, Ty and Mack. The difficulty of choosing between the two men was apparent as Nivea would often say on the show how both of them appealed to different sides of her. The mom of four tells me that she was really “torn between the two all the way up until the end.”
But in the finale, she made the ultimate decision of choosing herself.
“I’m a very instinctual being, and I trusted honey,” she explains. “I’m so into my intuition, and I really go with [my] gut feelings, and I kept saying I’ll know since it took up to the last dang on day anyway. I said okay, when I’m making this final decision, I’ll feel where my heart is pulling me, what my mind is saying, and everything was saying, nah, neither one was the one.”
She continues, “You know when you know. As I’ve had not-so-great relationships, I’ve had good, healthy ones as well, so I know what that exchange at least should feel like. The same way as you know when something don’t feel right, so I had to say deuces to both of them. And Mack and Ty are so cool, though. I had two cool dudes, I must say.”
"I said okay, when I’m making this final decision, I’ll feel where my heart is pulling me, what my mind is saying, and everything was saying, nah, neither one was the one.”
Nivea is a mother to four children. She shares three children with her ex-husband, singer/ producer The-Dream, and one with rapper Lil Wayne. While those relationships didn’t work out, the “Okay” artist is determined to find her person and credits her self-love journey in helping her weed out those who aren’t worthy of her love. Being on Queens Court complemented her personal journey as she felt like the process was a form of “therapy” for her.
She explains how talking with the guys, the hosts of the series, Holly Robinson Peete and Rodney Peete, and Evelyn and Tamar, helped her see things about herself that she needed to change such as setting boundaries and no longer always putting others’ needs in front of her own.
“Tamar and Evelyn showed me that it’s nothing wrong with being like, ‘I'm not putting up with that shit.’ Like, I don’t have to take this,” she says. “They are very much set in knowing of what they deserve, and anybody that's not honoring that of what they want in their lives then they stop it at the door.
“I’m the 200th chancer, you know what I mean, and now it’s like from not just in every way. I’m not allowing a lot that I would use to in the past. Like uh, uh, stop that bullshit at the door before it festers like I'm used to doing.” While her self-love journey is ongoing, she can now take what she has learned so far and apply it to her dating life. The beloved singer got emotional as she began sharing the type of man she wants in her future.
Nivea
Photo courtesy of Nivea
“I’m looking for somebody who mirrors me now. That mirroring in the past, my God, and now I’m able to say dang, I did do that. I was a part of that. Now that I love who I’m becoming, I want that mirrored. I’m okay with what’s coming next because I know I’m a better me,” she says as she becomes overwhelmed with emotion.
“I know this time around it will be because, I hate to say it, I've been forced to do self-work and just constantly being let down and disappointed and heartbroken. It forces you to say, like seriously what am I doing wrong? And I don’t like that word wrong because, a lot things are yin and yang, and more left and right than right and wrong.
"Now that I love who I’m becoming, I want that mirrored. I’m okay with what’s coming next because I know I’m a better me.”
She continues, “I’m just ready for the next season, I know that my next forever person is going to be a support system for me. They will be spiritual, they will be educated in many ways. I can feel it. It’s gonna be really powerful and I can’t wait chile. I’m glad I’m finally ready and I can trust myself again.”
Nivea just released her new song “Killa” and will be releasing the music video soon. She is also working on her new album.
Follow Nivea on Instagram @thisisnivea.
Feature image courtesy of Nivea
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The experience goes beyond a typical college reunion; HBCU Homecoming is a family reunion, a fashion show, a cultural festival, and a week-long turn-up that embodies what it means to be unapologetically Black and educated. For HBCU alumni, the journey back to the yard each year is rooted in a love and pride that’s hard to put into words but impossible to deny.
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Donay is an entrepreneur with 10+ years of experience in various industries. However, while balancing his work life, the businessman still maintains a healthy balance with fitness, fashion – and, of course, family that he shares online. It’s clear the pair takes their work and passion seriously. But from this convo it’s clear that they took their union even more seriously. Check out xoNecole’s exclusive conversation with the beautiful couple below.
Jenna Nia and Donay
Courtesy
xoNecole: Let’s start off by you both telling me a little bit about yourselves.
Jenna Nia: I’m Jenna Nia. I just turned 39 in July, and I am from St. Louis, Missouri.
Donay: I’m Donay. I’m 39 years old and I’m also from St. Louis, Missouri, but we’ve been living in Atlanta for quite some time.
xoN: Oh, okay, you’re both from the same area! Is that how y'all met?
Jenna Nia: Yes, we actually met in high school at about 15. We didn’t go to the same school, but we had a lot of mutual friends. We used to see each other often because of our different circles of friends, and I had the biggest crush on him. I thought he was so kind, funny, and he had his own little car (laughs). But I had a lot of friends that had little “situations” with him. Plus, he had a girlfriend. So we never really hooked up then.
Donay: But I’d say we knew we liked each other. We were always looking at each other and playing games.
Jenna Nia: He didn’t give me any real attention though –
Donay: I paid her attention. But she had a boyfriend; it didn’t mean anything to me. I still checked her out, but she didn’t really take me seriously until around 18.
Jenna Nia: Then I realized all he wanted to do was smash and be a horny little boy. So we ended up reconnecting when I was around 25.
xoN: Wait, so how did it progress to what we see today?
Jenna Nia: I moved away, went to college, moved to Atlanta, and then came back to St. Louis for a holiday break. We ended up rekindling through the same mutual friends. We were all hanging out over someone’s house. The chemistry was natural, and we hooked up. Two weeks later, I ended up dumping my boyfriend at the time; we were engaged a few years later, and here we are – still together.
Donay: That’s it. She laid it out perfectly.
We were all hanging out over someone’s house. The chemistry was natural, and we hooked up. Two weeks later, I ended up dumping my boyfriend at the time; we were engaged a few years later, and here we are – still together.
xoN: I love stories when stories end like that. But let’s back up a bit. Take me through the process. After reconnecting, how did things blossom? Did y’all have the “what are we” conversation? How did it develop from an attraction to a relationship? Talk to me about the courtship.
Donay: We were talking on the phone every day. Those phone conversations got deep, fast. We were long distance, but I was phoning her in the morning, calling her baby - all the things. I was trying to charm her. And a few weeks later, I was saying, ‘I love you.’
Jenna Nia and Donay
Courtesy
xoN: I’m hearing that more and more, actually. Sometimes what’s understood doesn’t have to be explained! What did being in such a serious relationship teach you?
Jenna Nia: I learned there was only one man who could make me want to be with him for the rest of my life. I realized it’s possible to be crazy in love and not have to weigh options.
xoN: What was it that he did to make you feel like that?
Jenna Nia: It was the chemistry, it was like magic. It was a feeling. It wasn’t even anything he did. Honestly, we had a rocky start. You know how it is, they charm you but then you start finding out all kinda other stuff.
We had infidelity issues when we were young. So logically, I wanted to leave him alone, but my heart and mind just wouldn’t allow me to. Once there was nothing I could do to stop being crazy about him – I knew.
xoN: And what was it for you, Donay?
Donay: It was from spending time with her. I just knew. I literally didn’t like when she wasn’t in my presence. I knew she was my wife.
It was from spending time with her. I just knew. I literally didn’t like when she wasn’t in my presence. I knew she was my wife.
xoN: Okay, so you spoke a little bit about infidelity. What were some of your biggest challenges, and how did you navigate them?
Jenna Nia: He still doesn’t claim it, but I feel like he had a whole relationship he never told me about when we first got together. But we were only 25, and it was before we got married. It was him learning to be with one woman and in a serious relationship – it was truly growing pains.
Donay: Like I’ve told her before, I was young and knew I was playing with something serious. I knew how real she was and that what we had wasn’t something I could just find again.
xoN: You mentioned family, what are some of your other shared values?
Donay: I’d have to say our lifestyle.
Jenna Nia: That’s really the best way to sum it up. We both have the same craving for nice things, luxury, and financial freedom. When it comes to how we want to live our life, we’re both action-oriented and proactive to obtain that lifestyle.
xoN: This is everything. But I mean, do y’all fight? What are some of the things you argue over?
Donay: (Laughs) We both are very strong-minded.
Jenna Nia: We fight the most over business. We own our businesses together, and there's so many moving parts. Sometimes, we don’t agree over stuff or have different approaches. We don’t really have outside problems, though.
xoN: Finally, I’ll close with this. What are your favorite things about each other?
Jenna Nia: There’s a lot of things. He’s very much my eye candy. He’s a super Dad. He’s with the boys more than me. But overall, it’s his perspective on life. He’s extremely smart, but he also combines it with action. He’s going to make it happen. Everyone doesn’t always understand people who go that hard, but I do. It’s very sexy and makes me feel safe and protected.
Donay: First of all, she’s fine and beautiful; I can’t keep my hands off of her. But outside of that, it’s her mind, ambition, hustle, strength, and the way she thinks. I respect her mind so much. You don’t meet many people with a mind like hers.
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