Keke Palmer's Boyfriend Darius Jackson Opens Up About Their Romance and Feeling Overwhelmed at Times
Before Darius Jackson seemingly imploded his relationship with Keke Palmer when he shamed her for wearing a sexy outfit at an Usher concert, the (former?) couple appeared to be on the same page when it came to maintaining the privacy of their relationship.
That much they agreed on in the latest episode of Baby, This is Keke Palmer Wondery podcast, which was recorded before Jackson found himself embroiled in controversy, forcing him to delete his Twitter account and delete all of his previous Instagram posts with Palmer (except for this one) from his account. They also no longer follow each other on Instagram.
In that episode -- featuring Keke's mom, Sharon -- the 29-year-old actress asked Jackson how he felt at first about making their relationship public. Jackson spoke about the angst he felt, at least at first.
"At first, it definitely was hard because it could all be very overwhelming," Jackson said. "It was definitely overwhelming and intense at first."
Palmer agreed saying, "It was."
"And it's like, you almost feel that pressure of needing to be perfect. And so, it really confused me and infiltrated my mind because not only did I have to hold myself to that perfect standard, I was also holding you to a perfect standard as well," he continued. "So, any moment of flaw on my side or on your side it was World War III because it's like, man, now the world sees us."
Palmer spoke about the importance of maintaining the privacy of the relationship, whether it's with Jackson or with her mother, who has been married to Larry for 35 years. And with such a longevity in her marriage, Sharon dished some advice.
"How you maintain relationships is never lose respect," Sharon said. "Gotta watch what you say. There's a line, don't cross those lines. You have to have respect."
Sharon then went on to tell Jackson she loves him and thinks he's "a great dad" and that she's happy for her daughter."
"Life is good," Palmer added.
Palmer and Jackson, who met in 2021 and welcomed their son, Leodis, in February, thrust themselves into a national conversation after she posted photos of herself at Usher's Las Vegas residency show wearing a sheer black dress over a matching thong bodysuit.
Jackson shamed Palmer for wearing the outfit, in a tweet that featured a viral video of Palmer and the singer embracing while the R&B singer serenaded the Nope actress with his hit, "There Goes My Baby."
"It’s the outfit tho.. you a mom," Jackson wrote.
The backlash was swift, but he doubled down before deleting his Twitter account.
"We live in a generation where a man of the family doesn't want the wife & mother to his kids to showcase booty cheeks to please others & he gets told how much of a hater he is," the former personal trainer tweeted. "This is my family & my representation. I have standards & morals to what I believe."
"I rest my case," he added.
Palmer later spoke out for the first time, by sharing a video of her singing a rendition of Stevie Wonder's "Isn't She Lovely" to her baby boy.
"One thing is certain and one thing is true, IM A MOTHA, through and through!" Palmer captioned the post, before revealing that she's now selling shirts that read "IM A MOTHA" and "Stevie to the bulls**t."
"To all my mom’s out there, how did your baby change you??" Palmer questioned. "Mine empowered me! On such another level, my perspective changed because when my baby is good I'm GREAT! Look at that face! Gratitude galore."
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