Keke Palmer has responded to speculation about her relationship status with Darius Jackson, the father of her 7-month-old son Leodis Andrellton Jackson.
When asked whether she and Jackson are still together on TODAY with Hoda & Jenna Sept. 25, Palmer gave a short answer to co-hosts Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager.
“I'm going to take a page out of Beyoncé's book: Mind y’all's business," she responded.
Jenna asked Palmer if she's happy.
"Yes, life is good," she answered. "I have nothing but gratitude, honestly. Seriously."
Palmer said she and Jackson attended Beyoncé's concert together on the singer's birthday, Sept. 4, in Los Angeles.
They welcomed Leodis in February, more than a year after the pair were first romantically linked.
In July, the pair's relationship status became unclear after Jackson came under fire for publicly shaming Palmer for wearing a sheer dress to an Usher concert.
The Emmy winner posted a series of cheeky social media posts following Jackson’s critique. A month later, she had one heck of a surprise cameo in Usher's video for his song "Boyfriend."
Though Palmer and Jackson hadn't been spotted in public together for weeks, and neither had publicly addressed their relationship status, fans speculated that the two were still an item in August after Jackson sent a shoutout to Palmer in honor of her 30th birthday from his X account, which appears to be currently disabled or deleted.
Read on for a timeline of the ups and downs of the pair's romance.
Palmer reveals she's expecting on 'SNL'
The former "Scream Queens" star, who was first linked to Jackson in 2021, revealed she was expecting when she debuted her baby bump while hosting "Saturday Night Live" in December 2022.
“I gotta say. It’s bad enough when people spread rumors about you but it’s even worse when they’re correct,” she joked during her opening monologue. “I mean, I was trying to keep it so hard to keep it on the down low because I have a lot of stuff going on. People kept coming up to me, ‘Congratulations?’ I’m like, ‘Shh! Can y’all stop? I have a liquor sponsorship on the line!’ Once the check clears, then we can get to the damn baby shower!”
“This has been the biggest blessing,” she added.
The couple welcome a son in February
Palmer announced in February that she and Jackson had welcomed a son named Leodis when she shared an Instagram slideshow filled with images and video of the pair and their baby boy at the hospital.
Jackson blasts Palmer for wearing a sheer dress at an Usher concert
On July 5, Jackson angered Palmer's fans when he blasted her for wearing a black bodysuit under a sheer black dress when she appeared on stage with Usher at his Las Vegas residency show.
The fitness YouTuber responded to a video on X, formerly known as Twitter, of Palmer at the performance from his account, which appears to be currently disabled or deleted, writing, “It’s the outfit tho.. you a mom.”
Jackson later posted a statement defending his comments.
“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,” he wrote. “This is my family & my representation. I have standards & morals to what I believe. I rest my case.”
Palmer shares cheeky pics and a video
Though Palmer never directly addressed Jackson's comments, she followed them up by sharing photos of herself dressed in the ensemble on Instagram July 5.
“I wish I had taken more pictures," she wrote in her cheeky caption.
Palmer later shared a video on July 8 of herself holding Leodis as she sang “Isn’t She Lovely” by Stevie Wonder. “One thing is certain and one thing is true, IM A MOTHA, through and through!”
“To all my mom’s out there, how did your baby change you?? 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,” she wrote.
Jackson says their relationship is ‘not perfect’
The couple opened up about their relationship on the July 11 episode of Palmer’s podcast, “Baby, It’s Keke Palmer.”
During the episode, which was recorded prior to Jackson criticizing Palmer’s clothing, the couple agreed that conducting a romance in the public eye had been “overwhelming” and “intense” at first.
“It’s like, you almost feel that pressure of needing to just be perfect,” Jackson said. “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.”
“Because it’s like, ‘Man, you know, we’re not perfect,’” he added.
Palmer’s mom, Sharon Palmer, praised Jackson for being so candid and revealed that she thinks he’s “awesome” and a “great dad” to the couple’s son.
Palmer makes a surprise cameo in Usher's video
A little more than a month after Jackson slammed her for wearing the sheer dress, Palmer made a surprise cameo in Usher's video for his new song "Boyfriend."
The sultry video, which dropped Aug. 16, includes scenes of Palmer sipping champagne while Usher stood shirtless in a room.
At the very end of the video, Palmer is seen on the phone saying, “I’m so tired.”
“I’m a mother ... after all,” she adds with a wink.
As for Usher, he referred to the controversy involving Palmer and Jackson during an August interview with People.
“I think everybody’s vision or a version of what they felt happened there just leads you back to just really having a good time in Las Vegas,” he said. “And that’s what I hope came out of it. Rather, it was a conversation of what was going on with us having fun in front of the audience or conversation about that song.”
Jackson shares a sweet birthday tribute to Palmer
Though they hadn't been seen in public together for more than a month, and neither had addressed their relationship status, Jackson sent a sweet tribute to Palmer in honor of her 30th birthday on Aug. 26.
The YouTube star posted a video to X, formerly known as Twitter, that showed Palmer kissing baby Leodis on the cheek. However, the video isn’t viewable as Jackson's account appears to be currently disabled or deleted.
“Happy Birthday to a one of a kind being,” he wrote in the caption.
He added, “Hoping your 30s brings you many joys & triumphs!”