Tamar Braxton hasn't made much of a secret of her personal struggles since she gained
notoriety in the early 1990s. In fact, her entire family has been exposed to some degree,
for better or worse. Here are the tragic details about Tamar's life.
Things got very messy between Tamar Braxton and Vince Herbert before their divorce was finalized
in 2019. In December 2017, Braxton accused her then-husband of getting another woman pregnant.
In an Instagram post, which has since been deleted, she boldly made the allegation,
claiming that she called Herbert to confront him. During the call,
Herbert was supposedly, quote, "begging and lying."
She also wrote:
"Ladies and gentlemen know that 2018 is a fresh
start and if I can leave this liar u can leave yours too."
"I can't believe …" "It happened." "That this is where Vince and I are."
Braxton didn't name names, though fans were quick to claim the woman
in question was former Basketball Wives star, Laura Govan, though Govan vehemently
shut down the speculation. She said on Power 105's The Breakfast Club:
"It's not true [...] I'm absolutely not [pregnant].
I don't even know Vince like that. No disrespect,
I think he's a great guy. But he's so not my type [...] I gotta type [and] that ain't it."
Both Herbert and Braxton spoke about the claims on The View in February
2018. Herbert denied he'd gotten another woman pregnant, and Braxton admitted she was wrong.
"It's just not true. I'm just not that kind of person. I love this lady with all my heart."
Braxton later said on the show:
"I believe him because I don't believe at this point he has
anything to lie about. I'm already gone, I already filed for divorce."
"I do air my dirty laundry, however, I've never been that specific.
I should have been specific enough to say, 'Well, this is what my so-called friends were saying.'"
In addition to the allegations of domestic abuse made against Vince Herbert,
Tamar Braxton herself has also been accused of being abusive. Things turned nasty with
her former boyfriend David Adefeso in August 2020 when TMZ reported that Adefeso filed a
restraining order against the singer and alluded to, quote, "a domestic violence situation."
A month later, TMZ claimed that Adefeso was granted a temporary restraining order
after their breakup, which was sparked by an alleged violent incident. Adefeso
claimed that Braxton allegedly got physical during an argument while he was driving.
He said that he pulled over and that Braxton allegedly began attacking the car.
"Here's the truth. I've been a victim of domestic violence, domestic assault."
However, Braxton denied all the allegations on the Tamron Hall Show in October 2020,
referencing her past allegedly abusive relationship with Herbert.
She told Hall:
"I am a survivor of a domestic violence relationship. [But]
not at any point was David and I in an abusive relationship."
The restraining order was dismissed in March 2021,
after neither Braxton nor Adefeso turned up in court for a hearing.
That same month, Braxton accused Adefeso of cheating in a tweet, after which TMZ
reported that his lawyers sent the star a cease-and-desist letter. Adefeso told the site:
"[My] former girlfriend continually made fabricated accusations about
our relationship and has now created a false narrative of an affair that never occurred."
Tamar Braxton has been open about her mental health struggles. As well
as speaking candidly about her suicide attempt,
she spoke openly about another diagnosis on the Tamron Hall Show in October 2020.
"I was lying about how amazing I was doing. And
I allowed the make-up and the hair to cover up everything that I was feeling."
Though Braxton noted that she does not take medication and relies on therapy, she also said:
"[I was] diagnosed with depression and anxiety due to a circumstance.
[I'm] not medicated, but I am in counseling every single day."
Braxton also touched on her battle with depression and anxiety on Instagram in July 2020.
She wrote:
"Mental illness is real. We have to normalize acknowledging it and stop associating it with
shame and humiliation. The pain that I have experienced over the past 11 years has slowly
[eaten] away at my spirit. [I'm] learning to grow through my pain instead of looking for an escape."
Braxton has also shared another personal health issue on an episode of The Real,
revealing that she has vitiligo.
"I don't want other people to see, to know about it. I used to sit on my hands."
Tamar Braxton made a shocking allegation in 2018 when she claimed that she had been
molested by members of her own family during an appearance on The Wendy Williams Show.
The star alleged that she had been abused by members of both sides of her family,
and admitted that she wasn't sure if she wanted to reveal that difficult part of her life. She said:
"I've been battling myself about whether or not I want to say really what happened
or not [...] I'm Tamar and I'm real, right? A lot of things happened in my
childhood that I was too afraid to talk about, or too ashamed to talk about. But
the truth of the matter is I have been molested by both sides of my family."
Braxton took to Instagram after the episode aired to share more
about the alleged molestation. She wrote in a now-deleted post:
"I decided to tell Wendy and the world my secret myself, that I have been a victim of
abuse not once, twice, ten, but multiple times by multiple 'family members' [and] I've never
told anyone other than two people in my life and they both have held this close to them."
If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse,
you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233 or TTY 1−800−787−3224.
You can also find more information, resources, and support at www.thehotline.org.
Tamar Braxton was riding high on season 21 of Dancing With the Stars in 2015,
but her stint on the show competing with professional dancer Val Chmerkovskiy - and
planned tour dates with singer Kem - were cut tragically short due to serious health issues.
Braxton made it pretty far on the show, and could potentially have gone all the way,
but had to pull out ahead of the quarter-finals after suffering from a pulmonary embolism.
Having to quit the show was clearly tough for Braxton, as she issued an emotional statement
on Instagram alongside a photo of herself in the hospital with Chmerkovskiy by her side.
The post has since been deleted, though Braxton wrote:
"With a heavy heart I regret to inform you that my season of Dancing with the
Stars has to come to an end […] After yesterday's final performance I went
back to the hospital only to find out that I don't have pneumonia but something way
more serious and that is having several blood clots in both sides of my lungs."
She added that it was too dangerous to continue, writing:
"I woke up to a mirror and saw myself this morning and that makes me the winner because that almost
wasn't the case. Take care of yourselves [...] I love you and thank you all for your support."
One of Tamar Braxton's most infamous lowlights came when she was let go from the daytime talk
show The Real in May 2016. The rumor mill went into overdrive with theories about why Braxton
was suddenly let go after only two seasons, as her co-hosts Tamera Mowry-Housley, Loni Love,
Jeannie Mai, and Adrienne Houghton all stayed on with the show as hosts as of April 2021.
Mowry-Housley decided to step back in July 2020.
The Daily Mail said there were some personal reasons for Braxton's departure,
alleging that she got negative feedback for her, quote, "'ghetto' persona,"
had complaints from advertisers, and didn't have the best behavior on set.
A focus group was allegedly conducted by the network, and it reported that:
"Most educated and working women found her to be 'ghetto' and that her aggressive eye-rolling,
neck-rolling, and the smacking of her mouth were indicative of 'stereotypical
behavior that African American women have worked years to overcome."
Tamar Braxton had her own theories on why she was let go from The Real in 2016. She
claimed on multiple occasions that her former co-host Loni Love had
something to do with her firing. Braxton also infamously cut ties with all of her co-hosts.
In a since-deleted Instagram post shared shortly after her firing, she wrote:
"I love u all but I have been stabbed in the back by someone I stupidly trusted,
not my man or my sisters."
In September 2019, she shared screenshots on Instagram of a
series of private messages from a friend who alleged that Love supposedly, quote,
"wrote [to] the network," asking for Braxton to be let go.
The post has been deleted and Love responded by denying the claims, saying:
"Who writes letters? Who sent this? [...] let's talk it out [...] stop
going on every other show. You know you want to [...] and bring ya man!!!"
The drama with The Real was clearly a lot for Braxton. She broke down during an extremely
candid June 2016 scene on Braxton Family Values, weeping on her sister Toni Braxton's shoulder.
"He just got off the phone with the production company at The Real and they said that
I was basically fired."
"I really, really, really, love my position at The Real. It was really
more about me being myself and expressing my life stories and what I've been through in
life with a bunch of ladies who I loved and really truly genuinely respected."
Braxton said she felt humiliated.
Though they've worked together for years, Tamar Braxton has a very up-and-down relationship with
her family members. In 2020, fans noticed that she'd unfollowed her sisters and her mother on
Instagram. Braxton confirmed, while speaking to Nick Cannon on Power 106 Los Angeles in June,
that she blamed their reality show for their estrangement.
She said:
"I don't feel like [fans] get anything positive from it. A lot of arguing and
fighting and shenanigans, and it's not what my parents raised and designed for our family."
It turns out, she wasn't the only one who felt that way. An October 2018
episode of the show saw the Braxtons undergo a group therapy session with spiritual life coach
Iyanla Vanzant. Tamar's sister, Toni, revealed the shocking statement:
"Although I love my family, most of the time I don't like my family.
Everyone in my family [...] If they weren't my family, they wouldn't be my friends."
Following her departure from the show, Braxton lashed out in October 2020 when she suggested
Braxton Family Values, and those associated with it, were using her suicide attempt for ratings.
Tamar Braxton didn't have the easiest time growing up in her famous family. Her father,
Michael Braxton, cheated on her mother, Evelyn Braxton, and the affair’s effect on the Braxton
sisters has been addressed on Braxton Family Values as well as in Tamar's music.
Tamar wrote her 2017 single "My Man" from the perspective of her mother:
a heart-wrenching ballad that tells the story of a woman discovering her husband
was having an affair with a friend. The singer admitted that she'd been able to
compartmentalize the situation to ensure she still has a relationship with her father.
She told Hip Hollywood:
"You have to realize it is not your relationship and it doesn't have anything to do with you. It's
not your business. Although you are the product of the relationship, it's not your relationship."
During a May 2017 episode of Braxton Family Values,
Tamar opened up about their strained relationship.
"I really love my dad but I'd be lying if I didn't admit to a little heartbreak. I mean,
I've forgiven my dad for everything, but I can still be in shock."
She admitted that she thought he was a good dad who, quote,
"made a few bad decisions" in his life.
And Tamar added:
"I do see a lot of effort my dad has made to be more present in me and my
sisters' lives now and that can go a long way in mending our relationship."
If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts,
please call or chat online with the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). Or Text HOME to the Crisis Text Line 741741.