When it comes to Keke Palmer’s boyfriend and dating history, the actress has usually kept things pretty close to the chest. Known for her big personality on-screen, she’s been notably more reserved about her romantic life off-screen—but, we’ve done some digging into her past relationships up ahead.
Related: Keke Palmer Filed a Restraining Order Against This Ex
Palmer has been pretty clear about her philosophy when it comes to matters of the heart. In a March 2020 interview with Harper’s Bazaar, she shared, “I’ve always had the same philosophy when it comes to dating. Not that I wouldn’t give someone a try. But trying to keep my private life outside of my work life, to me, it’s easiest when you don’t date someone with the same career.” She went on to express her concerns about authenticity in relationships, saying, “I think a lot about, like, does this person really like me for me? And it’s not just romantic relationships. It’s friends too. That wavering, that’s the most traumatic thing about fame.”
Interestingly, Palmer’s views on relationships seem to have evolved over time. In a TikTok post from December 2021, she captioned, “I don’t believe in girlfriend and boyfriend. I’m single till we married. Let’s just kick it love 🙄” This approach to dating might explain why some of her relationships have been hard to pin down.
For everything we know about Keke Palmer’s boyfriend and dating history, keep on reading ahead!
In 2018, Ben J from the New Boyz claimed he dated Palmer when she was 16. “That was my girl,” he said in an interview. “I could have made it serious if I was serious about it, but I just felt like she was too young.” It’s worth noting, however, that Palmer never confirmed this relationship, so we’re taking this one with a grain of salt.
Palmer’s relationship with manager Rodney King seems to be one of her longer-lasting romances. While she didn’t shout it from the rooftops, she did subtly confirm they were an item during a 2012 appearance on Sway In The Morning. When asked about moving in with King in Atlanta, she denied it but confirmed that they lived together in Los Angeles.
King, for his part, seemed unfazed by the public attention, saying, “I don’t pay attention to it, I think it’s funny.” Palmer added some context to how they met, saying, “We met through one of his friends. I did a movie with one of his friends,” referring to 2007’s Jump In.
Palmer’s relationship with rapper YG in 2014 ended on a sour note. In a since-deleted YouTube video, she revealed that YG had cheated on her and was expecting a baby with someone else. “Seen Keenon tonight,” she said in her journal. “Learned he has a baby on the way. So deeply heartbroken.” She continued, “I guess I can now start the process of letting this man go in that way. He and I are clearly just meant to work. The respect is there but our personal lives are just not lined up. I hate that I care and I’m into him still. I truly just wish I wasn’t.”
In the winter of 2016, Palmer was reportedly spotted getting cozy with Ty Dolla $ign. An insider told BET at the time they were seen “at LeJardin last night kissing.” However, this seems to have been a brief fling rather than a serious relationship.
Palmer’s relationship with musician Styn was a bit more public. The two were spotted on each other’s respective social media pages and even went on a coffee date in 2019. In November 2020, they collaborated on a song called “Want Me to Be.”
While Palmer didn’t name names, she did gush about her love life to Page Six at the time of their relationship, saying, “Yes, you know I have some love in my life, you know there’s some love there.” She added, “You know, it’s not a love life if I share with you because it’s public. So at the end of the day, just know your girl Kekes is not lonely—ever!”
Palmer’s relationship with Darius Jackson was her most public to date. The couple went Instagram-official in August 2021, with Palmer sharing (and later deleting) photos from her 28th birthday party organized by Jackson. She captioned the post, “It’s the details for me. Nobody was on they phones, we had that before MySpace feeling…. I’m so happy. Awesome Birthday, so grateful.”
In March 2022, she opened up to Bustle about going public with the relationship, saying, “I just think [this] was a moment in time in my life where I really stepped into this kind of boss behavior [of doing] whatever the hell I want to do. This is the happiest I’ve ever felt with someone. So why would I go out of my way to hide this person? That’s a lot more work than just living in my life and being in my life.”
Palmer’s affection for Jackson was evident in a January 2023 post where she wrote, “It’s so cringy writing a birthday post for you because the love is so sacred. It almost feels asinine to try to share or give a glimpse into something that only we could understand. I can share most things so easily, but not you.”
Jackson reciprocated these feelings in August 2021, writing on Instagram, “You’ve been a blessing from above. Never would have expected summer 2021 to turn out the way it did, but here we are. I’m glad we were able to help each other throughout our lowest of times & show one another that what we are bringing to the table is everything that we got.”
In December 2022, Palmer revealed that she was expecting a child with Jackson during an appearance on Saturday Night Live. The pair went on to welcome their first child, a son named Leodis Andrellton Jackson, in February 2023.
Things appeared to being going well for the new parents until things took a dramatic turn in July 2023. Jackson publicly criticized Palmer’s outfit choice at an Usher concert in Las Vegas, tweeting, “It’s the outfit tho.. you a mom.” Facing backlash, he doubled down with another tweet: “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 added, “This is my family & my representation. I have standards & morals to what I believe. I rest my case.” These tweets were later deleted.
The relationship seemingly ended in October 2023. On November 9, 2023, Palmer took legal action, filing for a restraining order against Jackson and requesting sole custody of their eight-month-old son, Leodis. Court documents reviewed by People revealed that Palmer accused Jackson of domestic violence on multiple occasions throughout their two-year relationship.
In the court filing, Palmer stated that the relationship “finally ended for good” in October, “primarily due to the physical and emotional abuse [he] inflicted.”
