Do they ever cross your mind? Brian McKnight went viral this weekend for seemingly erasing his Black children and starting “Back At One” with a second son named Brian McKnight.
Source: Press / Brian McKnight
Yikes! The R&B singer didn’t hide his new growing family or ongoing issues with his older children but the extent of his family drama wasn’t exactly common knowledge until social media sleuths raised questions about some shady captions. While McKnight’s celebrity seeds aren’t automatically the public’s business, his now-deleted captions made it everyone’s business.
Brian McKnight Names His “Namesake” Newborn Brian McKnight Despite Already Having A Son Named Brian McKnight Jr.
I just learned that Brian McKnight named his newborn Brian McKnight. He has an adult son named Brian McKnight Jr. This man is diabolical. pic.twitter.com/OntJNzJvIP
— Chloe (@TheMegaChloe) April 29, 2023
“I just learned that Brian McKnight named his newborn Brian McKnight. He has an adult son named Brian McKnight Jr. This man is diabolical,” the first viral tweet about the issue read.
Brian McKnight disowned his biological kids? Has named his new son Brian (“My NAMESAKE”) but his eldest son is Brian McKnight Jr. This has gotten so messy! #brianmcnight #brianmcknight pic.twitter.com/6VTzPGwdaA
— K E M P I R E 🐘 (@TheKempire) April 30, 2023
McKnight’s defenders pointed out that celebs like George Foreman and Boyz II Men’s Wanya Morris named multiple children after themselves but that still doesn’t explain the over-the-top captions that make it seem like he’s never had a wife or kids before marrying Leilani Mendoza in 2017.
Chile, so Brian McKnight abandoned his black children for an Asian woman who was already a single mother. Started taking care of her children like his own. Uses her children to sub his black children in ig posts. Named his son with her junior but already has a junior. A mess!
— CeeCee Mari (@MariCeeCee98) April 30, 2023
Many thought the posts laid it on too thick to be anything but deliberate shade toward his other family. The singer seemed to confirm the trolling by swiftly deleting the lengthy captions and shutting down the comments.
Unfortunately for the soulful singer, however, screenshots are forever!
“Dear Baby Brian (the third?), everytime I look at you and kiss on you, I’m feeling feelings that I did not know I could possess, an over abundance of love between a father and his legacy that cannot be measured,” McKnight previously wrote.
“I realized my true reason for being here on earth… to create the legacy of that love, my NAMESAKE, my JOY my baby boy, YOU!!” he concluded.
Interviewer: “Congratulations on the latest addition. How does it feel to be a father raising Black—”
Brian McKnight: pic.twitter.com/dpWEal7Tjj
— Kar (@karlogan_) April 30, 2023
That man is a menace. Man was already 4 kids in and said this… https://t.co/sVVzGIED5I pic.twitter.com/Sq5bxq795f
— Lo (@solodeauxleaux) April 30, 2023
This would be so sweet if he didn’t have two sons, Brian McKnight Jr., and Niko, with his wife of 13 years, Julie. He also has a daughter and son, Briana and Clyde, from previous relationships.
“1… my interracial dream came true, 2… I never fathered you, 3… Bri it’s clear to see, you’ve become to dark for me” #brianmcknight pic.twitter.com/L6yU6GncpR
— GTY Club (@FZAFootball) May 1, 2023
The online antagonism was much “More Than Words”, however, social media sleuths noted that the 53-year-old announced the pregnancy of the second Brian Jr. on the first Brian Jr.’s birthday, November 10.
My son brian jr is 25 today hard to believe time really flies and although we barely see eye to eye… http://t.co/LfNISYn84q
— Brian McKnight (@ItsBMcKnight) November 10, 2014
Another Twitter user already spotted that his bio only acknowledged Leilani’s children, even though they’re not all biologically his.
Brian McKnight not claiming his Black kids is insane. pic.twitter.com/eZ41VY2Bfk
— Tamantha 👸🏾 (@Tamantha_5) May 10, 2022
Check out Brian McKnight’s comments about his “perfect daughter” (who isn’t one of his biological daughters) after the flip.
