Who is Keke Palmer's boyfriend Darius Jackson? The DL on their relationship following their baby news

Want the lowdown on Keke Palmer's boyfriend? Here's everything we know about the actress' partner...

Keke Palmer's boyfriend: Keke pictured wearing a black and gold sparkly dress at the 2022 Met Gala, alongside a picture of Keke sitting on the lap of Darius Daulton Jackson as they attend the Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic Los Angeles at Will Rogers State Historic Park on October 02, 2021 in Pacific Palisades, California./ in a pink template
(Image credit: Getty Images/ (L) Theo Wargo/ (R) Gregg DeGuire)

Who is Keke Palmer's boyfriend, Darius Jackson? The Nope actress has just announced the birth of her first child, but what do we know about Keke Palmer's partner?

First things first, congratulations are in order for Keke and her boyfriend, Darius, as the pair have just welcomed their first child—a son—into the world! Keke (who fans are desperate to see make a cameo in Euphoria season 3) took to Instagram to announce the news, sharing a carousel of adorable snaps from inside the hospital, depicting the new parents cuddling their baby boy.

She wrote in the caption: "Hey Son!!!! Only 48hrs of being parents!" Adding, "Born during Black History Month, with a name to match 😄! LEODIS ANDRELLTON JACKSON, welcome to the world baby Leo."

Before also going on to share a swoon-worthy glimpse inside her relationship with Darius, saying: "Darius always made me playlists when we first started dating, “Someone” by El Debarge was a favorite. We became each other’s someone and made a someone, look at God!"

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This rare nod to her relationship definitely did not go unnoticed by fans, with many eager to know more about her love life.  So, while Shawn Mendes' girlfriend sitch continues to elude us, here's everything we know about Keke's boyfriend—from how they met, to his job and their exciting baby news!

Who is Keke Palmer's boyfriend, Darius? 

So, who is Keke Palmer's partner, exactly? Well, Darius Daulton Jackson is a fitness instructor at Inspire Fitness Studio and an actor, who previously played football in college (per his Inspire bio (opens in new tab)) and is also the brother of Good Trouble's Sarunas J. Jackson.

The pair met in 2021 and have now been together for two years, welcoming their first child together in February 2023.

Darius Jackson Keke Palmer relationship

So how did the pair meet? They reportedly started dating in May 2021, after meeting at Sean “Diddy” Combs’ Memorial Day party.

And while Keke has shared more about her boyfriend then any other past relationships—with the pair going Insta official in 2021—she initially kept things very much on the Q.T. In fact, she told Bustle (opens in new tab) in March 2022 about her decision to initially share their romance online 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.”

Before adding: “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. You know what I'm saying?”

Since then though, she's shared a number of tributes to him and insights into their relationship, especially since revealing to the world that they were expecting a baby, in December 2022!

While hosting Saturday Night Live, Keke announced that she was pregnant, while wearing an outfit that could definitely give Rihanna's pregnancy style a run for its money!

Then a few months later, to mark Valentine's Day, Keke treated fans to a TikTok video packed with selfies of her and Darius and a few intimate moments from her pregnancy. Prepare yourself for a cuteness overload...

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Darius also returned the favor, sharing a similarly romantic post to mark Love Day, posting a carousel with the caption: "Happy Valentine’s Day, mom. ❤️"

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She then announced the arrival of their son on Monday, February 27, 2023. Keke took to Instagram to share that she and Darius had welcomed a baby boy, who they've named Leodis Andrellton Jackson.

Is Keke Palmer married?

No, Keke is not married, though she previously shared this iconic video to her TikTok and Instagram (circa April 2021) with the caption: "Don’t believe in girlfriend and boyfriend. I’m single till I’m married. Let’s just kick it love."

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Keke Palmer dating history: who has Keke Palmer dated?

Well, much like with Meghann Fahy's dating history and Maude Apatow's boyfriend's sitch, Keke likes to keep her private life, well private.

Before making her relationship with Darius more public, she revealed that she wasn't really one for cheesy Insta posts or dedications, telling Harper's Bazaar (opens in new tab): "I don't really do relationship stuff online, mainly because I don't know how I would do it without looking, like, cheesy or something, you know? Yes, I'm a hundred percent authentic, but there is stuff that I do save for family and friends."

As for previous relationships, the actress has been linked to the likes of Meek Mill, Quincy Brown and Ty Dolla $ign, but there's never been much to go on rumor-wise. 

Really, until choosing to share her relationship with Darius, Keke has managed to swerve those pesky dating rumors like a pro.

Naomi Jamieson
Lifestyle News Writer

Naomi is a Lifestyle News Writer with the Women's Lifestyle team and has recently earned her Gold Standard diploma in Journalism with the NCTJ. She has a background in design, having studied Illustration at Plymouth University but has taken a leap into the world of journalism after always having a passion for writing. She currently writes pieces on beauty, trends, fashion, and entertainment for GoodTo and My Imperfect Life. She also tests and reviews beauty and skincare products and tries out the latest TikTok hacks for My Imperfect Life.


Before working for Future Publishing’s Lifestyle News team, she worked in the Ad production team. Here she wrote and designed adverts on all sorts of things, which then went into print magazines across all genres. Now, when she isn’t writing articles on celebs, fashion trends, or the newest shows on Netflix, you can find her drinking copious cups of coffee, drawing and probably online shopping.