Da Brat has opened up about her long journey to living authentically, revealing in a recent interview that she remained “in the closet forever” before finding love with her wife, Jesseca “Judy” Dupart.
Speaking on the “Speak On It” podcast, the “Funkdafied” artist discussed the heavy silence that governed her personal life for decades. Da Brat explained that during the height of her career, discussing one’s sexuality was considered strictly taboo, leading her to prioritize privacy over transparency. “Like we didn’t tell shit,” the rapper said during the interview. “We ain’t supposed to talk about shit. You can keep that shit to your motherfucking self.”
“It Wasn’t Cool..”
This reflection follows previous comments the artist made on a podcast earlier this year. In that discussion, she admitted that being an openly queer female artist was previously viewed as a career-ending move. She noted that such transparency “wasn’t cool back in the day” and was effectively “against the rules” for women in the music industry.
The shift in her perspective came after meeting Dupart. The couple dated for five years before marrying in 2022. Da Brat said that while she had been in relationships before, her connection with Dupart was the first time she felt a desire to share her happiness with the world regardless of the consequences. “I never really met anybody that made me want to be out loud,” she said. “Not until I met this one, ‘cause then I felt some feelings and some things that I had never felt before.”
The couple has since expanded their family, welcoming a son, True Legend, who was born via IVF. Da Brat’s decision to go public has been met with significant support from fans, marking a new chapter for the hip-hop pioneer who once felt forced to hide her identity to maintain her status in the industry.
Now 51, the rapper said she reached a point where she no longer cared about the industry’s unspoken mandates. Her current outlook focuses on visibility, stating that she wanted to show everyone how happy she had finally become.