Wayne Brady used his new Freeform reality series, Wayne Brady: The Family Remix, to share surprising news — he secretly welcomed a son. During the season 1 premiere, which aired on Wednesday, July 24, Brady, 52, opened up about his blended family with ex-wife Mandie Taketa, their daughter Maile, and Taketa’s partner, Jason Michael Fordham.
Brady admitted, “My family is everything to me, but there are some things I’ve never told anybody outside of this immediate family. Like, I happen to have a 6-month-old son that people don’t know about.” Brady revealed that his son, Val Henry, was born from a relationship with ex-girlfriend Tina.
Brady, who previously came out as pansexual, explained the timeline of Val’s arrival, stating, “Tina and I dated during the pandemic on and off, and then we broke up. Wayne Brady has a kid and he has two baby mamas.”
Wayne Brady’s Family Shock
Taketa shared her reaction, saying, “This is what happened. Tina and Wayne had been broken up a year. Then [his] grandma Val passes away, so we go to her funeral in the Virgin Islands, then we come back. Something happened — you fill in the blank. Then two weeks later we get a phone call from Tina that she’s pregnant with Wayne’s baby.”
Brady acknowledged his shock, noting, “When I first found out that Tina was pregnant, I was floored. It was not on my bingo card. A 51-year-old dad? I didn’t see it coming. So was I happy? No. Because I was in shock.”
Despite being able to co-parent smoothly with Taketa, Brady faced uncertainty about his relationship with Tina and their child. “Tina and I have to do this co-parenting thing and the conversation has to start at some point, right?” he asked. “I’m in uncharted territory. How do I co-parent with this person that I am not with and make this work?”
Brady and Taketa’s daughter Maile was also affected by the news. Taketa explained, “We didn’t want Maile to know about the pregnancy because we knew how she felt about Tina. Maile will say she warned Wayne about this happening.”
Brady’s decision to share these personal details on his reality show marks a significant step in his journey. “Saying out loud some of the truths that I have is scary. I have a lot to lose. I have a reputation,” Brady concluded. “I have my family’s income — all of these things could go away tomorrow.”
Wayne Brady: The Family Remix airs on Freeform Wednesdays at 10:00 p.m. ET and is available to stream on Hulu the next day.