{"id":1695,"date":"2024-10-03T07:29:53","date_gmt":"2024-10-03T11:29:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/realitytvshrine.com\/?p=357616"},"modified":"2025-02-07T16:59:24","modified_gmt":"2025-02-07T16:59:24","slug":"love-is-blinds-stephen-discovers-african-heritage-after-growing-up-and-identifying-as-white","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/2024\/10\/03\/love-is-blinds-stephen-discovers-african-heritage-after-growing-up-and-identifying-as-white\/","title":{"rendered":"Love is Blind&#8217;s Stephen discovers African heritage after growing up and &#8216;identifying as white&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Love is Blind star Stephen discovered he has African heritage after completing an ancestry test and spending his life identifying as white. He is now in an interracial relationship with Monica.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Stephen confesses to Monica early on about his past relationship mistakes and regrets \u2014 admitting to being unfaithful and also being cheated on. That&#8217;s not all the <a href=\"https:\/\/realitytvshrine.com\/tag\/love-is-blind\">Love is Blind<\/a> star has to reveal, though.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-love-is-blind-s-stephen-discovers-heritage\">Love is Blind&#8217;s Stephen discovers heritage<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Stephen discovered he is partially West African after completing an ancestry test. Having identified as white his entire life, this came as a shock to the Netflix star, who was not allowed to discuss race in the pods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He tells Monica, who is half Honduran, half Black, about his heritage. Stephen wrote: &#8220;When you&#8217;re told for 30 something years you&#8217;re of a specific ethnicity by your own family, you tend to believe it.&#8221; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;No matter how off it felt, it was more of a &#8220;Oooh this makes sense&#8221; moment in life,&#8221; he added. On his Dad&#8217;s side, his grandmother on his Dad&#8217;s side, who is German, told them his Dad&#8217;s side was Italian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>RICH: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/realitytvshrine.com\/shows\/love-is-blinds-leo-braudy-inherited-huge-wealth-after-triple-family-tragedy\">Love Is Blind\u2019s Leo Braudy inherited huge wealth<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-he-enters-interracial-relationship\">He enters interracial relationship<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>After hearing of his ancestry, Monica sees Stephen\u2019s curiosity and openness to learn more about his culture as an important foundation for the interracial couple once they meet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He told Monica: &#8220;I grew up thinking I got some flavor, I&#8217;m Italian. I was so proud. Fast-forward a few years ago, my sister does an Ancestry.com, the closest we have is 0.3 percent broadly European.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Stephen found out his ancestry is mostly Nigerian, Congolese, and primarily a lot of West Africa. &#8220;My Dad is 3\/5 Black. I pretty much thought I was white, and it turns out I&#8217;m not even Italian,&#8221; he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-instagram wp-block-embed-instagram\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DAohV7mIW5n\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:640px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DAohV7mIW5n\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><p style=\" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DAohV7mIW5n\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;\" target=\"_blank\">A post shared by Strong Black Lead (@strongblacklead)<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/blockquote><script async src=\"\/\/platform.instagram.com\/en_US\/embeds.js\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><em>WATCH LOVE IS BLIND ON NETFLIX NOW<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>TRAGEDY: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/realitytvshrine.com\/shows\/love-is-blinds-pageant-queen-morgans-ex-passed-away-two-months-after-she-moved-to-dc\">Love is Blind\u2019s Morgan\u2019s ex passed away<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Love is Blind star Stephen discovered he has African heritage after completing an ancestry test and spending his life identifying as white. He is now in an interracial relationship with Monica. Stephen confesses to Monica early on about his past relationship mistakes and regrets \u2014 admitting to being unfaithful and also being cheated on. That&#8217;s [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":249734182,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1358],"tags":[1528,1438],"class_list":["post-1695","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-love-is-blind","tag-netflix"],"acf":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/realitytvshrine.com\/realityshrine\/2024\/10\/03\/love-is-blinds-stephen-discovers-african-heritage-after-growing-up-and-identifying-as-white\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Love is Blind&#8217;s Stephen discovers African heritage after growing up and &#8216;identifying as white&#8217;","url":"http:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/2024\/10\/03\/love-is-blinds-stephen-discovers-african-heritage-after-growing-up-and-identifying-as-white\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/2024\/10\/03\/love-is-blinds-stephen-discovers-african-heritage-after-growing-up-and-identifying-as-white\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":""},"articleSection":"News","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Celine Byford"}],"creator":["Celine Byford"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Reality Shrine","logo":"https:\/\/realitytvshrine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/cropped-mX3_1x3z.png"},"keywords":["love is blind","netflix"],"dateCreated":"2024-10-03T11:29:53Z","datePublished":"2024-10-03T11:29:53Z","dateModified":"2025-02-07T16:59:24Z"},"rendered":"<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"wp-parsely-metadata\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"headline\":\"Love is Blind&#8217;s Stephen discovers African heritage after growing up and &#8216;identifying as white&#8217;\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/thetab.com\\\/realityshrine\\\/2024\\\/10\\\/03\\\/love-is-blinds-stephen-discovers-african-heritage-after-growing-up-and-identifying-as-white\\\/\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/thetab.com\\\/realityshrine\\\/2024\\\/10\\\/03\\\/love-is-blinds-stephen-discovers-african-heritage-after-growing-up-and-identifying-as-white\\\/\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"url\":\"\"},\"articleSection\":\"News\",\"author\":[{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"name\":\"Celine Byford\"}],\"creator\":[\"Celine Byford\"],\"publisher\":{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"name\":\"Reality Shrine\",\"logo\":\"https:\\\/\\\/realitytvshrine.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/02\\\/cropped-mX3_1x3z.png\"},\"keywords\":[\"love is blind\",\"netflix\"],\"dateCreated\":\"2024-10-03T11:29:53Z\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-10-03T11:29:53Z\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-02-07T16:59:24Z\"}<\/script>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/realitytvshrine.com\/p.js"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1695","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/249734182"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1695"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1695\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7445,"href":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1695\/revisions\/7445"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1695"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1695"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thetab.com\/realityshrine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1695"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}