Keke Palmer Welcomes Her Firstborn With Boyfriend Darius Jackson!

It’s already been nearly three months since KeKe Palmer surprised fans with her baby bump reveals on stage at Saturday Night Live on December 3rd of last year. Now, 48 hours after she welcomed her baby boy to the world, the Nope Star has shared pictures of the adorable 2-day-old on Monday afternoon on her Instagram page. Her excitement is hardly contained in her words as she kickstarts her post with a “Hey son!!!” and shares not one, but two pics of his face.

The little one is seen asleep in both pictures, with one having him placed side by side with an elephant plushie. These pics revealing his face came after others that featured baby Leo cradled in the arms of dada and mama. Teasing her followers and fans, she wrote 

“I’m not hiding the world from my son, I’m hiding my son from the world.” Hahaha

I’m just playing, my baby face is on this slide.

And sure enough, it is there! 

Leodis Andrellton Jackson, as the baby’s full name goes, had more cause to bring joy to the new parents. 

“Born during Black History Month, with a name to match 😄!”  penned Palmer referring to the month commemorating the people and events of the African diaspora in the United States.

What Are Keke Palmer’s Dreams For Baby Leo?

Palmer, last month during her podcast, Baby, This is Keke Palmer, had suggested they would have the name of the baby kept private until his birth. However, she did give hints on it to her eager fans: “It gives American. It gives a Black American storyline.” She added that they wanted a “nice, natural” name. “We’re not going for anything too unique. It’s not about to be Stone and Sand.”

The disbelief and anticipation are perceptible in the ‘newborn’ mother’s voice as she opens her Insta post welcoming baby Leo “Only 48hrs of being parents! 😳”

Recently, the Big Boss mother-to-be had taken on a new PepiCo brand commercial with 76ers star Tyrese Maxey, during her expecting days. Speaking about her son seeing the ad one day, Palmer had said, “Literally, he was with me while filming it,”.” I don’t think there is anything better than introducing something new”.

Talking about introducing something new, the delivery announcement of Palmer, born to a Catholic deacon’s father, also included a tribute to God who gifted her with the little miracle that had just come into her life.

“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! 😆” 

It was in November 2021 that Palmer made public her relationship with Darius Jackson who works as a fitness instructor at Inspire Fitness Studio. Jackso’s motivation to be an instructor according to the studio website is “to be an instructor is to help others and himself to stay in shape as he enjoys being in a team-oriented environment. It is also where he feels comfortable to be himself”.

Jackson, the no less excited father, had also celebrated the news of his and his wife’s unborn son by sharing a photo of the mom of his son-to-be on his Instagram Story from a dinner outing with the caption, “2023 ❤️.”

Palmer had subsequently made a subtle revelation of her baby’s gender on The Tonight Show.

“So, my baby is either going to be a Pisces or an Aries, I’m not sure exactly,” she said. “Pisces are known to be deep, very emotional creatures, so I just want to make sure I’m not too blunt for my baby boy. Sometimes I can be a little too ‘tell it like it is.’ I need to just wade in the water with a Pisces, just wade in the water. Keep it chill, child.” 

The film star and TV personality, later on, opened up about her parenting dreams for her son as a soon-to-be mom. Palmer said she wants to instill good values in him. She also asserted that honesty and kindness are the top two values she wishes her unborn child to live by.

“You can be both. You could tell someone the truth and even if it’s not gonna be something that makes them happy, you could be kind about it,” she says. “And [also] the importance of always being polite. Like, ‘Thank you, ma’am. Hello, sir.’ I just think there’s nothing better than someone showing respect.” an expecting Palmer had stated.

Further, Palmer said she couldn’t wait to introduce her son to her dad’s soul food –   

“Ain’t nothing like home-cooked soul food and my dad makes the best,” she says. “I’m very excited for him to get into those Chicago, Southern city meals. You know—little catfish, a side of spaghetti. I just want to see what he’s gonna think of all that. I don’t want him to have too bougie of a palate, child. No bougie palates over here,” she quipped.

As part of the #YouKnowMe(1) campaign in 2019, Palmer revealed on Twitter that she had had an abortion at the age of 24. Palmer has been open about her life-long struggle with polycystic ovary syndrome.

The “Big Boss” mother has now taken on a new role – perhaps the longest and most fulfilling in her life – that of motherhood. Her fans are certain that she will nail it, like every one of the characters she gave life to.