Deontay Wilder’s new girlfriend is Jarae, a singer and designer from Atlanta who stepped into the public eye at the Ring Awards in January 2025 — appearing alongside the boxer in matching fur coats at a gala in Manhattan. Since then, she has appeared on his social media, at film premieres, and in multiple affectionate posts that leave little doubt about where things stand between them.
Who Is Jarae? Everything Known About Wilder’s New Partner
Jarae describes herself as a singer and designer based in Atlanta. She maintains an active presence on social media, where she has shared multiple photos with Wilder including moments at public events and personal snapshots that signal a serious commitment. Her professional background straddles music and fashion, two industries with enough overlap to explain her polished, camera-ready presence at high-profile boxing events.
Beyond those broad strokes, Jarae has kept her personal history relatively private. She has not given formal interviews about the relationship, and Wilder himself has been characteristically low-key in how he has publicly addressed it — letting the Instagram posts speak for themselves.
One detail worth noting: some social media posts from early 2026 incorrectly identified Wilder’s companion as “Christy Lee.” That name appears to stem from a misattributed Facebook post. The name confirmed by EssentiallySports and consistent across multiple boxing news outlets is Jarae.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Name | Jarae |
| Profession | Singer and fashion designer |
| Based in | Atlanta, Georgia |
| First public appearance with Wilder | Ring Awards, Manhattan, January 2025 |
| Notable joint appearance | Premiere of Moses The Black with Wilder’s children |
The premiere of Moses The Black stands out as a particular milestone. Wilder brought Jarae alongside his children, a gesture that means something in the context of a man who has historically kept his personal relationships tightly guarded. He does not bring just anyone to events that involve his kids.
Deontay Wilder’s Complete Dating History
Wilder has had three well-documented relationships across nearly two decades of public life, producing eight children and enough headline material to keep boxing gossip columnists busy for years.
His earliest known relationship was with Helen Duncan, his partner from Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Their daughter Naieya was born in March 2005, and she has spina bifida. Wilder has spoken openly about Naieya being the reason he turned professional — needing money for her medical care, he entered his first boxing competition and kept going. That story has become central to how he presents himself publicly, equal parts father and fighter.
According to public records, Wilder married Jessica Scales in 2009. They had four children together before divorcing in 2017. The separation reportedly overlapped with the beginning of his relationship with Telli Swift, a reality TV personality and model who would become his most publicly visible partner.
Swift and Wilder got engaged in February 2018, at the gender reveal for their daughter Kaorii Lee Wilder. The engagement, the matching social media aesthetics, the joint TV appearances on WEtv’s WAGs Atlanta — this was the relationship that made him a figure in celebrity media rather than just sports media.
| Partner | Years Active | Children Together | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Helen Duncan | ~2003–2005 | Naieya Wilder (born March 2005) | Ended |
| Jessica Scales | 2009–2017 | 4 children | Divorced 2017 |
| Telli Swift | ~2015–2024 | Kaorii Lee Wilder (born 2018) | Split 2024, custody dispute ongoing |
| Jarae | 2025–present | None reported | Current relationship |
He also has two children whose mothers have not been publicly identified, bringing his total to eight. Wilder himself has acknowledged the number without providing detail on every relationship involved.
The Telli Swift Split: What Led to the Breakup
The end of the Telli Swift relationship was anything but quiet. In June 2024, Swift was granted a temporary restraining order against Wilder following allegations of domestic violence. The order came amid an active custody dispute over their daughter Kaorii Lee.
Wilder subsequently made public comments about the relationship, including statements about having financially supported Swift and her son Kerron from a previous relationship. The back-and-forth played out partly on social media and partly through legal filings, with both sides making allegations. As of early 2026, the custody situation has not been fully resolved in public reporting.
“Tonight’s main event at the O2 is a literal ‘Choose Your Fighter’ of red flags.”
— r/Boxing, April 2026 (0 upvotes, 25 comments). A community known for sharp, irreverent takes on the sport’s biggest personalities.
The Reddit boxing community, which rarely misses an opportunity to weigh in on a fighter’s personal life, has largely processed the Telli Swift drama as background noise at this point. By April 2026, with Wilder fighting Derek Chisora at London’s O2 Arena, the conversation had shifted back to what happens inside the ropes.
The eight-year arc with Swift produced one of the more public unravelings of a high-profile athlete relationship in recent boxing memory. What made it unusual was the mutual escalation online, a dynamic that contrasts sharply with how Wilder has handled Jarae, quietly, through selective appearances, without press releases or coordinated media moments.
Key Moments: Jarae and Wilder in Public
Jarae and Wilder have been photographed together at a series of public events since January 2025, starting with their debut at the Ring Awards in Manhattan and followed by an appearance at the Moses The Black premiere with Wilder’s children present.
The Ring Awards in Manhattan, January 2025, was the debut. Boxing’s version of an Oscars-adjacent gala, the event drew the sport’s major figures, and Wilder arrived with Jarae, both dressed in coordinated fur outerwear. For the boxing press, it registered as a signal: whoever this woman was, she was not a casual date.
The Moses The Black premiere followed later in 2025. Wilder brought both Jarae and his children to the event, a detail that distinguishes this appearance from purely professional or social outings. In Wilder’s world, the children’s presence at an event carries weight.
Beyond those anchor events, Jarae has appeared in multiple posts on Wilder’s Instagram, including photographs described by outlets as showing the couple kissing and spending time together in domestic settings. The cumulative picture is of a relationship that has moved past the early public debut stage into something more settled.
“[1196 upvotes on the KO post] The Bronze Bomber still hits hard.”
— r/Boxing, April 2026 (1,196 upvotes). Context: Wilder’s KO win in his April 2026 fight, around the time girlfriend coverage ramped up.
Deontay Wilder’s Eight Children
Wilder has eight children, a fact he discusses openly and with evident pride, though the details of every relationship involved are not all in the public record. Here is what is known.
| Child | Birth Year | Mother | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Naieya Wilder | 2005 | Helen Duncan | Has spina bifida; Wilder has cited her as his motivation to start boxing |
| 3 children (names not public) | Various | Jessica Scales | 2 daughters and 1 son publicly referenced during marriage |
| 1 additional child | Various | Jessica Scales | Fourth child from their marriage |
| Kaorii Lee Wilder | 2018 | Telli Swift | Born during Wilder/Swift engagement; subject of custody dispute |
| 2 children | Unknown | Not publicly identified | Wilder has acknowledged these children exist without naming mothers |
Naieya’s story occupies a specific place in Wilder’s personal mythology. When he was working as a delivery driver and considering whether to pursue boxing seriously, it was the cost of her medical care that made the decision for him. She has attended many of his fights, and he has pointed to her ringside at major bouts as a touchstone moment. That origin story has made his relationship with his children a consistent theme in how he represents himself publicly, which may explain why bringing Jarae to the Moses The Black premiere alongside them carried as much weight as any formal relationship announcement would have.
The Bigger Picture: Personal Life and Professional Comeback
By early 2026, Wilder had signed for a fight against Derek Chisora at London’s O2 Arena, and the boxing world was paying attention. After a difficult stretch that included losses to Tyson Fury and a period out of the spotlight, he was positioned as a comeback story, and the contrast with his tumultuous exit from the Telli Swift relationship was not lost on boxing journalists covering the lead-up.
Marca’s January 2026 report framing Wilder’s appearance at the Ring Awards as part of a fresh start was not accidental framing. The personal stability narrative and the professional comeback narrative arrived at roughly the same time, and the boxing media ran with both simultaneously.
Wilder beat Chisora in April 2026, his knockout finishing the fight in the kind of definitive fashion that generates 1,600-upvote Reddit threads and brief recalibration of where he stands in the heavyweight picture. Whatever is happening in his personal life, the punching power appears intact.
“Deontay Wilder vs. Derek Chisora, [SPOILER], 454 upvotes, 493 comments.”
— r/Boxing, April 4, 2026. A community that treats fight results with the same intensity it applies to fighter drama.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Deontay Wilder’s new girlfriend?
Deontay Wilder’s new girlfriend is Jarae, a singer and fashion designer from Atlanta. She first appeared publicly with Wilder at the Ring Awards in Manhattan in January 2025, where they arrived together wearing matching fur coats.
Is Christy Lee Deontay Wilder’s girlfriend?
No. The name Christy Lee circulated in early 2026 based on a misattributed Facebook post. Multiple verified reporting from boxing outlets, including EssentiallySports, identifies the girlfriend as Jarae, a singer and designer from Atlanta.
Is Deontay Wilder still with Telli Swift?
No. Wilder and Telli Swift ended their relationship in 2024 after approximately eight years together. In June 2024, Swift was granted a temporary restraining order against Wilder amid allegations of domestic violence. A custody dispute over their daughter Kaorii Lee was ongoing as of early 2026.
When did Deontay Wilder start dating Jarae?
The first confirmed public appearance of Wilder and Jarae together was the Ring Awards gala in New York, January 2025. How long they had been together before that public debut is not publicly known.
How many children does Deontay Wilder have?
Deontay Wilder has eight children. The known mothers are Helen Duncan (daughter Naieya, 2005), Jessica Scales (four children from their 2009-2017 marriage), and Telli Swift (daughter Kaorii Lee, born 2018). The mothers of his remaining two children have not been publicly identified.
Did Deontay Wilder marry Jarae?
There is no public reporting of a marriage between Wilder and Jarae. As of April 2026, they are in a relationship without any reported engagement or marriage announcement.
What does Jarae do for work?
Jarae describes herself as a singer and fashion designer based in Atlanta. She has maintained an active social media presence and has accompanied Wilder at high-profile public events since early 2025, but has not given public interviews about her professional projects or her relationship with Wilder.
What happened with Telli Swift’s restraining order against Wilder?
In June 2024, Telli Swift was granted a temporary restraining order against Deontay Wilder following allegations of domestic violence. The order was issued while a custody dispute over their daughter was active. The legal situation had not been fully resolved as of early 2026, based on available public reporting.
