Halle Bailey is a mother! The Little Mermaid star announced the birth of her first child, a son, on Saturday. She shares the baby boy with her boyfriend, rapper Darryl Dwayne Granberry Jr., also known as DDG.
“Even though we're a few days into the new year, the greatest thing 2023 could have done for me was give me my son,” Bailey wrote on Instagram, sharing a photo of the newborn's hand holding a gold bracelet with name tag. “Welcome to the world, my halo 🥰👼🏽 ✨The world is dying to get to know you 😉🤣♥️”
On his page, DDG shared the same picture with the caption: “My biggest blessing by far 👶🏽❤️ son son…never been so in love 🥹 baby halo.”
He also added the post to his Instagram story with the note: “The most flying child in the universe has arrived.”
DDG / Instagram
Halle, 23, and DDG, 26, have been linked since January 2022 and publicly confirmed their relationship two months later.
The couple never publicly announced the pregnancy, as Halle only covered up her baby bump in an elaborate ruffled dress at the premiere of her film The Color Purple last month.
Halle Bailey attends the world premiere of Warner Bros.' “The Color Purple” at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on December 6, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. -Kayla Oaddams/WireImage
News of the birth comes more than four months after her older sister Chloë Bailey appeared to respond to speculation that her sister was pregnant in an Instagram Live. Several of the younger Bailey's outfit choices fueled fans' suspicions that the singer was hiding her pregnancy.
“You'd better keep my sister's name out of your mouth,” Chloë quipped, which many interpreted as a response to the ongoing rumors. “Thanks. Amen, Hallelujah.” She continued. “I want to be fucking upset. Anyway…”
Someone off camera chimed in and said: “We’re not playing over Halle.” To which Chloë replied: “No. What the hell? Point.”
Halle Bailey (R) and her boyfriend DDG attend a basketball game between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors at Crypto.com Arena on December 14, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. -Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images
DDG is best known for starting his YouTube channel in 2014 before beginning to make music in 2016. He signed with Epic Records in 2018 and founded his own record label Zooted Music in 2020 with long-time managers Eric O'Connor and Dimitri Hurt.
Although Halle has expressed her preference for keeping her personal life private, and she and DDG have openly praised each other in interviews and shared affectionate videos on social media, their relationship has come under scrutiny since going public and has been the subject of rumors and Separation speculation.
The rapper faced criticism after premiering his song “Famous” in July. In the song, DDG raps about his own insecurities while in a relationship with a high-profile woman and appears to shame Halle for “kissing” and “holding hands” with a co-star during filming.
The artist also struggles with the attention he feels his girlfriend receives from other men in real life. He says he wants to leave her but is “too clingy” and calls her “the girl I claim.”
Notably, Halle was photographed holding hands with her The Mermaid co-star Jonah Hauer-King, who played Prince Eric, on the red carpet at the London premiere of her film in May. The The couple's close friendship was highlighted while their promotional tour for the film and caused a stir among the fans who praised their chemistry on social media.
The release of the song brought back memories among fans of an incident involving X users (formerly Twitter). claimed to have exposed DDG's alleged “burner” account, which responded negatively to tweets about Halle and Hauer-King. The rumors emerged on the social media blog The Pop Tingz report on the couple's alleged separationand takes a dig at the Michigan-born personality by describing him as an “E-List rapper.”
While neither star has publicly commented on the rumors – although the rapper did make a TikTok video about how “people” want him to react – DDG dismissed notions of a breakup by speaking out during a livestream where he met Halles performance live, expressed his support for the actress's performance of The Little Mermaid's “Part of Your World” during an episode of American Idol. In a video from the livestream, DDG sings along to the lyrics and does his best to match Halle's vocal runs.
Despite the rumors, Halle has never let up in her public praise for her boyfriend. The Color Purple star spoke to ET at the opening of Pandora's Lab Grown Diamond District during New York Fashion Week, where she chatted about the joys of falling in love as a young woman.
Halle wasn't interested in addressing the public's opinion on her relationship with the media personality and rapper. When asked about her boyfriend, she gushed, “There are many things.” [about DDG] That makes me so happy.”
Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images
“I think the really cool thing about love and being young is that you can just live and have a good time,” she says. “But my personal life is something I hold sacred.”
She expressed similar sentiments in a recent interview for Cosmopolitan's STYLE issue, where Halle confessed that her relationship with DDG was more than just puppy love to her.
“Any musical inspiration really just comes from life experiences. Love was a really big topic for me too because it's something I'm experiencing for the first time and it's like 'whoa' in my brain. It's just fireworks, a spark of creativity. You know, you've experienced puppy love, you think that's love. But this is my first deep, deep, real love,” she told the magazine.
“I just live my life the way I want to live it and turn off my phone if I don't like what people say online,” she added. “But I also think that what I'm going through as a young woman is really a good fuel for my creativity. That’s why I focus on incorporating the life experiences I have into the art I create.”
“It’s really funny the way people look at you [as] “I'm still that young girl, still that innocent, untouchable thing,” Halle previously told Glamor in May. “I appreciate being able to make my own decisions as I move into adulthood.” For my peace and sanity, I need to keep this a secret.
Congratulations to the new parents!
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