Jada Pinkett Smith confirmed she had a romantic relationship with singer August Alsina, during a special Friday edition of Red Table Talk.
Pinkett Smith dedicated the entire episode of her Facebook Watch series to discussing Alsina’s claims that they had a romance, and her husband Will Smith approved of it.
“I felt like it was really important to come to the table to really clear the air,” Jada said.
“One of the reasons I wanted to come to the table is the media, the headlines,” added Will, as he sat across from his wife. “We specifically never said anything. Coming to the table, we just felt like it got to the point where you gotta say something.”
“I don’t like how all of this came to be, but that doesn’t matter. It’s all love,” Jada added.
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The 48-year-old wife and mom said the affair happened while she was going through a temporary separation from Will. Jada said she considered the situation private, until it “became very public.”
She promised to bring herself to the red table last week on Twitter, after Alsina, 27, said in a YouTube interview with radio host Angela Yee that Will had given him “his blessing” to have a relationship with Jada.
Alsina made the claim while discussing his new album The Product III: State of Emergency, along with a 5-part documentary series on his life, family and health problems. After Yee asked him about “the real situation” with Jada, he got emotional and said he had lost money and relationships because of rumors about Jada.
The actress and her husband have long been the subject of whispers in Hollywood that they have an open marriage.
On Friday’s episode of Red Table Talk, Jada appeared uncomfortable at times.
“So what happened, Jada?” Smith asked.
“About four and a half years ago… I started a friendship with August and we actually became really, really good friends,” Jada said. “And it all started with him just needing some help, me wanting to help his health, his mental state.”
Alsina has previously said he suffers from an autoimmune disease.
“The outpouring for him from our family was initially about his health,” Will said about Alsina.
“We found all those different resources to help pull him through and from there, you and I were going through a very difficult time,” Jada added.
“We decided that we were going to separate for a period of time,” Will explained.
“And then what did you do, Jada?” Will asked.
“As time went on, I got into a different kind of entanglement with August,” Jada said. “One thing I want to clean up… one of the things that was swirling in the press was about you giving ‘permission’ which is, the only person that can give permission in that particular circumstance is myself. But what I think August was trying to communicate … I think he also wanted to make it clear that he is not a homewrecker.”
The Smiths have been married since 1997 and have two children together, son Jaden, 22, and daughter Willow, 19.
Alsina has said he met Jada through her son in 2015.
Watch the episode of Red Table Talk below.
