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Tracee Ellis Ross might have fallen in love with her boss.
By Nicole Pomarico — Written on Apr 22, 2020
Workplace romances happen all the time, and it looks like this celebrity relationship might have began the same way — this time, on the set of a TV show.
According to reports from a few months ago, Tracee Ellis Ross is now dating Kenya Barris, the creator of Black-ish ... the same show she happens to star in.
Who is Tracee Ellis Ross' boyfriend, Kenya Barris?
You may know Barris as the co-creator of America's Next Top Model and the writer and producer of The Game. In 2014, he created the sitcom Black-ish, which starred Ross as the matriarch of the show's family.
The popular show produced a number of spin-offs, one of which focused on Ross's character. Now, Barris is launching yet another series, his first since he left ABC to work at Netflix. It's called #blackAF and it just premiered.
So, who is Tracee Ellis Ross' new boyfriend? Here's everything we know so far about Kenya Barris and their relationship.
There aren't many details, but Ross and Barris are reportedly dating.
Apparently, the original report claims "multiple sources" have said that they're in a relationship, and, unfortunately, there aren't many details out there other than that.
That's obviously not much to go on, but being that Ross and Barris are two single people who work together, it's not surprising to find out that they'd get involved romantically while working so closely together on the same show.
Who is Kenya Barris? He's best known for Black-ish.
Barris created the show and worked on it as a writer and producer until 2018 (as well as the spinoffs Grown-ish and Mixed-ish) when he left ABC Studios three years before his contract expired due to creative differences.
“It’s been an incredible ride, including a Peabody and Golden Globe win, Emmy nominations and many other accolades,” he said in a statement at the time. “They’ve allowed me to realize my dream of creating my own shows, and I’m so proud of the work we’ve done together.”
Barris has continued his TV career and is currently working with Netflix.
Since leaving ABC, Barris wrote the screenplay for the upcoming movies The Witches and Coming 2 America, and his latest project is #blackexcellence (which has been renamed #blackAF), a single-camera comedy for Netflix.
Parks & Recreation star Rashida Jones had also signed on to the project, and the show focuses on the family dynamic, largely based on Barris' own experiences as a parent.
Barris was married until August 2019.
Last year, Barris divorced his wife Rania "Rainbow" Barris after 20 years of marriage, which certainly came as a shock to some fans, being that the relationship between Dre (Anthony Anderson) and Bow (Ross) on the show was based on the ups and downs that the Barris family had faced as a married couple.
Since then, Barris appears to have remained single — at least, until now. Together, Barris and his ex-wife share six children.
Ross has always kept her relationships private.
When it comes to her personal life, Ross likes to keep things as private as possible. Considering that things between her and Barris are still so new, it's no surprise that so far, she's choosing to keep things close instead of speaking openly about them.
In fact, in a 2017 interview, Ross shared that she is very protective over what is "sacred" to her in her life.
"I don't make a decision [that] 'I will never talk about my relationships' or anything like that," she said at the time. "That's certainly not a decision that I've made or anything like that, but there are certain things that are sacred to me that are not for public consumption. They are mine."
Ross has yet to confirm (or deny) the news herself.
Ross hasn't issued a statement on this potential relationship, and knowing that she doesn't like to discuss her personal life, that makes sense. Her Instagram is largely focused on her, her haircare line, Pattern, and the other facets of her career — no sign of a relationship whatsoever.
Ross and Barris could keep us guessing on this one for awhile, but hopefully, more details will come out soon.
Barris's new show #blackAF just premiered.
#blackAF, the new Netflix series just premiered starring Jones and Barris as the head of the family. The series is actually a reboot of Barris's other show, Black-ish. It is presented as a documentary and directed by one of the couple's teenage kids.
The series has been praised for being funny, but is also a little confusing to some fans as it seems to be very similar to Barris's other show, which isn't surprising since it's basically just a reboot of it. Although it seems to be strikingly similar to Black-ish, the second half of the season starts to veer more into Barris's real life.
The cast of the show have also been praised for their performances.
Nicole Pomarico is an entertainment and lifestyle writer whose work has appeared in Cosmo, Us Weekly, Refinery29, and more.
Editor's Note: This article was originally posted on January 27, 2020 and was updated with the latest information.