‘Love and Hip Hop: New York’ is the first and original series from VH1’s wildly popular reality television franchise. It offers a unique, in-the-moment look into the private and professional lives of well-known rappers from the Big Apple and the neighboring areas of Yonkers and New Jersey. Typically, it focuses on women attempting to succeed in the hip-hop music industry. Since the show’s debut, its popularity and success have brought numerous musicians to the forefront and given them the chance to establish themselves in this demanding profession.
One such rapper who took the chance of becoming a star and joined the show is Juelz Santana. LaRon Louis James, AKA Juelz, was already an established rapper, beginning his career in 1995 when he was only 12. He earned a Grammy nomination in 2002 for his collaboration with Cam’ron on the song ‘Oh Boy.’ With such a unique career on the rise, Juelz’s personal life with model Kimbella Vanderhee has always fascinated his fans. Their complicated relationship has made viewers wonder about their current relationship status, and if you’re curious to know the same, here’s what we know!
Kimbella and Juelz’s Love and Hip Hop: New York Journey
Kimbella and Juelz have been in an on-again-off-again relationship since they started dating in 2009. They were both unsure of where the relationship was going and kept things that way until they got pregnant and Kimbella delivered their first child, Juelz Santana James, in 2010. Things remained still, and the rapper had made a few guest appearances on the show till then. While he remained a supporting cast in season 2, Kimbella joined the show in the same season.
The couple’s relationship tasted the rockiest waters that season when Kimbella revealed on the show that she had an affair with Fabolous and even got intimate with him. This resulted in several scuffles between Kimbella and other cast members, especially because Emily Bustamente, Fabolous’s longtime partner, was pregnant with their child at that point. Kimbella had to deal with several of Emily’s friends, and she ultimately announced quitting the show after that season, further revealing that she was pregnant with Juelz’s second child. She gave birth to their daughter, Bella Monroe James, in 2012.
Kimbella did remain a guest member on the show in seasons 3 and 5, whereas Juelz came as a guest member only in season 5. The former appeared only as Yandy Smith’s friend before joining the lead cast members in season 7. Season 7 mainly saw some troubles between Kimbella and Juelz, wherein it was an important time for the latter to release his freestyle “Up In The Studio Gettin Blown.” Interestingly, a dispute between Kimbella and Yandy caused the former to leave the show and rejoin only as a guest member for the following season.
Season 9 saw Kimbella and Juelz join the show as the main cast, where Juelz’s legal issues took center stage. Juelz was allegedly recorded fleeing the Newark Airport after a loaded gun and opioid pills were recovered from his belongings. After remaining on the run for three days, he turned himself into custody. The season also saw Juelz proposing to Kimbella while out on bail and the couple getting married in the season finale, which aired in March 2019.
Soon after, Kimbella gave birth to their third child Santana James. Subsequently, she remained the main cast of season 10 while Juelz served his 27 months in prison, and they were shown communicating through phone calls throughout. Now, the question remains, how did their relationship pan out, and are they still together? Well, here’s what we know!
Are Kimbella Vanderhee and Juelz Santana Still Together?
Yes, Kimbella and Juelz are still together. The good news for the fans is that Juelz was released after just 17 of the 27 months of prison time in August 2020. After having an emotional wedding and spending more than a year apart afterward, the couple finally got to live together and begin their journey afresh. All their kids have grown up, including Juelz’s first son, LaRon Jr., born in 2003 from his previous relationship.
The couple was also part of the ‘Love & Hip Hop: Family Reunion Edition,’ season 2. Apart from that, the family seems to be happy enjoying vacations to various places, celebrating every occasion together, and maintaining their careers. Juelz is busy with his music career doing numerous event performances, while Kimbella is a frequent collaborator of the apparel brand Fashion Nova and works as an actress in music videos. Thus, we can affirm that the two are still together, going strong and happy more than ever.
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