Kriti Mehrotra
While there’s no denying Samuel “Sam” Paul Rader is no stranger to being in front of a camera, his appearance in Netflix’s ‘Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal’ was a different ballgame. That’s because this video creator and well-known Christian family man opened up about the admittedly selfish, reckless mistakes of his past in a candid manner for the very first time. In other words, following the 2015 scandal when it came to light that he once had an account on the affair-dating website Ashley Madison, Sam rehashed the past so as to close that chapter for good.
Sam Rader Wasn’t Technically a Faithful Husband
It was back when Sam was just a young teenager that he first came across NiaChel Jonique Rand AKA Nia while attending Wills Point High School in Wills Point, Texas, only for them to soon fall head over heels in love. This duo then went on to earn associate degrees from Trinity Valley Community College, just for the former to actually later transfer to The University of Texas-Arlington to obtain a nursing degree. It, thus, comes as no surprise that after they decided to marry on September 12, 2009, and then settle down for good, he pursued a career in the medical field. On the other hand, Nia served as a manager of a Maurices store for the first few years.
The truth is everything was idealistic in Nia’s eyes as she’d married a Christian man who was caring, loving, and never once minded providing for the family, only to be unaware that’s not true. After all, per Sam’s narrative, by the time they were getting ready to welcome their second child into this world, he’d created an accounting on the affair-dating website Ashley Madison, whose solo moto was “Life is Short, Have an Affair.” He did state his wife was satisfying him and that they’d had a genuine romance for decades, yet he was missing that attraction and spark.
Sam was admittedly missing external validation, which is why almost as soon as he and Nia’s video of lipsyncing to “Love is an Open Door” from Frozen went viral, he closed that account for good. It is imperative to note he never met anyone from the site and never actually cheated on his wife, whether it was while she was pregnant with his child or later on. He spoke to a few people not just in their base of the Dallas area but also beyond because that’s how much he craved that added attention — despite his wife already doing more than her very best at home.
We specified Sam’s rise on YouTube through the Sam&Nia channel because he conceded the attention he got from there satiated his need for external validation in more ways than one. After all, not only did he become a public figure with thousands of fans of his own, but his marriage also improved because every choice had evolved into a family occasion. The couple never wanted to fake their lives in front of their camera despite having complete editorial input over it since they always claimed to be practicing what they preach as a good, humble, Christian family.
That’s actually why Sam being on Ashley Madison was a scandal – he publicly claimed to be a devoted family man who went as far as to surprise his own wife with her third pregnancy, yet he wasn’t entirely faithful. Nia’s world, thus, came crashing down in the summer of 2015; it unfortunately started with her miscarriage, followed by the Ashley Madison reveal, followed by Sam’s own confession about the past. While her husband initially stuck to not actually having done anything wrong, and the couple even posted a video acknowledging the drama and stating she’d forgiven him, things soon changed.
Within days, upon talking to his pastor, Sam came forward to tell Nia how Ashley Madison wasn’t the only time he’d sought out external validation. In fact, per his own account in the aforementioned original, in the early years of their relationship and marriage, he used to visit strip clubs, go wild at parties, and a lot more, making his wife wonder if she ever even knew him. Hence came their decision to take a hiatus from online content, separate, and then look back to see if they could even make their relationship and family work anymore.
Sam Rader is Still Married to Nia
Owing to Sam’s genuine regret, his persistence to make things better, and his actual efforts to show Nia how sorry he was and how much he’d changed in couples counseling, they managed to come out the other end happier than ever. Their union is obviously not the same as it was before, yet they’re both thankful for it because they can now be themselves, talk a lot more openly about any difficult topic, and even understand one another’s perspective a lot more.
We’re also glad to report they have since welcomed two more children into their lives and have resumed vlogging, meaning Sam and Nia are now proud parents of four as well as content creators with over a decade of experience under their belt. Their first child, Symphony Pearl Rader, was born on July 18, 2010, followed by Abram Samuel Rader on September 18, 2013, Juliet Elizabeth Rader on June 1, 2016, and finally Josie Grace Rader on March 10, 2021 – they are all homeschooled by Nia.
Read More: Evan Back: Where is Ashley Madison’s Ex-VP of Sales Now?
