Queen Latifah is taking on a new role as a coach on “The Voice,” joining Kelly Clarkson, Adam Levine and fellow newcomer Riley Green for season 30.
Away from the famous red chairs, the rapper, actress and producer has built a private family life with her longtime partner, Eboni Nichols. The couple has a son, Rebel, and has largely kept their relationship and family out of the spotlight.
Nichols has also spent years working in the entertainment industry. While she isn’t as recognizable as Queen Latifah, she has worked with some of music’s biggest stars and contributed to several major television shows, movies, and awards shows.
Queen Latifah’s Partner Eboni Nichols Has an Impressive Hollywood Career
Nichols is a dancer, choreographer and producer who graduated from Chapman University with a BFA in Theater and Dance, according to her Television Academy biography. She also spent time as a Lakers Girl for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Her dancing career included performances alongside Beyoncé, Aaliyah, Usher and Rihanna. She later moved into choreography, working with artists including Snoop Dogg, Estelle and The-Dream.
Nichols’ credits also include “Jane the Virgin,” “Fresh Off the Boat,” “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,” “Office Christmas Party” and “Girls Trip.”
She eventually launched E. Nichols Productions and has worked as a producer on major events including the Academy Awards, Grammys, and Kennedy Center Honors.
Queen Latifah and Nichols may have crossed paths professionally as early as 2007. Both worked on “Hairspray,” with Queen Latifah playing Motormouth Maybelle and Nichols appearing as a dancer.
The pair were first spotted together publicly in 2013 and made a red carpet appearance together in 2015.
The ‘UNITY’ Singer Has Long Kept Her Relationship & Son Rebel Private
Queen Latifah has been clear for years that she prefers to keep her personal life separate from her public career.
“I don’t have a problem discussing the topic of somebody being gay, but I do have a problem discussing my personal life,” she told The New York Times in 2008. “You don’t get that part of me. Sorry. We’re not discussing it in our meetings, we’re not discussing it at Cover Girl.”
She continued, “I don’t feel like I need to share my personal life, and I don’t care if people think I’m gay or not. Assume whatever you want. You do it anyway.”
Queen Latifah and Nichols became parents when Rebel was born in 2019.
Years before starting a family, Queen Latifah spoke openly about wanting children while also explaining that she wanted to wait until the time was right.
“I’ve always envisioned myself with a big family. I’m a late bloomer,” she told People. “I’m a late bloomer with a lot of things, and you know – nobody’s perfect…I think I kind of needed to grow and mature and get everything kind of taken care of with everything before I was able to really deal with it.”
She also explained what parenthood meant to her.
“To me, it’s the most unselfish thing you could do, to be a parent. It’s not about you at all. It’s about what you can give to support this child growing into adulthood,” she said. “And so it doesn’t matter if it’s a baby or a toddler or a teenager, for that matter.”
Queen Latifah added, “As long as they get to feel like they have a mother, they have a home, they have a family and somebody who’s there for them.”
Queen Latifah Joins ‘The Voice’ for Season 30
Queen Latifah’s latest television role puts her in one of NBC’s famous red chairs for the first time.
She and Green are the two newcomers on the season 30 coaching panel, while Clarkson and Levine return with years of experience on the competition.
“The Voice” season 30 premieres Monday, September 21, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. New episodes will stream on Peacock the following day.
