Love Is Blind’s Kwame Addresses Claim His Sister Is Paid Actress
Love may be blind, but the DNA is real, according to Kwame Appiah.
The Love Is Blind star set the record straight on rumors that he hired an actress to play his delightful sister Barbara on the Netflix dating show.
Co-host Vanessa Lachey helped him put the internet chatter to rest during the season four reunion on April 16, noting, "Barbara was not a paid actress."
Kwame agreed, before praising the woman who helped raise him: "She's been my best friend my whole life."
His wife and co-star Chelsea Griffin added, "She's just that good of a sister... She is a fairy Godmother of a sister."
Viewers enjoyed seeing Barbara warmly celebrate Chelsea on their wedding day, even though Kwame's mother refused to attend the ceremony and did not approve of their relationship.
However, Barbara is not the only member of Kwame's family that Chelsea has grown closer to since filming wrapped. The speech language pathologist revealed at the reunion that she finally met Kwame's mother during a Thanksgiving dinner hosted by Kwame's sister.
"His mom welcomed me with open arms. And it was a wonderful first visit," Chelsea gushed. "I felt like I'm home... It was loving."
Part of her "beautiful experience" with his side of the family also included some bonding time with his nieces.
"His youngest niece said that she was most thankful for her Auntie Chelsea. I had to hold back tears," Chelsea shared. "It was a wonderful start to a beautiful journey as our family together."
Keep reading for a status check on all the couples from Love Is Blind season four.
Status: Married
Come on, not since season one's Cameron Hamilton and Lauren Speed has an LIB pairing seem so meant to be! The oldest couple in the experiment—Tiffany is 36 and Brett is 37—exchanged vows, even though Brett had a sartorial emergency when his pants did not fit properly on their wedding day. (Shout out to seamstress Lucia, you're a real one!)
Since filming wrapped, Tiffany and Brett moved to Portland and are still perfect! Phew!
Status: Didn't make it to wedding day
Fans watched with dismay as Jackie chose to give Josh Demas, the other man she connected with in the pods, a second chance, meeting up with him before ending her engagement to Marshall. However, during the reunion, Jackie set the record straight on the timeline of events. "I broke up with Marshall before I met Josh at the coffee shop," she said. "It looks like I'm a cheater. I am not a cheater."
Jackie then addressed the end of her relationship with Marshall, saying she "can take accountability" for her words and actions, but "I hope that he would do the same. We just weren't meant to be."As for her romance with Josh? They are still dating and live together.
Unfortunately for Marshall, who was hoping for some closure with Jackie, he was unable to fully express his feelings to his former fiance as she chose not to attend the live taping, conducting a pre-recorded interview with Nick and Vanessa Lachey. But in an interview with E!, Marshall revealed he briefly connected with fellow contestant Kacia after the show.
"We tried," Marshall explained, "But I wanted to just distance myself from all of that from that experience. It was going to be difficult to try to make a relationship with Kacia."
Status: Separated
Opposites seemed to attract all season for this pair...until they got to the altar. Sensing Paul's hesitation, Micah asked him to give his answer first and it was a pass on marriage for Paul. "I literally feel like a disaster," Micah said. "If Paul would have wanted to marry me, I 100 percent would have said 'I do.'"
At the reunion, Paul apologized for his comment in a confessional about not being able to see Micah as a mother. "I think I phrased that really unfairly toward her," Paul explained. "I think the better way to phrase that would be that I can't see us as parents."
While the duo briefly reconciled after filming, they ultimately weren't able to make their relationship work, with Paul explaining they broke up for good when he visited Micah in Arizona.
Status: Married
Despite Kwame's mother refusing to attend the wedding and his arguably inappropriate conversations with Micah, whom he also connected with in the pods, Kwame and Chelsea were one of the three couples to exchange vows at the end of season four.
During the reunion, Chelsea revealed she has since met her husband's mom and Kwame offered an apology to his wife and her family for his behavior, saying his talks with Micah were "not the best representation." The couple is living in Seattle with their beloved dog Rocky.
Status: Married
Sure, they say love is blind, but occasionally it needs a little bit of time—or proposing to another woman—to realize you made the wrong choice. Which is what happened when Zack initially got engaged to Irina Solomonova, only for the couple to break up during their trip to Mexico. After asking Bliss for a second chance, the pair defied the odds (and Bliss' dad's wishes) and both said "I do" at the altar. (And, no, they did not sit it out, enjoying that all important first turn around the dance floor to Lee Ann Womack's "I Hope You Dance," the song that bonded them in the pods.) After the finale aired, Zack shared a photo of the couple on Instagram with the caption "Eternal Bliss."
Since filming, Bliss revealed, Zack and her father have become "best buds," one of the many reasons Vanessa predicted they would be the first Love Is Blind couple to have a baby.
Status: Sorry
Deemed the villain of season four due to her mean girl antics in the pods and for the way she treated Zack before their breakup, an emotional Irina showed up to the reunion ready to take accountability for her behavior.
"My intention was never to hurt anyone," she said, "but my impact did." Irina added that she had offered private apologies to the female cast members before addressing Zack.
"No one deserves to be treated like that," she told him. "I completely belittled you and made you feel so small. I was going through a lot mentally. That does not mean that was an excuse to do that, but looking back, I'm sorry."
As for Zack and Bliss, the couple said they have "100 percent" forgiven Irina, though Bliss did reveal Irina sent her a direct message on Instagram while the pair was in Mexico, telling her she "dodged a bullet."