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Brian McKnight’s relationship with his children is widely known to be complicated, drawing criticism for how differently he talks about each of them.
In recent months, he faced backlash for publicly disowning his sons, Brian Kelly McKnight Jr. and Niko, whom he shares with ex-wife Julie McKnight.
Additionally, his estrangement from his daughter Briana, who is from a previous relationship with Patricia Driver, has sparked public discussion.
After marrying his current wife, Leilani McKnight, in 2017, McKnight gained two stepchildren, Julia and Jack McPhee. Their family expanded with the birth of their first son together, Brian Kainoa Makoa Jr., in 2022.
Following their marriage, McKnight’s complex relationships with his children became a topic of conversation on social media.
At the close of last year, McKnight publicly celebrated his stepdaughter Julia’s master’s degree achievement on Instagram, reigniting discussions about his biological children.
In a recent “Weekly Replies” segment on his social media, McKnight responded to a commenter questioning his treatment of his biological daughter Briana compared to his praise for stepdaughter Julia.
This is VERY nasty work.
My goodness what in the blasphemous bad father hell? pic.twitter.com/ThiV3jcoi0— Talk 30 to Me
(@LisKis93) April 17, 2024
In the clip, he referred to Julia as his “one and only daughter,” saying, “Julia understands the scriptures. Exodus 20:12, where it says, and I quote, ‘Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.’”
He continued: “See, she honors us, and in turn, we honor her because she knows how proud of her we are.”
In a follow-up video, the singer responded to a fan coming to his defense, claiming that he had to remove his biological children from his life to find happiness.
“In order to live a life that you love, you have to get rid of the evil and the negativity, even if that evil and negativity is related,” he explained. “We want everyone to live a life that they love but in order to do that you have to get rid of that evil and negativity,” he explained.
However, McKnight’s responses have not been well-received by social media users, who have voiced their disapproval.
In a separate incident from 2020, McKnight’s estranged daughter Briana filed a defamation suit against him following his public comments about her alleged sexual relationship with an “older cousin.”
Although the case was dismissed in February 2023, it appears that their relationship did not improve in the subsequent year.
