Jada Pinkett Smith is turning the tables — literally – as she brings herself to the Red Table to address questions about her relationship with R&B artist August Alsina.
On Friday’s “Red Table Talk,” Jada’s husband Will Smith joined her at the iconic table where her mother Adrienne Banfield Norris, and daughter Willow Smith usually sit for the Facebook Watch series.
The “Pursuit of Happyness” actor asked Jada the question everyone wants to know: “So what happened Jada?”
Smith revealed she started a close friendship with Alsina about four and a half years ago and said her family was trying to help him because he was “really sick.”
“It all started with him just needing some help. Me wanting to help his health, his mental state,” Smith said about Alsina, who has been open about battling an auto-immune disease.
The Smiths revealed this friendship with Alsina began when they were going through a tough time in their marriage. They “basically broke up,” Jada said.
The couple said they separated for an indefinite amount of time so they could figure out how to make themselves happy.
“I got into an entanglement with August,” Jada said before confirming she was in a relationship with the singer during that time.
Jada continued: “I was in a lot of pain, and I was very broken. In the process of that relationship, I definitely realized that you can’t find happiness outside yourself.”
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The “Girls Trip” actress shared that her relationship with Alsina allowed her to grow and heal as she learned things about herself during their time together, including acknowledging her desire to be “drawn to people who need help.”
“Through that particular journey I learned so much about myself and was able to really confront a lot of emotional immaturities, emotional insecurity and I was really able to do some really deep healing,” Jada said. “And as I came through and started to realize certain things about you and I, he decided to break all communication with me which was totally understandable.”
Jada noted she hasn’t talked to Alsina in recent years, so she felt it was “weird” that he brought up their relationship now.
USA TODAY has reached out Alsina’s reps.
During a June interview for Complex with Angela Yee, Alsina addressed relationship rumors with Jada.
“What I’m not okay with is my character being in question,” Alsina said. “I actually sat down with Will and had a conversation due to their transformation from their marriage to life partnership that they’ve spoken on several times. … He gave me his blessing and I totally gave myself to that relationship for years of my life, and I truly and really, really, deeply loved and have a ton of love for her (Jada). I devoted myself to it, I gave my full self to it.”
In 2019, August Alsina released “Nunya,” a song many people thought was about his relationship with Smith. At the time, Alsina denied the song was about Smith’s wife and said they were good friends.
The celebrity couple agreed that though they’ve had issues in their marriage, there are no secrets between them.
“We ride together, we die together, bad marriage for life,” Will and Jada joked, alluding to the classic “Bad Boys” movie line.
At less than 13 minutes long, Friday’s conversation was significantly shorter than Smith’s usual “Red Table Talk” episodes, which usually clock in around 40 minutes.
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