Wayne Brady admitted it took a lot of therapy to get used to his blended family dynamics.
In an appearance on the Jennifer Hudson Show on Tuesday (8 October), the Let’s Make a Deal host candidly spoke about the big changes his family has undergone in recent years that will be highlighted in their upcoming reality TV series, Wayne Brady: The Family Remix.
He was joined by his ex-wife Mandie Taketa, 48, their daughter Maīle Masako Brady, 21, and Taketa’s partner Jason Fordham, 40 – all of whom star on the show.
When Hudson asked how he could be so open about their dynamic, he replied, “So much therapy.”
“Therapy and family, and it feels amazing,” he added. “This show and us creating it, it was a way of entering this second act of life of trying to live in authenticity.”
These changes came on the heels of both him and his ex-wife trying to find ways to live their lives authentically. Last year, Brady came out as pansexual. In Greek, “pan” translates to “all” and therefore, the term “pansexual” can be understood as a sexual identity used to describe being attracted to people of all genders, beyond male-female parameters.
“I feel that I’ve been able to prosper, personally,” he said. “Coming out as someone who has dealt with mental health issues, and by coming out as pansexual, and coming out about our family dynamic, now it’s a more authentic Wayne that’s even on camera and on stage and I’m a better father.”
“I think I’m a better man because when you stop hiding things, you can truly be,” he continued. “A lot of people don’t know anything about me because, for years, I said, ‘I’m not saying jack! Y’all just watch what I do look, but you don’t need to know anything about me,’ because I was hiding all this stuff inside.”
“So we decided to break that wall down,” he added.
In a 2023 interview with People, the comedian revealed that he first came out to Taketa, who reportedly told Brady that discovering his identity was “great” for him as she “knew coming out would help him be happier”.
Brady credited his ex-wife as the glue that keeps their healthy co-parenting relationship together.
“She will deny this, but I think that Mandy is the crux of making this whole thing work,” he said. “Even once we divorced, she made the decision that we’re still going to be family.”
Brady’s journey as a parent has expanded in recent years. In addition to co-parenting Maīle, he also shares parenting duties for Taketa and Fordham’s son, Sundance-Isamu, who joined their family through adoption in September 2021. Then, life took another unexpected turn when his ex-girlfriend Tina welcomed a baby boy, Val Henry, making Brady a father once again.
