Comedian Jaboukie Young-White has spoken about his family members many times. “I grew up in Harvey, Illinois, one of the most violent towns in the [the state],” Jaboukie said. The man“Almost half the town is below the poverty line. I have friends who are state wards and homeless, but there are only about 12 of them. They sleep in abandoned houses and things like that. And there’s nothing I can do. [about it]“ .
Jaboukie is certainly a gay man of color growing up in the south suburbs of Chicago. He expected to experience homophobia from his family.
“My family is Jamaican, and Jamaican culture is one of the most homophobic cultures in the Western Hemisphere,” he told the magazine. “It’s ingrained. [you].” Young-White, on the other hand, plugged himself into television. “That’s how I learned most of my American values,” he says. “You could argue that it’s not the healthiest way, but that’s really what made me love comedy.”
His family upbringing had something to do with his career as a comedian, Jaboukie said. Chicago Tribune“My parents are Jamaican immigrants and they’re both multiracial. They’re Jamaican but my genetic makeup is West African, European and Asian. My parents used to watch “Saturday Night Live” and there was a Jamaican comedian named Oliver Samuels and they would get his DVDs — basically the Jamaican Tyler Perry. I think I got into comedy because it was a quick fix of social norms and rules, so that’s how I learned American culture and customs. Because I grew up in a traditional family and things that (everyone knows) like … The Beatles! It wasn’t passed down to me. So my direct experience of America started around … 2004. Comedy was a way to catch up.”
Learn more about his family. Here you will learn about his parents and siblings.
Who are the Jaboukie Young-White family members?
Jaboukie Young-White comes from a family of five. His family includes his Jamaican immigrant parents and two older brothers. Speaking about his family background, Jaboukie said, “My parents are Jamaican immigrants and they are both of mixed race. They are Jamaican but my genetic makeup is West African, European, Asian.”
Similarly, in March 2020, he tweeted, “My immigrant parents never let me out of the house. This is just summer vacation.” Furthermore, he also tweeted once, “Children of immigrants, have you ever looked at your parents like THIS ghetto is a “better life”????????”.
Jaboukie’s parents first came to public attention when he came out to them on national television. Tonight’s show set in 2017 (right after the show, his mom texted him “I love my gay son“). They didn’t know he was gay until that point. He said he hadn’t come out yet and he didn’t know if he could come out because his parents, two Jamaican immigrants, wouldn’t approve of it, especially his father.
Talk to Hooligan Magazine“When your family is homophobic and you rely on them as your only safety net and that safety net has holes in it because they went bankrupt, you hit rock bottom,” Jaboukie said. “You tell yourself you can do this until you get to the point where you don’t need them anymore. So when I got to the point where I was on TV, I was like, ‘Oh, I’m never going to sleep on their couch again, so I can do this.’”
But, as a struggling immigrant who often wanted their children to be lawyers or doctors, Joaboukie’s parents were okay with him pursuing a career in comedy. “I think the immigration issue is twofold,” he says. “My parents were more okay with me pursuing comedy because I showed that I was serious about it from a young age. In high school, I was in speech and debate, and in my senior year, I won both comedy competitions I entered. If you show that you’re really passionate about something, they’re like, ‘Okay,’ but you have to be rich! As long as you’re rich. They’ll hesitate, and then when they see the money coming in, they’ll say, ‘We’ve been supporting you all this time!’”
Meet Jaboukie Young-White’s Parents
Jaboukie Young-White is the son of Norma Young-White and Condel A White.
Norma, Jaboukie’s mother, is 60 years old. She was born in June 1962. Meanwhile, her husband, Condel, was born in October 1957, making him 64 years old.
Speaking of their work, Norma serves as president of the Harvey Education Association in Illinois. The mission of the Harvey Education Association, an affiliate of the Illinois Education Association/National Education Association, is to provide a strong public school education to the students of Harvey, Illinois.
During that time, she also worked as a high school teacher at Harvey School No. 152.
Norma worked in an office for most of her life until one day she went back to school and got her Bachelor’s degree in the United States (although she had a degree from the University of the West Indies) and then her Master’s degree. She got an internship in her 40s and became a 5th grade teacher, now thinking about becoming a principal.
“She completely changed direction and went to do something else,” Jaboukie says. “She was like, ‘You can take the safe path, and when your safe path fails, what do you do? What are you left with when your compromise doesn’t work?’ So I had this thought that I might as well do what I want to do because if I do something that I can barely stand and it doesn’t work out, what am I going to do with myself then?”
His mother accepts his quirkiness, but his father does not. They have reportedly not spoken since 2017, and he seems completely unbothered by the situation. He even describes his father as a drama queen.
“I knew it was going to happen,” Jaboukie said. Cut“I find it funny, too, because people are like, ‘Oh, I’m sure he’ll change.’ And I’m like, ‘I find it funny that you think someone who gives up their child because of their sexuality is a grade-A parent.’ If you’re going to do that, there are probably other issues, right from the start. I knew I wasn’t going to come out on Google until I could support myself.”
Meet the Jaboukie Young-White Brothers
Jaboukie Young-White has two brothers. In June 2019, speaking to Gay NrdOne of his brothers came out as bisexual after the comedian announced on national television that he was gay. He was shocked afterwards but also felt that it was “someone else stealing my moment”.
Jaboukie once wrote, “I’m gay and one of my brothers is bisexual and the other is straight—my mother’s womb was basically a gay dance club turned closet.” Apparently, his brother knew he was gay because Jaboukie admitted that he had a bad habit of leaving porn on his computer unchecked.
Jaboukie is an uncle to Javaughn Young-White’s brother, who welcomed daughter Adeya Nomi with R&B singer Kehlani in 2019. Javaughn and Kehlani have since split, but the “CRZY” singer admitted that Javaughn has been very supportive of him.
“I have a two-year-old daughter… She is the most amazing person. Her dad and I are like really, really close friends, and the decision to start a family was really easy for us because we both believe in each other’s ability to be good parents,” Kehlani said in a Facebook Watch special, Be proud! Kehlani & Larray’s amazing trip.
Javaughn was born on April 17, 1997, which makes him 25 years old. He works as a guitarist and model. During his high school days, Javie was a standout basketball player at Marian Catholic High School. According to Maximum preparationJavie plays guard and is ranked in the top 10 high school players in Illinois.
Related FAQs
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Where does the Jaboukie Young-White family live?
Jaboukie Young-White’s parents raised him and his brothers in Harvey, Illinois. His parents were born in Jamaica. After dropping out of college, Jaboukie moved to Los Angeles, California.
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Is Jaboukie Young-White’s family on IG?
Among family members, Jaboukie Young-White’s mother is present on Twitter (@normayoungwhit1). His younger brother Javaughn is on Instagram (@javagaughnyw).
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Are the members of Jaboukie Young-White’s family close?
Yes, Jaboukie Young-White’s family is very close except for his relationship with his father.