Every now and then, a new piece of info crosses our paths and still manages to make us say ‘What the…?!!’ That be’s the case with the iconic James Brown and the female celebrity he dated and popped the big question to back in the day. Why is it surprising? Because the two seem like oil and water in EVERY way, including their huge age difference.
Who Did James Brown Ask To Marry Him?
That would be talk show legend/journalist, Rolonda Watts (59)! Remember when her talk show was poppin’ in the 90’s? Well, according to what she confirmed in a 1997 interview with New York Times/Chronicle, James Brown was far more to her, than just another guest on her show. They apparently were each other’s “little secret,” much like the one Xscape sang about in 1998.
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James Brown was so in love with Rolonda, that he proposed to her live on air, during a taping of her show in 1997. He was 64 and she was 38 years old. Brown said this to Rolonda:
“Darling, we’ve been trying to keep this thing quiet, but I think it’s time we let people know. . . . You know I’m crazy about you, so how about tying the knot?”
During that time, Rolonda was clearly caught off guard, and fans wondered if it was the real deal. But when he alluded that the two of them had been keeping their relationship on the low and he was ready to go public, fans realized it was kinda serious. Here’s what was revealed in Rolonda’s ’97 interview:
Via NYTimes- It was not exactly a private moment when JAMES BROWN, the Godfather of Soul, proposed to ROLONDA WATTS during a taping of her talk show, “Rolonda,” on Tuesday. “He called in and said, ‘Listen, we’ve been keeping this quiet, but now it is time to let the world know,'” she said yesterday. “Then he asked, ‘Will you marry me?'” Her response? ”I told him, ‘James, I’ll have to talk to you on the phone later,’ ” she said.
Brown’s proposal came the year after his wife, Adrienne, passed away in 1996. At that time, Rolonda revealed that she and James hadn’t been dating long at all, and it was apparent that she didn’t want to marry him at that time. However, she still didn’t necessarily shoot down the possibility of marriage to Brown at a later date:
Via NYT- “It’s not like we’ve been dating a long time,” she said. “He is a good friend who gives me very good advice about my career.” But will they marry? “I don’t know,” she said. “I am not shopping for a dress, and there is nothing on my left hand.”
Story Altered 19 Years Later
According to EurWeb, in 2016 Rolonda talked to AlwaysAList about her past relationship with James Brown. She gave a slightly different version of what she confirmed years ago though. This time, she said they were never “lovers” and it was a publicity stunt:
Rolonda: “I adored James Brown and he adored me! We hung out a lot talking business, as he owned all of his music and was a tremendous entertainment producer and mentor to me. But we were never lovers. James asked me live on my talk show to marry him, but he did it more as a publicity stunt because he knew it was time for me to leave the talk biz and make my own mark in Hollywood. I also rode with him on the back of his motorcycle when he, Dan Akroyd, and Jim Belushi opened a big restaurant down south. It was either House of Blues or Hard Rock Cafe, I can’t remember.”
In 1997, EOnline also reported that Rolonda’s “publicist” confirmed that Rolonda and James Brown “had been dating,” but that even while dating, she oddly viewed him as her “uncle”…yet they were still a romantic couple.
Not sure what the terms, ‘dating’ or ‘lovers’ mean to Rolonda, but based on her prior 1997 interview about James Brown, they had just begun dating back then. Could her altered version of her statements about their relationship be due to the fact that James is no longer here to dispute her claims -that they were “not lovers”- but instead just homies? Hmmm, your guess is as good as mine. But I must admit that I’m leaning more toward Rolonda’s original claim about them, since she didn’t alter her story until almost 12 years after the ‘Godfather’ departed. I’ve still got love for you though Rolonda!
