Christian Keyes is proud to call JR, Purnell, and Leigh, his brother, even if they are from different mothers, as the actor was raised in foster care before getting adopted.
The actor highlights his story with his brothers in an Instagram post during National Sibling Day.
He captions the post, “#NationalSiblingDay with my brothers JR, Purnell and Leigh (L to R). Purnell and JR’s family adopted me and Leigh more than 25 years ago. ✊🏾❤️ we don’t always agree with each other because we are all crazy😂but I am proud to call them my brothers💯“
As per Christian Keyes, Purnell Gates is the oldest of all four.
Surprisingly, they call two different people their dads, so the family details seem complicated to understand.
The connection between Christian Keyes and his brother started 30 years ago
Christian Keyes did not have a smooth childhood as he grew up in foster care management before getting his first adoptive mother, which did not turn out well.
In an interview with Atlanta Black Star, he opened up about his first mother, saying, “When the belt didn’t…When it didn’t make us scream loud enough, she would hold the leather side and beat us with the belt buckle. It gets worse.“
However, his teenage became a lot merrier after he got adopted for the second time at 12 by his high school friend’s mother, Michelle Johnson.
She adopted Christian without any paperwork, leading him to understand the importance of family and responsibility.
After this adoption, Christian Keyes met his brother, Purnell, and JR (Aaron Pryor Jr). As per Christian’s Instagram, Purnell and JR’s family adopted the actor and Leigh.
Purnell Gates runs his podcast, From His Perspective Podcasts, where Christian has appeared several times with Lorenz Reynolds. Meanwhile, JR is a boxer who runs his boxing class.
The family lives in Flint, Michigan, so Christian often made trips from Detroit to Flint and still does that to spend quality time.
Nevertheless, after going through all the hardships, the actor seems to be having fun with them as he often posts about his troops on his Instagram.
Yet, the exact relation between the four, whom Christian Keyes mentioned as his brother, remains unclear.
However, one thing is certain: they are not biologically related to the actor who had to come in and out of 15 foster homes.
Additional Information
- Christian Keyes is 49 years old, born on July 24, 1975.
- He is of mixed ethnicity as his father is African American, while his mother is Native American/French.
- Christian Keyes and Simon Basset have no connection, but the resemblance between both actors has made fans assume they are one.
