Support! Tayshia Adams’ ex John Paul Jones reacted to her becoming the new Bachelorette after Life & Style exclusively revealed ABC wanted “to replace” Clare Crawley following her engagement to contestant Dale Moss.
“I’m really happy and excited for her on this new journey. I hope she finds the love and happiness that she deserves,” the 25-year-old Maryland native told Us Weekly on Monday, August 3.
JPJ and Tayshia, 29, struck up a romance during season 6 of Bachelor in Paradise. Although they left the beach in Mexico separately, they rekindled their romance off-camera. They were a full-fledged couple when the live aftershow aired but split two months later.
“We have so much going on in our personal lives, it is difficult to focus on a serious relationship,” the former contestant from Hannah Brown’s season explained on the “Reality Life” podcast with Kate Casey in October 2019.
Tayshia also released a statement about her “incredibly special” relationship with JPJ. “We fell for each other in Paradise, and everything was a whirlwind after that … But the reality was, we were living on opposite coasts, and working insane schedules that made it impossible to see each other and build a life with each other,” she wrote in a lengthy caption via Instagram. “We truly did the best we could, but at this time, have decided that what is best for the both of us is to go our separate ways. We are the best of friends and will continue to remain in each other’s life because regardless of the situation, we make each other happy.”
The reality stud has since relocated to the West Coast, but Tayshia is on to a whole new chapter. Life & Style exclusively broke the news on July 30 that Clare, 39, threatened to quit the show because she had already “fallen in love” with Dale, 31, after just 12 days of filming.
The Sacramento native left producers “blindsided” when she said “she no longer wanted to participate,” a source says. The hairstylist even went as far as “[refusing] to come out of her room” during filming, which left producers “scrambling to figure out what to do.” Days later, Life & Style exclusively divulged Tayshia was being considered as the new Bachelorette.
Talk among production says they are hoping to “match” the former contestant from Colton Underwood’s season with the remaining men. “Execs hope the guys will still want to participate,” added the source. “It took them time to test them all for COVID and they’ve already been quarantined at the resort for 14 days.”
Buckle in. It’s going to be a wild season!