Here we make a list of singers who dated backup dancers.
1. Mariah Carey
Bryan Tanaka
Mariah Carey after breaking up with Australian billionaire James Packer in 2016, began dating choreographer, Bryan Tanaka, who she knew professionally since 2006.
2. Britney Spears
Wade Robson
Its seems like Britney has a thing for backup dancers. She dated choreographer Wade Robson, who was one of the two men who accused Michael Jackson of molestation in the 2019 documentary, Leaving Neverland, during her 1999–2001 tour. Justin Timberlake allegedly wrote the song, Cry Me a River, about Britney cheating on him with Robson.
Kevin Federline
Britney was engaged to dancer Kevin Federline in July 2004, three months after they began dating. Their romance came under intense scrutiny as he had recently broken up with actress Shar Jackson, who was still pregnant with their second child at the time. This, and the huge disparity in fame between Federline and Spears, led to the press labeling him as a gold digger. They married on September 18, 2004. The couple had two sons together, born in September 2005 and September 2006. Spears filed for divorce on November 7, 2006, citing irreconcilable differences.
3. Jennifer Lopez
Casper Smart
Jennifer Lopez had an on again-off again relationship relationship with her former backup dancer Casper Smart from October 2011 to August 2016. She broke up with him apparently, after she caught him cheating on her.
4. Madonna
Ahlamalik Williams
Madonna began dating the backup dancer, Ahlamalik Williams, in December 2019. She met him for the first time while he was accompanying her during the Rebel Heart Tour in 2015. Madonna was 61 and Ahlamalik was 25, when they began dating. The pair went their separate ways in 2022, as the couple thought it was not working out for them.
5. Prince
Mayte Garcia
Prince first laid eyes on the 16-year-old dancer Mayte García in 1990 standing outside his tour bus, and referred to her as his “future wife” when pointing her out to his bandmate Rosie Gaines. They were married on February 14, 1996, when he was 37 and she was 22. The couple had a son, Amiir, on October 16, 1996, who died a week after being born due to Pfeiffer syndrome. The couple divorced in 2000.
6. R. Kelly
Andrea Kelly
R. Kelly married his backup dancer, Andrea Danyell Lee, in 1996, in Colorado. He was 29 and she was 22, at the time of their marriage. The couple had three children, two daughters and a son. Drea filed a restraining order against Kelly in September 2005 after he assaulted her when she told him she wanted a divorce. Kelly filed for divorce from Andrea in 2006, which was finalized in 2009.
7. Jessie J
Max Pham Nguyen
Jessie J began dating dancer Max Pham Nguyen after splitting from actor Channing Tatum in the fall of 2020. The couple broke up in 2021 after dating for seven months.
8. Ariana Grande
Ricky Alvarez
Ariana Grande dated dancer Ricky Alvarez for a little over a year in 2015 and 2016, before she began dating rapper Mac Miller. The couple were seen kissing on stage at the 2015 Pride Festival. It’s rumored that Arianna’s songs, “Moonlight,” “True Love,” and “Forever Boy” are about the Ricky.
