Lupita Nyong’o is in ‘a season of heartbreak’ following breakup with Selema Masekela

Nyong’o penned a social media statement announcing her split from Masekela amid “deception.”

Lupita Nyong’o and Selema Masekela have called it quits. 

On Thursday, the actress announced the end of her romance with the television host and sports commentator via a lengthy statement posted to Instagram, wherein she said she finds herself in “a season of heartbreak” after her love was “suddenly and devastatingly extinguished by deception.” 

Nyong’o’s statement began by acknowledging the mass amount of geopolitical turmoil currently plaguing the world.

“There are much more important things going on in the world right now, and my thoughts are with those who are deeply suffering,” she began. 

She continued, “At this moment, it is necessary for me to share a personal truth and publicly dissociate myself from someone I can no longer trust.”

The “Black Panther” star said she was “tempted to run into the shadows and hide” until she felt strong enough to admit, “Whatever, my life is better this way.” The only reason she hasn’t done so, she wrote, is that she is reminded that the “magnitude of the pain I am feeling is equal to the measure of my capacity for love.” 

Nyong’o said she has chosen to face her pain head-on, accepting her life “exactly as it is.” She added that she trusts, “This too shall pass.” 

She went on to explain that she wanted “to keep it 100” with her fans and the public in hopes that her experience could be helpful to someone else “experiencing the grip of heartbreak.” She encouraged her followers to avoid trying to escape their pain lest they “miss out on the wisdom that comes from it.” 

“Let’s face our pain so we don’t spread it,” she concluded.

While Nyong’o doesn’t name names in the post, the Oscar winner has been romantically linked to Masekela since December 2022, when the pair publicly confirmed their relationship in posts on Instagram. Fans may recall Masekela became the poster boy for “shoot your shot” memes when it was revealed that while seated behind Nyong’o on a flight in 2016, he tweeted his intentions to chat with the actress.

“Hypothetically speaking, of course…Let’s say you’re seated behind Lupita Nyong’o on an airplane; what would be your opening line?” he tweeted. It’s unclear if Masekela ultimately took any of the advice he crowdsourced, but one thing is clear: the two broke the ice somehow. 

After they became IG-official, the pair would delight fans and followers with scenes of their life together shared across social media. In August, Nyong’o celebrated Masekela’s birthday on Instagram, calling him a “Sunshine Human.” Masekela responded in the comments, declaring himself the “luckiest man alive.” 

Nyong’o’s breakup post also arrives a day after she was spotted attending a Janelle Monáe concert in Los Angeles in a group that included “Dawson’s Creek” alum Joshua Jackson, whose wife, Jodie Turner-Smith, just filed for divorce. Nothing has been confirmed beyond that Nyong’o and Jackson are potentially friends attending the concert of another friend. 

However, Nyong’o is no stranger to dating rumors. In the past, she has been linked to a colorful array of A-listers that includes Michael B. Jordan, Jared Leto, and even Monáe herself. Nyong’o laughed off the latter rumor, telling Rolling Stone she didn’t “mind being associated with [Monáe] in any capacity.”

“She has [a] magnetism that they were obviously picking up on,” said Nyong’o. “She is that enigmatic. People are curious about enigmatic people. I was not surprised.”

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