Meet Keke Palmer's Son! All About Leodis Andrellton Jackson
- - Meet Keke Palmer's Son! All About Leodis Andrellton Jackson
Skyler Caruso, Jordana ComiterFebruary 10, 2026 at 9:22 AM
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Keke Palmer and her son Leo celebrate National Pancake Day on Sept. 18, 2024, in New York City.
Sara Jaye/Getty
In February 2023, Keke Palmer welcomed son Leodis "Leo" Andrellton with her ex-boyfriend, Darius Jackson
The Burbs actress has said motherhood is her "greatest gig of all"
Palmer and Jackson co-parent Leo
Keke Palmer portrays a new mom in Peacock's The Burbs — a role that allows her to draw from her real-life experiences raising her son, Leodis "Leo" Andrellton.
The Emmy-winning actress welcomed Leo on Feb. 25, 2023, with her ex-boyfriend, Darius Jackson.
"Mommy’ing is coming along if you were looking for an update. I have juggled quite a few careers but this is my greatest gig of all," Palmer wrote on Instagram in March 2023. "I will never be the same again, but if you thought I was a bad mama jamma before, you can’t imagine the greater purpose my son has given my life!"
In November 2023, Palmer filed for sole custody of Leo — claiming that Jackson physically abused her on several occasions. The exes, who are in a better place according to the actress' book Master of Me, now share joint custody.
While talking to PEOPLE in August 2024, Palmer said that she tries to take Leo "every-single-where I go" so that she can maintain their "closeness."
“The grace of a career like mine — and, obviously, his age — is just that he can be with me,” she said. “So I'm grateful for that. I think I wanna just continue to be able to just do that and have him with me and do things together and make sure that he feels part of my life and sees what I'm doing."
Here's everything to know about Keke Palmer's son, Leodis "Leo" Andrellton.
His name has a special meaning
Keke Palmer pushing her son Leo in a stroller. Keke Palmer Instagram
Leo was born on Feb. 25, 2023. Palmer revealed her baby's name on Instagram when she announced the news of his arrival.
"Born during Black History Month, with a name to match," she wrote in the caption, adding, "LEODIS ANDRELLTON JACKSON, welcome to the world baby Leo."
Palmer previously teased the special meaning behind her baby's name during an episode of her podcast, Baby, This is Keke Palmer. “We’re not saying the name, but the name for us — it gives American," she said at the time, per Essence. "It gives Black American storyline. We want it to just be like — we’re not going for anything too unique. It’s not about to be Stone and Sand. It’s just like a nice natural [name].”
During a June 2025 appearance on Scott Evans' House Guest podcast, Palmer opened up more about how she and Jackson landed on Leo's name. She said that Jackson "actually made his name," in an effort to combine both of their names: Darius and Palmer's real name, Lauren.
"So yeah, that was him trying to put like Darius and Lauren, like Leodis, like it was just too much, but I said, 'Hey, let's do it. It's adorable,' " she said. "I was pregnant, anything went. It's adorable, ... and then also it sounded like an old name."
Palmer has called him a "warrior"
Keke Palmer and her son Leo.
Keke Palmer/Instagram
When the actress was 31 weeks pregnant, she opened up about her journey to motherhood on Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang's podcast Las Culturistas, telling the comedians that she was feeling "good" awaiting her baby's arrival.
She went on to express her excitement about becoming a first-time mom, noting that she "thinks about it every day."
After Leo's baby shower in January, Palmer chatted with PEOPLE about the "excitement" of meeting her son and why his celebration was "Once Upon A Time" themed.
"Right now, I feel like I'm living in a fairy tale!" Palmer told PEOPLE. "I'm a huge Disney fan because of how aspirational and sweet their stories are. I want to create a world like that for my baby, a world in which all things are possible."
He's Palmer's "twin"
Keke Palmer and her son Leo.
Keke Palmer/Instagram
In July 2023, Palmer shared a cute side-by-side post, comparing her then 5-month-old son to a throwback photo of herself on Instagram. "THE LIES END TODAY," she captioned the photo.
"#KandiFace 🤣 I'm done! This seals it all, we not the same complexion but the FEATURES ARE THEREEEEEEE. I rest my case!" she wrote. "My baby is my twin now stop being colorstruck and get into the actual face 🤣🤣🤣🤣."
He has given Palmer "confidence and empowerment" as a mom
Speaking onstage at the Howard Theatre in July 2023, the One of Them Days actress revealed how becoming a mother to Leo has given her a “sense of freedom” and boosted her confidence.
“I was really always preoccupied on the low key of my body and then after I had a baby, it kind of freed me in a way where I just didn't care as much and so the fact that I didn’t care, it made me just have an ease and a comfortability and a love for myself in a way that I didn't have before,” she said. “And it just gave me a sense of freedom that I can't describe, where I'm not afraid, because it's like, this is what I have, this is who I am.”
Palmer continued, “I never would have imagined that my son would have given me such a deep confidence and empowerment to just really be like, ‘Yo, we about to do this.' "
He and Palmer celebrated his first Halloween with coordinating costumes
Keke Palmer and Leodis dressed for Halloween in October 2025.
Keke Palmer/Instagram
For his first Halloween in 2023, Leo went as scientist Henry Frankenstein, and Palmer dressed up as the bride of Frankenstein.
"He gave me LIFE," she captioned photos from their spooky photoshoot.
More recently, the mother-son duo dressed up as Snoop Dogg and Bow Wow for Halloween in 2025.
Palmer and Jackson share joint custody of Leo
Keke Palmer and her son Leo.
Keke Palmer/Instagram
Palmer filed a restraining order against Jackson and asked for sole custody of Leo in November 2023. According to a declaration filed by Palmer, Jackson allegedly "hit" her and "spew[ed] profanities" at her in front of their son.
"The abuse during our relationship was not just physical, but emotional and manipulative," the filing for the restraining order read. "Darius would 'love bomb' me and make me feel like I was the most important woman in the world, only to get extremely distant and cold over a perceived insult to him."
In her book Master of Me, Palmer said the very public ordeal with Jackson was the "hardest thing I ever had to go through." A court-ordered mediation led the exes to settle amicably on a joint custody agreement.
“I wish I could say he was terrible the entire time or that I was ... but it wasn’t that black-and-white and that was the problem," Palmer wrote. “I didn’t want my son to think his father is a monster, because I don’t."
Palmer says it takes a "village" to raise him
Keke Palmer and her son Leo.
Keke Palmer/Instagram
During an interview with Teen Vogue, Palmer emphasized that she relies on her "village" to raise Leo. The actress and her son currently live with Palmer's sister.
"The village is really important," she said. "It's more about keeping Leo insulated with the people that I know and trust, that don't just love him, but love themselves. That's really big."
Palmer continued, "It's important that he has good examples. He observes everything. It's about giving him the proper role models and making sure my family is around."
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
