Mel B and ex Eddie Murphy‘s once contentious relationship ‘flourished’ co-parenting their child Angel, who revealed this week that he has changed his pronouns and is living as a trans man.
The 18-year-old, who the Spice Girl confirmed had a girlfriend, started life in the glare of the public spotlight after the Nutty Professor star, 64, denied he was the father which led to a bitter paternity battle and years of estrangement.
Angel, who was born female, has changed the biographical detail on his personal Instagram account and wants to be referred to as ‘him’, with sources telling MailOnline the teen had been supported in their decision by both parents.
Mel, 50, told US Weekly last month: ‘[Angel and Eddie] spend time together, they go on holiday together. He has ten kids he’s a proper father. I think being in the kind of [situation] that I was in, it was hard for me to step out and have that relationship [with Eddie] flourish,’ referring to her ‘abusive’ marriage to ex-husband Stephen Belafonte. Allegations he denies.
Scary Spice, who is now engaged to Rory McPhee, said she’s learned to to co-parent with the Shrek star ‘bit by bit’ and admitted their friendship has ‘flourished even more’ as their son has grown up.
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Mel B and ex Eddie Murphy ‘s once contentious relationship ‘flourished’ co-parenting their child Angel, who revealed this week that they were trans (Mel and Eddie pictured 2006)
The 18-year-old, who the Spice Girl confirmed had a girlfriend, starred off life in the glare of the public spotlight after his famous father, 64, denied paternity (Mel and Angel pictured)
Angel, who was born female, has changed the biographical detail on his personal Instagram account and wants to be referred to as ‘him’, with sources telling MailOnline the teen had been supported in their decision by both parents
Gushing about Angel, who she referred to as male a month before he made his trans identity public, Mel told the publication: ‘He went to Japan last year with his girlfriend and just embraced the whole Japanese vibe, he speaks fluent Japanese and he knows exactly what he wants to do and where he wants to go’.
Mel and Eddie first met at a party at his Beverly Hills mansion in 2006 and according to the Wannabe hitmaker he had planned a ‘massive dinner party’ to meet her. When the pair first locked eyes on each other across the room, Mel said she ‘freaked out’ because he gazed at her with such familiarity she could ‘see my soulmate’.
The couple went on to shock fans with their unlikely coupling, which appeared to end as quickly as it started before the singer, who was already mum to daughter Phoenix, now 26, with ex Jimmy Gulzar, announced she was pregnant.
Mel said things turned sour after she fell pregnant and she fled to Leeds in the hope Eddie would follow her to win her back. However he told a journalist in a TV interview he questioned if he was the father would need a paternity test.
However during a 2019 appearance on Piers Morgan’s Life Stories, Mel said: ‘[Eddie] apologises to this day about that. He wishes he never said it because that baby was planned; we planned that baby together, and we were madly in love, and it just went wrong, dramatically went wrong.’
Reflecting on the relationship she told the host: ‘We had something special that I’ve never really truly felt with anybody else. I’ve thought I’ve had it, but they’ve lied. His [Love] was pure. He is the love of my life. He always will be. He showed me what true love feels like, and for that I have the utmost admiration and respect for him.’
Writing in her 2018 memoir Brutally Honest the pop star once again claimed the pair’s relationship lasted for far longer and was more meaningful than had previously been suggested. She also claimed that it was her who forced Murphy to take the DNA test in order for him to acknowledge their child.
Mel became pregnant while on vacation with Murphy in Mexico in July, 2006. She says Murphy was initially delighted to learn she was expecting and even asked her and her daughter to move in. Above she is pictured announcing the paternity case with lawyer Gloria Allred in 2007
The singer said she’s learned to to co-parent with the Shrek star ‘bit by bit’ and admitted their friendship has ‘flourished even more’ as their son has grown up (pictured with Eddie 2006)
![Speaking last month Mel said: '[Angel and Eddie] spend time together, they go on holiday together. He has ten kids he's a proper father' (Eddie pictured with all his children)](https://www.americanpolibeat.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/1749475793_314_Mel-B-and-Eddie-Murphys-relationship-flourished-co-parenting-their-trans.jpeg)
Speaking last month Mel said: ‘[Angel and Eddie] spend time together, they go on holiday together. He has ten kids he’s a proper father’ (Eddie pictured with all his children)
Mel, who referred to Angel as male a month before he made his trans identity public, Mel told the publication: ‘He went to Japan last year with his girlfriend’
‘He just embraced the whole Japanese vibe, he speaks fluent Japanese and he knows exactly what he wants to do and where he wants to go’.
Mel and Eddie met at a party at his Beverly Hills mansion in 2006 and according to the hitmaker he had planned a ‘massive dinner party’ to meet her (pictured with Angel 2016)
Mel said things turned sour after she fell pregnant and he told a journalist in a TV interview he questioned if he was the father would need a paternity test (pictured 2019)
However during a 2019 appearance on Piers Morgan’s Life Stories, Mel said: ‘[Eddie] apologises to this day about that. He wishes he never said it because that baby was planned’
Writing in her 2018 memoir Brutally Honest the pop star once again claimed the pair’s relationship lasted for far longer than had previously been suggested (With Angel in 2008)
She went on to say that Eddie had a ‘momentous’ effect on her life and that their bond was so close they even had each other’s autographs tattooed on the top of their thighs
She went on to say that Eddie had a ‘momentous’ effect on her life and that their bond was so close they even had each other’s autographs tattooed on the top of their thighs at a Hollywood tattoo parlour.
During their time together, Mel also wrote how the star would play old Elvis movies and films like Blazing Saddles and also speak about his childhood in projects in New York, where he and his older brother Charlie were partly brought up in foster care at a time when their mother was ill.
‘He was fascinating to me. He’d had a life I couldn’t imagine,’ writes Mel.
During his estrangement from his biological father, Angel was raised by his mother’s second husband Stephen Belfonte, who was accused of being abusive and controlling during the relationship.
In 2018 Mel’s mother Andrea Brown has shared a distressing letter on Twitter, which she claimed was written by a then 10-year-old Angel about the abuse the film producer allegedly inflicted on the family.
Andrea uploaded the handwritten letter, captioning the post: ‘A cry for help’, amid Mel custody battle with Stephen.
The three-page letter details abuse the Spice Girls star allegedly suffered at the hands of her ex husband, which Angel and sisters reportedly witnessed.
The letter said Stephen put the family through a ‘nightmare’ and Angel allegedly never wanted to see him again, despite once calling him ‘Dad’.
The letter read: ‘I’m very frightened of Stephen. When he is mad its terrifying. I never want to see him ever again it’d be like reliving a horrible part of my life. The worst part about the times I lived with him is when I’d try to stop the fights and cursing. When I tried he would say ‘oh shut up’ and I would be so scared I wouldn’t say anything else.’
‘I witnessed a physical fight. I was lying down in my mother’s room ‘sleeping’. I woke up to a fight,’ ‘I can’t remember what it was about, but I heard Stephen hitting mommys hand, it was hard cause I heard it. Mommy said ‘you snapped my nail off’ so it was hard.’
During his estrangement from his biological father, Angel was raised by mother’s Mel second husband Stephen Belfonte, who was accused of being abusive and controlling during the relationship (pictured 2015)
In 2018 Mel’s mother Andrea Brown has shared a distressing letter on Twitter, which she claimed was written by a then 10-year-old Angel about the abuse
That same year, Stephen, who shares daughter Madison, 12, applied for step visitation to see Angel, with his lawyers claiming Eddie was simply ‘not interested’ in having contact with his child (Mel and her kids in 2015)
‘I attempted to fake sleep cause I didn’t want to interfere and get hurt. I don’t want to see the man that causes so much damage to my mother leading her living through a nightmare.’
The letter claimed that Stephen’s daughter Giselle told Angel that Eddie was her dad when she was five, adding: ‘Extremely proud of that. I got an amazing relationship with my sisters, brothers, grandma and my father Eddie Murphy!’.
The letter continued: ‘When I lived with Stephen the rules were the strictest. When we ate food we had to sit on the floor instead of the dinner table. He said we would make a mess on the table. I wondered of you make a mess on the dinner table you just clean it up? What’s the point of having a dinner table if you don’t eat on it?
‘Stephen never came into my room and when I say never is N.E.V.E.R he was to busy on his computer. I’m happy I don’t see him any more. Now I live in a beautiful house and wait when I lived with Stephen I could never get a dog and guess what!
It went on: ‘Now I have two dogs and a goat! We can eat up an actual dinner table and I can see my REAL dad. I create small picture books and I have no more fear. I love seeing my real dad! And I loved seeing my mother happy! Not sad! Please don’t make me see him again – ps Angel.’
That same year, Stephen, who shares daughter Madison, 12, applied for step visitation to see Angel, with his lawyers claiming Eddie was simply ‘not interested’ in having contact with his child.
Mel, who was pregnant with Angel when she began dating Stephen, repaired her previously strained relationship with her mother Andrea after the split.
Stephen denies the claims Mel has made against him and last year filed a £3.9million defamation lawsuit against his ex-wife. Mel’s legal team asked for the case to be thrown out, but it has been denied, The Mirror reported.
