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What Ian Somerhalder, Nikki Reed Said About Leaving Hollywood for Farm Life on January 19, 2024 at 11:53 pm Us Weekly
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Ian Somerhalder and Nikki Reed firmly stand by their decision to move their family from Hollywood to a farm.
The couple started dating in 2014 and got engaged just six months later. Two years after their 2015 nuptials, Somerhalder and Reed expanded their family with daughter Bodhi. After becoming a mother, Reed suggested that she and Somerhalder move away from Hollywood.
“To be fully transparent about it, I really did not want to be in the public eye anymore,” Reed, who rose to stardom for roles in movies such as Thirteen and Twilight, told Santa Barbara Magazine in 2022. “California has the ability to offer seclusion, but you can also be in driving distance to these major cities at the drop of a hat.”
Reed, who welcomed a son with Somerhalder in June 2023, discussed the pair’s joint love of animals and sustainability efforts. Their home in the countryside featured rain barrels that catch excess water and hydroponic veggie gardens. In addition to composting, Reed noted that she drinks water from her own well when possible and opted out of having a car. The actress said she prefers hand-me-downs as gifts for her daughter and recycles their clothing.
“If I could like tell you my dream,” she added at the time, “it would be to achieve total food autonomy, to have zero connection to a supermarket, to city water, to anything like that — to be able to live without relying on any system. So, you know, we’re not too far off from that.”
Somerhalder has also opened up about preferring to live on a farm.
“[I love] walking through the farm with kids and dogs and family,” the actor, who is known for playing Damon Salvatore on The Vampire Diaries, told E! in November 2023. “Every stop, you’re pulling off of trees or off of bushes, pulling up out of the ground and feeding everyone as you’re moving through the farm.”
Scroll on for Somerhalder and Reed’s quotes about choosing the countryside over their careers as actors in Hollywood:
Making Memories
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“Part of what we really focus on as a household is the idea of being really connected with nature,” Reed told Us Weekly while at the 2nd Annual Environmental Media Association Honors Benefit Gala in September 2019. “My dream would be for [our daughter] to be a farmer.”
Starting Something New
During an interview in May 2022, Reed reflected on her love for the outdoors, telling People, “Nature is the best form of therapy. And it’s instant — you don’t have to spend six months in nature before you feel it. Go on a hike and release endorphins. Look at a tree instead of the blue light on your phone. All of our souls need a dose of that kind of medicine.”
Reed confirmed that her life on the farm inspired a step back from acting.
“It was a very scary pivot for me to leave the only career I had ever known, that I had worked in since I was 13, to try something new,” she added. “But I learned a lot about what’s important to me. A lot of things that came with a Hollywood lifestyle, there isn’t synergy with the priorities I now have in my life and with the people I want to surround myself with.”
Finding Joy in Their New Home
That same month, Somerhalder pointed out that his and Reed’s move to the countryside was a long time coming for them.
“At the end of the day, we are farm people. Our cars and our boots are covered in dust, horsehair, and tack — and we love it. The life that we have both lived in the entertainment industry and the life that we are creating are vastly different,” he told New Beauty. “The life we thrive in and the life we want to create for our daughter is one of peace, tranquility and nature. Or, at least a nice balance. When mom and dad have to work in the city, the family makes city life fun.”
Somerhalder admitted the duo needed a break from Hollywood after hustling for years.
“I’ve been on the road since I was 16, so has my wife. I think we both have always yearned to live off the land, in a place that’s our land — and that is exactly what we have set out to do and we are doing it,” he concluded. “Our shared love of this life brings us closer together every day and, together, we are building a regenerative and peaceful farm life.”
A New Outlook
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According to Somerhalder, the choice to have a quieter life allowed him and Reed to implement more sustainable efforts.
“[It’s been] magic. It’s really the way it’s always supposed to have been,” he told People in August 2022. “I think now you’re seeing a lot of people who were working in corporate offices, and you can see it now from a societal standpoint. People are having a really hard time getting back to work. People have realized that their time and the value of their time and the value proposition of time has shifted a bit. Be more engaged, be outdoors more, spend more time with one another.”
The actor said he didn’t “plan on being on screen for a long time” despite his successful acting career.
“I think what the pandemic sort of did was show us that moments matter. Birthdays matter. Holidays matter. These small little granular moments with one another really matter,” he added. “And that is why Nikki and I find that rural or even urban/rural lifestyle — which I think a lot of people are getting into, whether it’s permaculture, building food forests — we’re past the point of just thinking that we’re going to stop all this by not using plastic straws and driving electric cars.”
Their New Normal
“I’m an aspiring farmer — literally. I wish I could give it all up to live in nature with the animals. I’m sort of pulled between two worlds, which is the life of a crazy-busy businesswoman, and then someone who really wants to create that quiet time,” Reed told New Beauty in January 2023. “Animals and nature are my peace. That’s where I thrive. … Right now, raising babies is the most important thing for me.”
No Regrets
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After hinting at his departure from acting, Somerhalder elaborated on the benefits, telling E! News in January 2023, “I love what I did for a really long time. I love making films, I just did it for so long. We had an amazing run. But this is our 2.0 version — about to be 3.0 version.”
Andrew Toth/Getty Images Ian Somerhalder and Nikki Reed firmly stand by their decision to move their family from Hollywood to a farm. The couple started dating in 2014 and got engaged just six months later. Two years after their 2015 nuptials, Somerhalder and Reed expanded their family with daughter Bodhi. After becoming a mother, Reed
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By Bolanle Media | July 2, 2026
Photo: Tyla at the 2026 Met Gala in custom Valentino — days before making the biggest business move of her career.
There are career moves, and then there are statements. Tyla just made a statement that will be studied in music business classrooms for years.
The South African superstar — born Tyla Laura Seethal, 24 years old, and already the proud owner of two Grammy Awards — has officially signed a multi-million dollar global deal with Roc Nation, Jay-Z’s powerhouse entertainment company, walking away from Epic Records to align herself with the most influential roster in the music business. The signing was confirmed across social media with a major digital announcement this week, and the reaction from industry insiders was immediate — shock, admiration, and the quiet acknowledgment that someone just changed the trajectory of African music forever.
From “Water” to a Global Phenomenon
Let’s not forget where this all started. In 2023, a 21-year-old from Johannesburg released a song called “Water” that nobody could quite categorize and everybody needed to hear. Within weeks, it had sparked one of the most viral TikTok dance challenges of the decade, charted simultaneously across the United States, the United Kingdom, and Africa, and earned Tyla a Grammy Award for Best African Music Performance — the first year that category even existed.
That win wasn’t just personal. It was a signal. African music — Afrobeats, Amapiano, and now what Tyla herself calls A*Pop — was no longer knocking at the door of the global mainstream. It had walked through it. And Tyla had handed it the key.
What followed was a whirlwind two years of sold-out shows, magazine covers, red carpet domination, and a growing reputation as one of the most stylistically fearless artists on the planet. She attended the 2026 Met Gala — her third consecutive appearance — wearing a custom Valentino gown dripping in diamond chains with a sweeping teal skirt, styled by the legendary Law Roach, with beauty by Pat McGrath. The look was breathtaking. But it was also strategic. Every Met Gala appearance, every fashion moment, every carefully placed interview has been building toward exactly this: the infrastructure to match the vision.
What Roc Nation Actually Means
To understand why this deal matters, you have to understand what Roc Nation actually is — because it is not simply a record label.
Founded by Jay-Z in 2008, Roc Nation is a full-service entertainment company with divisions spanning artist management, touring, brand partnerships, film and television, sports management, and philanthropy. Its roster has included Rihanna, Alicia Keys, J. Cole, Big Sean, Lil Uzi Vert, and Megan Thee Stallion — artists who didn’t just sell records, but built multi-decade cultural empires that extended into fashion, film, business, and beyond. The through-line isn’t genre. It’s scale.
For Tyla specifically, the Roc Nation deal unlocks a completely different level of access. We’re talking about premium budgets for music videos and live production, top-tier brand partnership pipelines with luxury and lifestyle companies, film and television placement relationships that most artists spend a decade trying to build, and the kind of media weight that gets you on the cover of Vogue, Time, and Billboard in the same calendar year. Roc Nation doesn’t just manage artists — it engineers icons.
On the African music side, Tyla joins fellow Roc Nation signee Ayra Starr, the Nigerian pop star who inked her deal in 2025, deepening the label’s clear and deliberate strategic investment in African pop as the next dominant global genre. Jay-Z is not betting on a trend. He is betting on a generation.
The Album That Could Rewrite the Playbook
The timing of this signing is not accidental — it is surgical.
Tyla’s highly anticipated sophomore album, A*POP, is officially set to drop July 24, 2026, just three weeks away — a 14-track project that she has described as unapologetic, globally ambitious, and deeply rooted in her South African identity while simultaneously reaching for something universal. The lead single “She Did It Again” features Swedish pop titan Zara Larsson, a collaboration that announces in no uncertain terms that Tyla is not staying in any lane she didn’t build herself.
With Roc Nation’s full machine now behind the album rollout — promotional infrastructure, media relationships, tour routing, brand activations — A*POP arrives with a runway that Epic Records simply could not have provided at this scale. The industry is already paying attention. For music supervisors, film and TV executives, brand marketers, and entertainment investors reading this right now — put A*POP on your radar immediately. This is the kind of release that shapes culture, not just charts.
The Bigger Picture Nobody Is Talking About
Here is what gets lost in the excitement of a big announcement: the systemic significance of what Tyla just did.
The music industry’s historical relationship with African artists has been, at best, transactional — major labels slow to invest, quick to cash in on a viral moment, and consistently reluctant to build the kind of long-term infrastructure that turns an artist into a brand. Tyla has navigated that system with remarkable intelligence, refusing to be reduced to a trend, building her artistic identity on her own terms, and now — at 24 — arriving at the negotiating table with enough leverage to choose Roc Nation on her terms.
That matters. Not just for Tyla, but for every African artist watching this unfold from Lagos, Accra, Nairobi, Cape Town, and Houston. It is proof that the path from regional phenomenon to global superstar is not only possible — it is being paved right now, in real time, by a young woman from Johannesburg who refused to shrink.
For media companies, content platforms, entertainment executives, and brand strategists operating in the African diaspora space — this is your data point. African pop is not a niche. It is not a trend. It is not a moment. It is a movement, and Tyla just secured the most powerful co-sign available in the global music business to lead it.
Watch this space. Very closely.
Follow @bolanlemedia on Instagram for real-time music, film, and entertainment industry news. Read more at bolanlemedia.com
AfriqueFest: Pan-African Musical Experience — World Cup Edition is set to take over Noto Houston on Sunday, June 28, bringing together East, South, and West African sounds in one immersive celebration of music, culture, and connection. Presented by Experience Noir and Bolanle Media, the event is designed as a cinematic night for the culture, blending global energy with Houston nightlife in a way that feels elevated, intentional, and deeply rooted in African creativity.
Spotlight on DJ Shinski
At the heart of this year’s experience is DJ Shinski. Born and raised in Nairobi, Kenya and now based in Houston, DJ Shinski has built an international name off high-energy sets that move effortlessly across Afrobeats, Amapiano, hip‑hop, dancehall, reggae, and electronic sounds.
He has also become Africa’s most‑subscribed DJ on YouTube, crossing the 2‑million‑subscriber mark and turning his mixes into a global destination for music lovers.
DJ Shinski’s style is precise but unpredictable: one moment it’s classic Afrobeats, the next it’s East African anthems, then a run of throwback hip‑hop or R&B that still feels fresh. That ability to read a room and connect multiple worlds in a single set is exactly why AfriqueFest is building so much of the night’s energy around him.
At AfriqueFest, DJ Shinski helps drive the Safari Grooves segment, representing East and Central Africa from 4 PM to 6 PM. Expect a journey that moves from Nairobi to Dar es Salaam, Kampala, Addis, and beyond, all filtered through his signature “vibes on vibes” approach behind the decks.
DJ Tunez and the rest of the night
Supporting that energy, DJ Tunez leads the Gold Coast Beats chapter from 8 PM to 10 PM, bringing his own Nigerian‑American Afrobeats pedigree to the stage. Together with the Diamond Rhythms segment (South) and a curated roster of DJs, the night stretches across the continent in three distinct musical chapters, all connected by a single dance floor.
Hosted by @chris_gone_crazy, @kingdrewwskyy, @roselynomaka, and @samsnewleaf, AfriqueFest is positioned as more than a party—it’s a celebration of sound, style, and Pan‑African identity in Houston, with DJ Shinski anchoring the experience from the moment doors open.
Brought to you by Bolanle Media & Experience Noir
Brought to you by Bolanle Media and Experience Noir, this World Cup edition of AfriqueFest is crafted as a night where global DJs, storytellers, and music lovers collide and create a shared cultural memory. With DJ Shinski front and center—and DJ Tunez helping close the night—guests can expect a show that reflects both the future of African nightlife and the power of the diaspora to create unforgettable live moments.
If you want to experience DJ Shinski live at AfriqueFest, now is the time to lock in your spot. Purchase your tickets now at AfriqueFest.com and get ready for a night of music, movement, and culture at Noto Houston.
Laughter Meets Inspiration: Our Ladies Show Lands on The Roku Channel
A bold new sketch comedy series for women premieres June 13 across the U.S., U.K., and Canada — arriving on the back of a festival-winning run that has critics and audiences already paying attention.
It isn’t every day a brand-new comedy arrives already wearing a row of trophies. Our Ladies Show does. The seven-episode inspirational sketch comedy series — created, written by, and starring Christin Jezak — begins streaming on The Roku Channel on Friday, June 13, 2026, available free to viewers in the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada.
Produced in partnership with global media services leader Encompass Digital Media, the series sets out to do something rare in today’s streaming landscape: make women laugh out loud and leave them lifted. In a media moment crowded with noise and cynicism, Our Ladies Show is a deliberate counterweight — comedy with a conscience, built for women of every age and background.
A Show Built Around Real Life — and Real Laughs
Each of the seven episodes opens with a monologue from one of the cast members introducing the theme, then rolls into three or more sketches that hit the subject from every comedic angle. The series tackles the things women actually carry: holding grudges, comparison, beauty, patience, gift giving, the importance of community, and dealing with anxiety.
The comedy comes from a place of warmth rather than mockery — a “laugh at ourselves” spirit that runs through a gallery of unforgettable characters: a nosey neighbor, an overwhelmed mom, relentlessly optimistic flight attendants, beauty pageant winners past their prime, and a crew of unruly campers with a counselor who simply cannot hold it together.
Then the show does something most sketch series don’t. In the final segment of every episode, the cast gathers in a living-room setting and invites the audience in — sharing real inspiration drawn from the theme, the sketches, and their own personal stories. It’s the moment the laughter turns into something that stays with you.
The Women Behind the Show
Our Ladies Show brings together three performers with serious range:
- Christin Jezak — creator, writer, and star (Miracle at Manchester, Raising Hope, Jimmy Kimmel Live!)
- Hillary Hawkins — (Primal, Nick Jr.’s Play Along, Gullah Gullah Island)
- Sarah Hernandez — (Nefarious, Unplanned, House of Payne)
“In a world with so much division and depression, I hope women of all ages and backgrounds will watch this show, laugh, be reminded of how beautiful, unique, and loved they are, and remember how much we need each other.”— Christin Jezak, Creator & Star
Already a Festival Favorite
The series’ recurring long-form sketch, Neighborhood Watch, didn’t arrive quietly. Originally released as a web series and revamped for Our Ladies Show with new footage, sound, and music, it has been sweeping the festival circuit:
- 🏆 Best Webseries — 2026 New Media Film Festival (Los Angeles)
- 🏆 Best Web/TV Series — Paris Film Awards
- 🏆 Best Web Series — Dallas Movie Awards
- 🏅 Additional wins at the London Movie Awards, Florence Film Awards, and Hollywood Gold Awards
- 🎬 Official Selection — 2026 Harvard Divinity School Film Fest
- ⭐ Finalist — Houston Comedy Film Festival
- 📣 Three nominations — 2025 Content Christian Media Conference, including Best Actress in a TV and Web Series nods for both Christin Jezak and Sarah Hernandez
Where and When to Watch
Our Ladies Show premieres Friday, June 13, 2026, streaming on The Roku Channel — the home of premium and free entertainment — in the U.S., U.K., and Canada. All seven episodes deliver the series’ signature blend of sharp sketch comedy and genuine encouragement.
Watch the trailer now on your platform of choice:
For more information, visit www.ourladiesshow.com and follow @ourladiesshow on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
About Christin Jezak
Christin Jezak has worked for over 15 years in the entertainment industry. She created and stars in Our Ladies Show and the award-winning web series Neighborhood Watch. She produced the EWTN TV program For the Sake of the Gospel and the all-women web series Ladies Keepin’ It Real, played Dr. Sam in Miracle at Manchester (starring Dean Cain, Daniel Roebuck, and Eddie McClintock), and voices Agnes in the podcast Confessions of a Catholic Single. She held a lead role in a short film for NTT Data directed by Academy Award–winning cinematographer Janusz Kamiński, has co-starred on Raising Hope, and appeared in Jimmy Kimmel sketches and a Grubhub Super Bowl commercial.
About The Roku Channel
Roku pioneered streaming on TV and is the #1 TV streaming platform in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico by hours streamed (Hypothesis Group, Dec. 2025). The Roku Channel is the home of premium and free entertainment, alongside Roku’s Howdy and Frndly TV services. Roku is headquartered in San Jose, California.
About Encompass Digital Media
Encompass Digital Media is a global managed services company — technology-driven, software-defined, and people-powered. Trusted by world-leading broadcasters, networks, sports rights-holders, and OTT platforms, it processes over 25,000 hours of content daily, serves 850 channels to 84 countries, distributes over 243,000 live events annually, and reaches 400 million radio listeners weekly worldwide. Learn more at www.encompass.tv.
Media & Interview Requests: To interview creator Christin Jezak or the cast, contact Christin at cjezak@p2ptheatre.com.
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