Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson doesn’t care that people criticize her four-year age difference with her boyfriend, Dralin Carswell.
The former “Toddlers & Tiaras” star, 16, said in a new interview that she and Carswell, 21, have faced backlash for two things: “our age gap” and “because he’s black and I’m white.”
“I don’t care because in the end my sister approves, his mom approves and we’re happy, so what fans have to say or what haters have to say, I don’t really care,” Thompson told Entertainment on Thursday. Tonight.
Reality star Lauryn “Pumpkin” Shannon’s older sister, who gained custody of Thompson in April, also defended the controversial relationship.
“She’s not getting married, she’s not having a kid, she’s doing very well in school,” said Shannon, 22, adding that despite their age difference, Thompson and Carswell are “on the same page”.
The “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo” alum and Carswell have been dating since mid-2021, but didn’t become Instagram official until late September.
The two sparked engagement rumors when Thompson was photographed wearing a diamond ring in June, but her rep stopped speculation and told Vidak For Congress it was “just a ring.”
Thompson’s mother, “Mama” June Shannon, has also defended her daughter, saying the teen is old enough to make her own decisions.
“She gets a lot of hate for being in an interracial relationship” [and] he’s older,” the 42-year-old star of “Mama June: Road to Redemption” told TooFab in May. “Ultimately, Alana is not that 6-, 7-year-old kid you fell in love with 11 years ago.
“Alana has grown up, she’s graduating from high school next year, guys! People need to realize that she will be 17 in August.”
Alana and her beau recently made headlines when she announced their plans to travel to New York City in August to undergo $13,000 weight-loss surgery.