In this episode of KARAMO, host Karamo sits down with Michelle A, who has spent over a decade searching for her biological father. Using Ancestry DNA and family connections, Michelle identified a man she believed could be her father. When she confronted him at his home, he denied any relationship and refused to appear on camera. With the help of her longtime friend Keandra, who acted as a detective, Michelle located the man's daughter, Crystal, and arranged a joint DNA test on the show. The test confirmed that Michelle and Crystal are biological sisters, revealing the man as their shared father. The episode captures the emotional journey of discovery, the awkward yet hopeful first meeting between the sisters, and their reflections on past estrangement from their father. Karamo extends an invitation to the absent father to appear on the show for potential healing and closure, while Michelle expresses acceptance of the truth and openness to future relationships. The segment blends personal storytelling, family dynamics, and the dramatic reveal of DNA results.
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After 32 years, Michelle A thought she had finally found her biological father. But when she showed up at that man's door, he denied ever knowing her mother and said there was no way that he could be related. Michelle A is now here for a DNA test with that man's daughter to find out the truth and to finally solve her own DNA mystery. So everyone, please welcome Michelle A to the show.
Oh yeah.
So tell me about meeting this man that you think could be your father?
Well, this has been a long, long journey.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I've started when I was like in my early 20s, like really searching for him. Did Ancestry DNA, the DNA kit, and I found a couple of hits on that.
Okay.
And in that, my first cousin, which is my alleged father's niece, kind of put me in perspective to him and his siblings. So that's her mom is his sister. And it just kind of led me to want more from him.
It makes sense.
And you know, I said I'm gonna Google his addresses and you know.
Is this the moment that you walked up to his house?
It is.
This is the moment he opens the door and within this moment he denies you.
Yep. Whoa.
So we have to blur his face 'cause he has said that he does not wanna be on camera. He doesn't wanna be a part of this. And this is also, while you were taking this DNA test with his child.
Yes.
Because that would be the only way that we can find out if you two are actually indeed siblings.
Siblings, yep. And thank you.
So let's back it up. What led you to believe that this man, was it what you saw on Ancestry?
It's what I saw on Ancestry and when I reached out to my first cousin, which is his alleged niece. And it's also just off of meeting the people who I've reached out to. My best friend also reached out to a couple of people at our job.
Yeah.
And it was like so surreal.
Got it.
Yeah.
So Keandra is actually in the audience. Keandra is your friend, right?
Keandra, yes.
Yes, all right.
And without her, this would've never came possible.
Yeah, Keandra, I gotta ask you, 'cause you was being sneaky with the camera. I saw you slick with it. Did you ever end up talking to this man on your own?
Yeah, I actually did. It's a point actually on the video where Ms. Shalay leaves.
I got so frustrated, I just left and she stayed up there to get more answers and I was blowing the horn like, come on, let's go. And I had a breakdown.
Yeah, but he was gonna talk to me because we done did all of this.
That's a real one right there, you know? That's a real one right there.
That's a real one right there.
She said, you might not wanna hear it, but you gonna talk to me today.
Yep. You know, I did of course apologize. You know, I didn't wanna disrupt, you know, his household, anything like that. But you know, we wanted answers and this is the only way we knew how to get it. So this is what we did.
Yeah.
Have you been helping her for a long time trying to find him?
I have been helping her a lot. Like I have been that nosy detective friend this whole time.
Very nosy. But it came in handy.
You know what? The work you done put in as a friend, you deserve to be paid. Me on this couch. Come on down here and come hang with us, girl. You need to come down here and hang with us. Yeah, you need to come down here.
Thank you.
How long y'all been friends?
12 years.
12 years?
Yes.
I love it, I love it. And how did you help Michelle when you were working together?
Okay, so once again, those—
Crazy, crazy.
But whenever I have to, check someone's ID, something like that, I'm looking at names. And it just so happens, like, I stumbled upon a name that I thought was it.
Oh, wow. 'Cause that name is common, you know?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
But the second time, it ended up being my alleged father's ex-wife.
Wow.
Yeah.
Wow.
Yeah.
And tell me, what was that like?
She put me in touch with Crystal, and I reached out, me and Krystal, we reached out to each other.
So it's because of you at work finding his ex-wife while you're here with your potential sister.
Yeah.
Wow.
We do.
Tell me about Krystal.
She's awesome. I met her once and we went to go sit down and eat lunch and we just kind of shared stories. She shared stories on who he was to her and I shared stories on how absent he's been.
Mm-hmm. And what did she say? Was she empathetic?
Yeah, she was very empathetic because she says that they don't have a good relationship.
Oh, they don't have a good relationship?
They don't.
Got it, got it, got it. So is it just you two? Would you two be the only potential siblings or there are other siblings potentially out there?
There's other siblings.
All right, well everyone, please welcome Crystal to the show. Hello, nice to meet you. Thank you for being here.
Nice to meet you. You look great. Thank you.
First of all, do you know Keondra?
Yes, we met today.
Okay, y'all know each other.
We met today.
Today?
Oh, y'all met today? Okay, cool, cool, cool. So how do you feel about what was just said?
Honestly, I'm so grateful for the opportunity to be here to help. That's pretty much all my main focus has been, making sure she's able to get that closure and clarity.
Yeah, yeah.
Thank you.
Thank you. So how did you find out about Ms. Soleil?
So actually, surprisingly, I was at my mom's house one day and I get a call from my younger sister. She's like, guess what? I'm like, what? What's going on? She's like, oh, well we have another sister. I'm like, hold on, wait, what did you just say? So she's like, yeah. And then she goes on to tell me, not only that, get this, y'all are the same age. I'm like, hold on, whoa, 6 months?
Oh wow. We're literally 6 months apart. Oh wow. She had to make that stand. I'm big sister though, didn't she? I'm big sister though. I saw she did that.
Crazy.
So it was absolutely crazy.
Yeah. Yeah. Wow. That is wild. Is your father the man that Ms. Shalae met?
Yes.
That is, that is. And have you done a DNA test with your father?
So ours was already established. My mother has sole custody.
Got it.
So with child support, that was already established.
Got it, got it. And what was your relationship like with your father?
Huh, very strange. Pretty much I saw him on visitation, I would say up until around 6 or 7. Pretty much when I was in high school, I reached out to him. He did attend my graduation. A couple weeks later, I was supposed to deliver my first child, which would be his grandchild. I said, "Hey, you mind showing up? You wanna be a part? We're trying to restart this relationship." Yeah, day I was induced, having a C-section, tried to call him, text him, no response, no answer.
You haven't talked to him since then?
No, sir.
And how many years has that been?
Jesus, 2010, what is it, 2024?
So about 14 years you haven't talked to him. Yeah.
Wow.
Wow. What was it like meeting her for the first time?
I'm not gonna lie, I think on both parts, I would say it was definitely awkward.
Yeah.
Once we broke the ice, It was absolutely phenomenal.
Yes, it was.
So do you think that your father would be interested in having a relationship with Michel'le if this ends up being her child?
I would hope so. But in being realistic, I don't know. I mean, I would really hope that he would try, but I don't foresee it.
Do you want a relationship with your father?
At this point, being quite honest with you, I am very happy and content to where I am.
I know that's right.
I'm really strongly protecting my energy. And even with that being said, those are my children. So I do not want to allow them or her to embrace any kind of that negativity or that you don't want.
Makes sense, makes sense.
Well, are you interested in having a relationship with Michelle A if she is your sister?
Of course.
Yeah. 'Cause y'all say 20 minutes from each other?
Yes.
Down the street right now?
Right now.
Wow.
Right now.
Well, I think it's time for the DNA truth. You make trouble too.
Oh baby.
There's no need to prolong this anymore. In this envelope is the DNA truth, Michelle A, that you have been waiting basically your entire life for. This will let you know if this is your sister, if that man is your father. Are you ready for this moment?
I'm ready.
This is your truth to open, not mine.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
It's been a long time coming, and I wanna appreciate you for making the time to even do this DNA test. And I look forward to new beginnings after this, whatever happens. And I definitely thank you. You've been here since day one. Day one throughout this entire journey. So if y'all, y'all ready, then I'm going to go ahead and open it.
Yeah, girl, open that envelope.
All right, ready?
Yep.
Crystal is your biological sister.
I'm so excited. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Here you go, love. Here you go. I saw it.
Oh, you know you gotta be in the makeup school.
Oh my God.
So my mom was honest.
Your mom was honest.
My mom was honest.
Your mom was honest.
This is amazing. Can I keep this?
Of course, that's yours.
My best friend traveled too.
Your other best friend traveled here? Oh, hey, best friend. So that means you know for sure that this is your father.
This is my father. That is my father. And you know, if a relationship forms, it forms, but if not, then I've already accepted it.
Yeah, you've already accepted it. And so now you two have your sister bond that y'all about to work on.
We do.
You know, when I was younger, I always felt like it was something missing, like a void. And once this appeared and happened, I just knew from that moment That was the void you were missing. That was the void I was missing.
This is the void. Now you finally got the sister.
Yes. Well, I will tell you this.
I got you.
I'm so happy that you got your answers. I'm so happy that you now know the truth.
Yes.
I will say this though, is that there is a healing and closure that you both deserve from the man who is your father. And I know that right now he might not be in the space to give you all that, but I know we can't say his name, But sir, I know you're gonna watch this show and you're gonna find out that this is your daughter and you're gonna see your other daughter who you've been estranged from. And I wanna invite you here to the show because I have been trained to be able to support families in mending and coming together. And so if you're looking to understand and talk to your daughters and try to help them to understand why you made the choices you made, but also to help them heal, their invitation is here.
Thank you.
Thank you. I wish y'all the best of luck. Y'all got y'all sisters, you got your friend, you got your other best friend. Y'all gonna have a good time. Y'all gonna have a really good time.
Thanksgiving.
Okay, Thanksgiving, everything. Everything now. Listen, I wish y'all the best of luck. Congratulations again, all right? Listen, everyone, thank you for being with us. Make sure to come back next time, friends, so we can keep talking and growing. I love you all.
