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Karamo Brown's Blended Family Came Together In A Unique Way

by Casey Suglia

When Karamo Brown officially makes his way to the dance floor on Dancing with the Stars on Monday, he will have plenty of people cheering him on from the sidelines. The Queer Eye star will have friends and family members supporting him, including his kids. Some people might be curious and wonder — how many kids does Karamo Brown have? They should know going into it that his family has such an incredible story.

People may be used to seeing Brown on the Netflix series, Queer Eye, where he helps transforms the lives of every day people on the inside and outside. But they're going to be seeing a lot more of him when he heads to the Dancing with the Stars ballroom with his partner. If he ends up being as successful on DWTS as he is on Queer Eye, then audience members will get to know him on a personal level, and learn more about the people cheering him on from the sidelines — like his two sons, Jason and Chris.

Jason is Brown's biological child, but he was unaware of his existence until Jason was 10, according to The Advocate. Brown had gotten his friend, and Jason's mother, pregnant when they were in their teens. But she moved away from town after becoming pregnant and didn't tell Brown that he was the father (he came out as a gay man a year later at the age of 16, according to Parents). Brown found out he had a child 10 years later when he got a stack of papers delivered to his doorstep, informing him he had years of overdue child support, according to The Advocate. Brown ended up tracking down his son, and formed a bond that would allow him to receive full custody of him.

"I was confused, sad, angry, and weirdly excited to become a dad, but felt lost nonetheless," Brown told Parents last year. "We were both kids and I don't blame her for the decision she made because the choice was not hers, it was the adults around us."

Jason's half-brother (through his mom), Christian, ended up naturally fitting in with Brown, according to People, and so he adopted Christian in 2010. Jason is now 21 and Christian is now 18, but Brown remains very close with his two boys and credits them, especially Jason, in saving his life.

"People say, 'You saved his life.'," Brown told The Advocate. "And I say, 'No, he saved mine.' Because once I saw that there was somebody else out there, it made me immediately start work on myself, because I wanted him to have a better relationship [with me] than I had with my father."

Brown's sons are just as grateful for their presence in their lives. He seems like such a positive influence on them, just like he is for the people whose lives he helps transform on Queer Eye. "I would say I'm already cultured and cool literally because of my dad," Jason told Slate. "He gives us so many history lessons and he has swag. I don't know if you've seen the show, but he has swag."

Brown has inspired his sons professionally, too. Brown and Jason co-wrote a children's book together about their unique family, titled I Am Perfectly Designed, which is coming out in November. "We decided to do a book together — a children's book that could be utilized for parents, for kids, and for anyone really who just needs that boost in confidence that they are enough and that they are perfectly designed," Brown told Out.

Brown's story about his blended family is so unique and so true to his awesome life and story. His sons are only part of this.