Brian McKnight and his estranged daughter Briana McKnight have settled their defamation lawsuit. According to RadarOnline, back in 2020, Brianna sued her dad for “maliciously defaming” her on social media. Brian McKnight was accused of “publicly humiliating” his daughter by claiming that as a minor she “engaged in sexual relations with an older cousin.”
In the suit, Briana alleged her estranged father always had animosity toward her. Reportedly, Brian welcomed Briana with a woman named Patricia Driver while he was married to his then-wife Julie. Brian and Julie share two sons together — Niko and Brian McKnight Jr.
Then, in 2017, Brian moved on and tied the knot with his current wife, Leilani Malia Mendoza, who has two children from a previous relationship. In January, the couple welcomed their son, also named Brian.
In the suit, Briana criticized Brian for being there for his stepchildren while ignoring her and her biological brothers. It has been reported that Briana attempted to fix the relationship with her famous dad but he refused to communicate with her.
The following year she revealed “aspects of her perceptions of growing up with an unnamed absent father” on her Instagram account. In part, Briana wrote, “‘Daddy’s little girl’ was never really a thing for me. Nobody understands what I’ve been through except for my siblings. Believe it or not, I’m not always the person I seem to be. I’m not always happy and most of the time I’m battling my own demons just like everyone else. I grew up thinking that the things that happened to me and my dad’s relationship was my fault.”
She added, “My father hasn’t called to wish me a “happy birthday” in years and yet I sit by the phone every single year hoping that one day his heart will change. I’m so fortunate that I have two brothers who are father figures to me. Who celebrate me and love me every single day and that we make up the time that we lost. The anger and the sadness that I hold in my heart every day over this is sickening.”
In response, Brian wrote on his social media, “Briana was a promiscuous and incestuous minor, and thereby (he hoped) undermining Briana’s credibility regarding a post that did not even identify him.” He added, “And unfortunately along the way, a couple years ago I caught wind that there was an older cousin who was above 18 who was quite possibly having sex with her.”
Brianna denied her father's allegations.
Back in February, Briana and her dad agreed to dismiss the lawsuit before trial.
