Yandy Smith & Mendeecees Harris' Relationship Timeline

During their early years on Love & Hip Hop, Yandy Smith and Mendeecees Harris presented themselves as an enduring couple of reality TV. They raised a blended family and even navigated prison time, emphasizing that their love could survive the spotlight. They branded themselves successfully, but behind the matching outfits and TV weddings was a relationship that many questioned from the beginning.

Their “marriage,” televised for millions, was later revealed to be ceremonial, not legal. Their relationship was packaged for primetime, but the questions about loyalty and legality were always real. Now, with Mendeecees confirming their breakup during a recent interview, it’s clear the chapter has closed.

Here’s how they got here.

Yandy and Mendeecees were already in Hip Hop's orbit before Love & Hip Hop arrived. Yandy worked behind the scenes as a music manager and executive in a male-dominated industry. Mendeecees, tied to both music and real estate ventures, moved in similar circles in New York. The two met in 2006 through an artist Yandy was managing, and although there was an attraction, they didn't want to mix business with pleasure at first.

Still, the two eventually began dating, and it wasn’t until Love & Hip Hop: New York that the public caught a full view. By Season 2, Yandy had shifted from working behind the camera to being in front of it, and her relationship with Mendeecees became central to her storyline. There were moments of joy, but also conflict, including tension with his exes and questions about fidelity.

Nevertheless, their bond appeared real. For many viewers, they represented a kind of messy but committed Black love that was flawed but functioning.

In 2013, it became harder to separate real life from reality TV. Yandy gave birth to their son Omere in 2012, and by 2015, she and Mendeecees had a daughter, Skylar. They were building a family under the pressure of cameras and court dates.

That same year, Mendeecees was sentenced to eight years in federal prison after pleading guilty to drug trafficking charges. The case had been building since 2013, with accusations that he was part of a large-scale operation. He turned himself in and began serving time not long after celebrating the birth of their daughter.

What followed was one of the most-watched weddings in VH1 history. In May 2015, Love & Hip Hop aired a glossy, star-studded wedding special for Yandy and Mendeecees, complete with vows and celebrity guests. However, months later, Yandy admitted they never filed the marriage license. On TV, they were husband and wife. Legally, they weren’t.

Yandy later explained she made that choice to protect herself and her children from being financially entangled in Mendeecees’ legal issues. It was a business decision, but it blurred a line, and the questions followed them for years.

While Mendeecees served time in federal prison, Yandy became a public symbol of loyalty. She brought their children to visit and advocated for prison reform. She posted messages of love and support. Moreover, she did it all while expanding her businesses, appearing on multiple Love & Hip Hop spinoffs, and managing the demands of single parenthood, both on and off camera.

The brand was “holding it down," and in many ways, she did. Yet, the public image often clashed with the mess happening behind the scenes. Yandy’s name became synonymous with ride-or-die devotion, but it came at a cost. The more she defended Mendeecees, the more fans questioned if she was carrying more than just the weight of a relationship but the burden of a man who couldn’t be fully present.

He was released in early 2020 after serving about five years.

When Mendeecees came home in early 2020, the reunion looked picture-perfect with family photos and social posts that framed their love. Though once the cameras rolled again, the cracks started to show.

In 2021, the couple joined VH1’s Couples Retreat, a relationship-focused reality show meant to spark transparency and growth. Instead, there was some backlash. During one segment, Yandy asked Mendeecees if he would’ve “held her down” the way she did for him while he was in prison. He hesitated. Then said he didn’t know.

That pause, that honesty, landed hard. For viewers, it shifted the narrative. What once looked like a love story started to feel one-sided, and though they kept up appearances on social media, the energy was different.

Meanwhile, Yandy continued to grow. Mendeecees, too, re-entered the public eye, sometimes with Yandy, sometimes not. The brand was no longer as seamless. The couple that once moved in lockstep now looked like they were walking at different speeds.

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Rumors were louder than the couple around 2023. Murmurs about Mendeecees cheating began circulating across social media. Then came whispers that he and Tamar Braxton had allegedly had a secret relationship after working together on an acting project.

Gossip sites suggested Mendeecees was quietly seeing Tamar and possibly others. There was no hard proof or confirmed timeline, but the rumor stuck. Yandy, who over the years was never quiet about defending her relationship, didn't have much to say about the rumors.

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After a year of speculation, Mendeecees made it plain. During a December 2025 appearance on Streetz 94.5, he confirmed that he and Yandy were no longer together. It was a calm admission while denying having had a relationship with Tamar. When asked directly, he didn’t deflect or stall. He said they broke up.

Yandy hasn’t commented publicly yet. The silence reads like confirmation. For some, the breakup felt overdue, sad, yet inevitable. Those who’d watched them weather prison, fame, and family under the lights of reality TV found it a reminder that commitment is more than a caption.

Their story, for better or worse, was shaped by camera crews and confessionals, as well as by choices made offscreen. They stayed together during prison time to raise children as a unit and to defend each other in public, even when the private cracks showed.

Was it all real? That depends on what you’re measuring. They weren’t legally married, but they lived like they were. They weren’t always honest on camera, but they were consistent in the roles they chose to play. The breakup doesn’t erase the years. It just clarifies this chapter.

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