Who is Sasha Obama’s new boyfriend, Clifton Powell Jr? Barack and Michelle’s youngest daughter looks all loved up with the super-tall former basketball pro now working with Nike and Pepsi
1. He comes from an affluent family
2. He’s a former basketball star
After he graduated from Village Christian High School, a private school in Sun Valley that costs over US$28,000 a year, Powell earned a four-year basketball scholarship to the University of California in Santa Barbara. According to his basketball bio, his favourite sports team is the Los Angeles Clippers.
Powell was one of five players from his 22ft Academy team to move on to Division 1 institutions, the highest level of competition sponsored by the National Collegiate Athletic Association. However, he transferred out of the university less than one year later to pursue a career as a broadcaster.
3. He is a TV commercial director
Powell, who goes by the nicknames “Cliff” and “CP3”, began his career by writing TV scripts but soon found a passion for directing and visual storytelling. He now directs commercials and has already created video content for brands like Peloton, Nike, Pepsi, Mountain Dew, EA Sports and more. The six-foot, five-inch (1.96-metre) tall lad’s favourite movie has been named as hip-hop group N.W.A biopic Straight Outta Compton and his favourite TV show is apparently Scandal.
4. It looks like he’s stolen Sasha’s heart
Clifton Jr and Sasha were spotted happily taking a stroll before getting in the same car in Los Angeles two days after her mother, Michelle Obama, let slip she was dating during her recent appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
Though it’s unclear when exactly they began hanging out, reports suggest the couple met when Sasha moved to the University of Southern California after transferring from the University of Michigan in autumn of 2021.
5. He’s passed the sister test
- As mum Michelle accidentally revealed on Ellen, the daughter of the former US president is dating 25-year-old Clifton Jr – son of acting star Clifton Powell from Ray
- Jr had a basketball scholarship at USC, but quit early to make ads for Peloton, Mountain Dew and EA Sports – and big sister Malia approves of the new beau