‘Growing Up Hip Hop’ Star Speaks out After Ex’s Killer Is Sentenced to Life in Prison

The man accused of murdering the former fiance of Growing Up Hip Hop star Angela Simmons was sentenced to life in prison on Friday, April 15. Prior to being handed the sentencing, the daughter of hip hop legend Rev Run of Run DMC gave emotional testimony about how her ex Sutton Tennyson’s death impacted her and their now 5-year-old son. Through tears, Simmons told a courtroom that their son often asks for his father. The reality star and socialite explained that she spent years crying daily due to the loss. Their son is named after his late father. 

In Nov. 2018, Tennyson was shot and killed outside his home after an alleged argument with another man escalated. He was pronounced dead when police arrived and found his body in his garage, having been hit by over a dozen gunshot wounds. Days later, Michael Williams turned himself into Georgia police and was formally charged. 

The romance between Tennyson and Simmons was a whirlwind. She shocked fans by announcing she was engaged and pregnant in 2016 after previously vowing to remain a virgin until she married.  

Their son, Sutton Tennyson Jr., was born in Sept. 2016. Just two months after the child’s birth, the couple split. Court records revealed that prior to his death, the former couple were in court over child support and visitation. Simmons also reportedly obtained a restraining order against Tennyson in 2017 for domestic violence, but their co-parenting relationship had improved.

The former Run’s House star has been open about the devastation she suffered from Tennyson’s murder. During an appearance on Hollywood Unlocked, Simmons says she would not be where she is post Tennyson’s death if it were not for therapy.

“I remember like yesterday when everything happened, when he passed, I had to go right into therapy because I couldn’t process it,” she explained. “It was like, ‘Oh my God, I’m raising his son without him, I miss [him]’ – it was just so much on the table for me when it came to that and then my son has his name and I didn’t know how I was going to process even that. It just was so much. But, gratefully and thankfully, therapy had been very, very helpful to me. I went like two, three times a week after it happened and it really helped me just get to the other side because I was not there. I think for the first time in my life I felt numb.”

After the sentencing, she shared several throwback photos of her, Tennyson, and their son. “Justice served today! We got you ! We got him” she wrote alongside the posts.