Ashley Jones is trying to move forward with Bariki Smith, despite their difficult past. As Teen Mom: Young and Pregnant returns for an all-new season, premiering with back-to-back episodes Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET, the MTV star opened up to PopCulture.com about her status with the father of her 2-year-old daughter after a public split and reconciliation earlier this year.
“Bar is always gonna be the father of my child, and we work on being the best parents we can be,” Jones told PopCulture of her current relationship with Smith, adding that for now, co-parenting is the pair’s “top priority.”
Videos by PopCulture.com
It hasn’t been an easy road for Jones and Smith, who welcomed daughter Holly in 2017, with the Teen Mom dad being arrested in August 2018 for an alleged domestic violence incident against Jones, which she said was not the first case of abuse that had occurred in their relationship.
More than a year later, Jones told PopCulture all the drama is “water under the bridge,” adding, “We go through though things, but we’re all family at the end of the day.”
While her romantic relationship with Smith may be unclear heading into the new season of Young and Pregnant, for now, Jones said she’s focusing on her schooling and being the best mom she can be to little Holly, whom she called “amazing,” noting that the Terrible Twos don’t seem to have affected her baby.
As for reliving everything that’s gone down in the last few months on the MTV reality show, Jones told PopCulture she’s “learned a lot” from watching herself in the past, even if she realized she was looking “not good.”
“My perception is clouded by a lot of the drama in my life,” she explained. “I think I’m just sharing my true story, and the difference is it’s on national TV.”
For more of Jones’ story, as well as that of Brianna Jaramillo, Kayla Sessler, Rachel Beaver and Kiaya Elliott, tune into the season premiere!
Teen Mom: Young and Pregnant returns with a double season premiere on Tuesday, Oct. 22 at 9 p.m. ET on MTV.
Photo credit: MTV
