Love Island USA’s JaNa Craig has a lot to say about her breakup from ex-boyfriend Kenny Rodriguez — but she’s staying silent. For now.
“Will there ever be a time that I can speak my piece? If only you guys knew how bad I’d love to share a beautiful storytime of what happened to me last summer,” Craig, 29, told Us exclusively while attending T-Mobile’s Club Magenta at Lollapalooza in Chicago on Sunday, August 3. “But I’ve learned from my lawyers that it’s better to put it in God’s hands and let the world just know for a fact that they’re Team JaNa, so it’s OK. But oh, if I could choose, the world would be a very different place right now.”
After placing third on season 6 of Love Island, Craig and Rodriguez, 26, took their relationship beyond the Villa and into the real world. They ultimately called it quits last summer.
In the wake of their split, Rodriguez made explosive claims about their relationship and breakup on a July 20 episode of “The Journey Podcast” — to which Craig replied with her own statement, alleging her ex had sent her a “cease and desist” before sharing “straight f***ing lies” on the show.
The reality star joked to Us that while she “almost died a couple times … mentally and literally” in the public eye, she is leaning on her faith and her loved ones in order to protect her mental health.
“I’m a little Christian girlie, so I’m in my Bible, and I call myself a Christian in construction because I’m still working to be the best version of me,” she told Us. “As you guys know, I can still cuss people out, and I can get a little rowdy when I should probably watch my tongue, but I’m working on it.”
Craig continued, “I have the best support group. I have my PPG girls [Powerpuff Girls, an Island season 6 trio of Craig, Serena Page and Leah Kateb], my mother girls from the Island, my personal best friends, my family and, of course, I have all of America and a lot of amazing places around the world supporting me.”
Her fans’ support was certainly evident at Lollapalooza.
“Club Magenta has a really good view of the main crowd,” Craig told Us of the festival oasis for T-Mobile members, offering a VIP experience just steps from the main stage. “Well, a girl at the bar asked me if I could come to take a picture with her. So [when] I went to the edge, all the cheers broke out. I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, is someone performing?’ And I saw that they were recording me and I was like, ‘Little me?’”
She continued, “They were like, ‘JaNa we love you!’ and I was like, ‘I love you!’ And then it was a really big uproar. And in that moment, I realized, like, ‘Wow!’ I really do have so many people riding for me and it was very, very heartwarming.”
Along with fellow Love Island alum Kaylor Martin and creators Tefi Pessoa, Greg Grippo and Andrew Spencer, Craig made the most of her time at Club Magenta, where T-Mobile members and their guests enjoyed various perks, including free drinks during Magenta Hour, custom bandana charm necklaces, portable charging and even surprises from artists like Leon Thomas.
“My favorite thing in the world that’s ever been invented is sitting down,” Pessoa, 36 — who joined the Love Island universe herself as a host of the aftershow, Aftersun, this past season — told Us with her signature humorous delivery. “I love sitting down; it’s my passion. The fact that I can sit down at Club Magenta, I can charge my phone — they have portable chargers and charging stations — and I can see both stages [is] the best thing in the world.”
Both Craig and Pessoa named Charli XCX and Lorde as their favorite headliners (before they saw Tate McRae Sunday night, at least).
“That bitch blows me away,” Pessoa told Us of the Brat singer, while Craig added, “I feel like Lorde ate. She brought a really huge crowd. It was very impressive. I felt like it was 2015 again or something. It felt very nostalgic.”
Craig may have felt differently had Lil Uzi Vert actually taken the stage. (The rapper canceled his performance last minute due to weather and travel issues, though he did make a surprise appearance during Major Lazer’s DJ set.)
“I’m deciding if I want to forgive him or not, but that’s OK,” Craig joked.
At the end of the day, the Love Island fan-favorite counts her first Lollapalooza experience as a massive success.
“It’s been fun. I survived all the way to day four. I honestly have no idea how I’m here. I don’t know how I’m awake right now,” Craig told Us. “I’m very, very impressed, just like you guys.”
Read the full article here
