Kel opened up about his battles with depression and suicidal thoughts in the Nov. 9 issue of People Magazine. During the talk, Kel said one of his darkest moments came after his marriage to Tyisha Hampton, the mother of his children, fell apart in 2004. “After my divorce,” Kel said, “I just felt like life was not working out.” He said he felt “suicidal,” and “deep in sin,” even admitting he turned to drugs for some kind of relief.
With a marriage in ruined and a career going nowhere, Kel said that he felt alone in the world. “As a young actor, there are ups and there are downs. And when you get to that down part, there are times you feel like no one can relate to you,” Kel told People. He even mentioned another former teen-star who got her start on television. “When Britney Spears shaved her head, I understood that.”
Kel distinctively remembers when Britney cut off her trademark blonde locks in Feb. 2007, according to ABC News. Her decision to go bald left many people scratching their heads, but Kel seemed to know exactly where Brit was coming from.
Thankfully, Kel no longer feels the urge to kill himself. He turned to religion and became the stage manager at a nondenominational Christian Church in Los Angeles. He also returned to Nickelodeon, the network that launched his career. Plus, in Sept. 2015, he and Kenan Thompson reunited for an amazing Good Burger skit on The Tonight Show.
Even if Kel is never a big star again, he’s at least happy with himself. “I went through a rough time, but now I actually have peace,” Kel told People. “I enjoy living this life. I don’t let things frustrate or worry me anymore. I don’t do that because I have peace in my heart.”
Are you a fan of Kel, HollywoodLifers? Would you love to see him and Kenan do another Good Burger movie?
— Jason Brow