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Kayla Nicole\u2019s Toni Braxton Halloween costume went viral on the internet when she debuted the look on social media.<\/p>\n
When it comes to Kayla Nicole<\/a>, not everything has to do with her ex \u2014 especially not this year\u2019s Halloween costume<\/a>.<\/p>\n After the 34-year-old media personality and sports journalist\u2019s \u201cHe Wasn\u2019t Man Enough\u201d Toni Braxton-inspired Halloween look nearly broke the internet, many assumed it was shade toward her ex, Travis Kelce, and his fianc\u00e9e, Taylor Swift. But on her podcast, \u201cThe Pregame with Kayla Nicole<\/a>,\u201d she revealed the real inspiration had nothing to do with either of them.<\/p>\n Nicole\u2019s Halloween tribute to Braxton played out across two posts on Instagram. In the first<\/a>, she starred in a short, mock music video complete with lip-syncing, choreography, and the purple kaleidoscope backdrop made famous in Braxton\u2019s \u201cHe Wasn\u2019t Man Enough\u201d visual. Dressed in a skimpy, bejeweled chain dress with her hair long, sleek, and bone straight, she embodied the R&B icon\u2019s early-2000s glamour. The second post<\/a> showcased still photos from the shoot alongside behind-the-scenes footage.<\/p>\n While Braxton\u2019s original lyrics are sung from the perspective of a woman telling her ex\u2019s new wife he \u201cwasn\u2019t man enough,\u201d Nicole said her inspiration came from a \u201cvery specific\u201d childhood memory.<\/p>\n \u201cI had a white best friend. Her name was Taylor,\u201d she recalled during the episode. \u201cAnd she [was] the only house I could go over to as a kid because my mom didn\u2019t play them type of games.\u201d<\/p>\n She continued, \u201cI specifically remember driving home from private school in my little uniform in the back of a paddy wagon with Taylor, and her mom was playing this song, playing it at the top of her lungs.\u201d<\/p>\n Nicole said the moment left a lasting impression.<\/p>\n \u201cI had an \u2018ah ha\u2019 moment,\u201d she said. \u201cI remember thinking, wow, white people listen to Black people music as well.\u201d<\/p>\n A model, on-air host, and wellness advocate, Nicole first rose to prominence in the sports world. She later gained notoriety for her on-again, off-again relationship with Kelce, which ended permanently in 2022. But ever since the NFL star began dating Swift a year later, Nicole has found herself unwittingly swept into the ongoing narrative surrounding their romance<\/a>.<\/p>\n When she spoke to theGrio recently about the evolution of her media and wellness brand, Nicole made it clear where her focus lies now.<\/p>\n \u201cMy focus has really just been cultivating community and creating safe spaces for women like me to feel seen and understood, respected, [and providing] places that they can go to learn more about themselves,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n More must-reads:<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n