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Ready to Find Love! New Bachelorette Tayshia Adams Is Already a Fan Favorite
In a twist that no one could’ve seen coming, Tayshia Adams is stepping into the role of The Bachelorette after lead Clare Crawley found love within two weeks of starting filming. Life & Style exclusively broke the news that Clare and contestant Dale Moss were leaving the show together early after hitting it off and getting engaged, and now Tayshia is ready to take over. A fan favorite, the California cutie has been recommended for the role before. Get the details on her history with the franchise and her dating life, below.
We first met Tayshia during Colton’s season.
Tayshia, 29, was one of the many women vying for Colton Underwood’s heart on season 23 of The Bachelor. After hitting it off with the handsome former NFL player, she made it all the way to the final three of the show and even spent the night with the lead during a fantasy suite date. In fact, she was the only contestant to do so. After Colton’s date with Cassie Randolph led to her leaving the show — and his decision to chase after her — he let his other two finalists go. Unfortunately, that meant he sent Tayshia home, though she would get another opportunity to find love in the franchise.
![Tayshia Adams and Colton Underwood on The Bachelor](https://www.intouchweekly.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Tayshia-Adams-and-Colton-Underwood-on-The-Bachelor.jpeg?fit=400%2C221&quality=86&strip=all&resize=400%2C221)
Tayshia was a bit of a heartbreaker in paradise.
During season 6 of Bachelor in Paradise, more than one contestant found themselves vying for Tayshia’s heart. John Paul Jones and Derek Peth faced off at Chris Randone and Krystal Nielson’s wedding when they found themselves both pursuing the former phlebotomist. Eventually, JPJ won out, and he and Tayshia explored their romance as he threw a mini-prom for her on the beach, declaring her queen. The couple ended up splitting before fantasy suites, but decided to give their love a try out in the real world once the show was over. Eventually, they decided to go their separate ways.
She was a popular pick to become the Bachelorette.
Before Hannah Brown was announced as the lead for season 15 of The Bachelorette and Clare, 39, as the season 16 lead, many fans were lobbying for Tayshia to have the opportunity. “Legit, Tayshia is one of the most beautiful girls ever on the franchise and would be a wonderful bachelorette,” alum Ashley Spivey wrote on Twitter in March 2019. “Sooo Tayshia for Bachelorette, right?” added a fan in February 2020.
Legit, Tayshia is one of the most beautiful girls ever on the franchise and would be a wonderful bachelorette. #TheBachelor
— Ashley Spivey (@AshleySpivey) March 12, 2019
Bachelor Nation star Ashley Iaconnetti was right there with them. “She is just so likable. … She’s just pretty fantastic,” she told Life & Style in February, saying the Newport Beach native would be a “really good choice” for the role. Husband Jared Haibon agreed, gushing, “Tayshia is a really good pick.”
She believes in the process.
Her father may have famously warned Colton during hometowns on The Bachelor that you “don’t microwave relationships,” but Tayshia has seen how this process can work for her — and for many of the other Bachelorettes who’ve come before her, including Clare. After Colton sent her home, she shared a refreshing perspective on the situation and her romantic future.
“I know that I deserve a lot and an amazing person in my life,” she said on the show. “If Colton knew what he wanted … he was on this journey for that.” Speaking to the Bachelor directly, she added, “I will not take anything that I’ve learned or that we shared for granted. … Thank you for everything.”
She’s been married before.
On The Bachelor, Tayshia opened up about being a divorcée. “This past year and a half has been kind of hard for me, and it’s actually because I was married, and I got divorced,” she told Colton. “I actually married my first boyfriend and I was with him for about six years or so.”
She believed marriage was something you only do once, but ultimately she and her husband, a man named Joshua Bourelle, had to accept their relationship just wasn’t right for them. “You can’t make someone want to be married,” she said. After tying the knot in April 2016, her ex-husband filed for divorce in October 2017, and they finalized their split by November 2017.
“My divorce used to be something I was ashamed of, because to me it represented, not only to myself but to everyone that knew me, that I had failed at marriage, something I value so highly,” she shared in an Instagram post after the episode of The Bachelor aired. “It made me question my worth and completely dimmed the light inside of me that used to shine so brightly. … It’s been a rough journey to pick up the pieces and rebuild my idea of the life I want, but I will tell you this: I would not be able to be the strong, independent and smiling woman I am today without my faith or the support of my close family and friends that have supported me unconditionally.”
She’s a career woman.
Before joining the ABC franchise, Tayshia was a phlebotomist, a medical technician who takes blood samples from patients. In 2019, however, she told Vulture she was rethinking what she wanted to do with her life. “I’m not practicing phlebotomy anymore. I don’t know if I’ll go back into medicine,” she said. “As much as I love it and went to school for it, my passion has always been in real estate, development, interior design and architecture. … I think I’m going to gravitate towards that. I’m currently working at an interior design firm, and I hope this blossoms and opens doors for my career. You’ll see me out there. I’m sure you will!”
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