TLC (3)
Brother From Another Mother! Meet Michael Benz, Darcey and Stacey Silva’s Longtime Friend
A brother from another mother! Darcey & Stacey star Darcey Silva and Stacey Silva had big plans to expand their fashion brand, House of Eleven, on season 3 of their 90 Day Fiancé spinoff. To help make their dreams become a reality, they enlisted the help of their longtime friend, Michael Benz. Michael is also set to have a big part of their story lines as they return for season 4 of the TLC reality TV series. But who exactly is Michael Benz? Keep scrolling to learn more about the Darcey & Stacey star!
Who Is Michael Benz on ‘Darcey and Stacey’?
Michael is an old friend of Darcey and Stacey’s.
What Is Michael Benz’s Job?
He is a DJ and fashion designer. According to his Instagram bio, he describes himself as an artist. He is the recipient of an ARTA award and is also the creator of fashion brand 1 of 1, which is his line of custom, “wearable” hand-painted art pieces. He sells hoodies, sneakers and other leather wares on his website at a range of $30 to $111.
Michael also works as the assistant buyer at Flasher Melrose, a boutique in Los Angeles, according to his LinkedIn.
How Did Darcey and Stacey Meet Friend Michael Benz?
“We met Michael when we first moved to L.A. and he was in the who’s who of Hollywood,” Stacey said in a confessional. Darcey added, “Our company was just starting up and Michael put us out there visually. He would network us at events, parties, red carpets.”
She continued, “I remember that time that we went to a Sports Illustrated fashion show and he said, ‘Get right up there on the red carpet.’ We weren’t even on the list! He went up to the PR people and got us right up there, right in front of the line with all the press and they went to town.”
“We learned a lot from him,” Darcey said. Stacey added, “And he believes in us.”
In his confessional, Michael opened up about his friendship with the Silva twins. “So back in the day when me, Darcey and Stacey collaborated, we started with just swimsuits. We did samples and things like that,” he said. “It was a really good combination between me and them because as a male designer and as [female designers],we have a great fusion together. We see things differently, and they see things the way they want it, and we just produce it together. It’s great.”
Darcey and Stacey Asked Michael Benz to Help Them as They Expanded House of Eleven
When they returned for season 3, Darcey and Stacey set their sights on expanding their House of Eleven fashion swim collection with a menswear line. They agreed that the perfect time to launch their new collection was at Miami Swim Week 2021. Since Michael was also in the city for the event, they scheduled a business meeting with him shortly after they arrived in the Florida city.
Michael asked the twins what they needed from him and they asked him to attend their model casting and to help with styling. He enthusiastically agreed and helped make their fashion show a success.
Michael Benz Continues to Support Darcey and Stacey
After Darcey and Stacey landed a huge collab with Miami-based Impossible Kicks for their House of Eleven brand, they recorded a new song to play at the launch party. Michael served as the DJ during the big event and acted as the twins’ hype man.
Michael also took on the role as a protective brother of Darcey during her sister Stacey’s joint bachelor/bachelorette party in NYC ahead of her vow renewal with husband Florian Sukaj. Since Florian is friends with Darcey’s ex Georgi Rusev, Georgi was invited to the bachelor/bachelorette party and Michael made sure that Georgi didn’t get too close to Darcey during the festivities.
It’s clear Michael took his role seriously as the night ended in a major altercation between him and Georgi. After Georgi asked Darcey who she was texting, Michael had enough of his advances and confronted her ex-fiancé.
“She’s single. She’s not with you,” Michael told Georgi, getting dangerously close to his face during the April 3, 2023, episode of the spinoff. “Let her live her life.”
Georgi warned the fashion designer to back off; however, when Michael didn’t, the Bulgaria native ended up tackling him to the ground. Despite Darcey checking up on her friend the next day, Michael decided to leave the event.
“Thank you for coming to my defense,” she explained while comforting him. “I didn’t think it was gonna escalate like that.”
Have a tip? Send it to us! Email In Touch at contact@intouchweekly.com.
