Separation Saga: Usher's Relationship With Tameka Gets Chaotic

By Jawn Murray, BlackVoices.com

I have purposely steered clear of writing any stories about Usher and his wife, Tameka Foster-Raymond and all the allegations surrounding their separation in recent weeks since the initial report of their split broke on Sept. 5.

(Read 'Rocky Romance?: Usher and Wife Tameka Are Reportedly Separated and Expecting' for that story.)

Nonetheless, on Oct. 1, I got a call from a woman whose name for now I will withhold claiming to be a "friend" of the Raymonds and "concerned because Usher was having an extramarital affair."

After a bunch of hemming and hawing about how she "didn't want her name mentioned" and how she was "only calling me to do the right thing," this alleged "friend" of the couple went on to accuse a fellow R&B/Pop singer of being Usher's mistress.

I listened to all of the allegations, despite the fact that said "friend" was full of generalizations and would begin mumbling and stuttering when I probed for specifics. (It was as though whoever had prepped her for this call had given her a brief outline instead of a detailed script to follow.)

Not foreign to this type of call, I had the alleged "friend" of The Raymonds checked out and surprisingly, her name checked out with the one on the phone records and the phone was listed to a real address in California.

But while this "friend" of the couple's may have been legit, I didn't buy her story one bit.

Let me be clear, the reason I've opted not to mention the name of the singer being accused of having an affair with Usher is because I don't believe the story!

It is not fair for an innocent person who was arbitrarily chosen by somebody with malicious intent to be the unsuspecting victim caught in the crossfire of this soap opera of a relationship.

Those blogs and other websites that are playing the guessing game have nothing to do with the hardcore facts that I'm reporting here.

After checking out this alleged extramarital affair I realized that the dates in question were improbable because Usher and the alleged mistress were in two separate countries for two and a half months of this alleged affair.

(I know a lot of people are into phone and cyber sex, but what's the point of having an affair if you aren't in the same country with your alleged jump-off!)

Further research allowed me to discover that days after my call from the "friend" of the Raymonds – this being the same weekend as the opening of Tyler Perry's studio in Atlanta to be specific – the singer in question and several of her associates got a call from Foster-Raymond tipping them off that this story was bubbling under and that "someone had warned her about it."

Upset, confused and completely blindsided, said singer then phoned Usher, who was both shocked and outraged by the whole ordeal.

Sources close to the situation tell me that this caused him to reach his breaking point and he made it clear that he believed his wife was behind the entire thing.

Apparently prior to this happening, the couple was already residing in separate residences – her at the main house and him at his old estate that is currently on the market.

I am also told that this is why he did not attend the festivities surrounding Perry's studio opening with her and even left the brunch Perry hosted soon after his wife arrived.

Lastly, though Foster-Raymond showed up at his birthday dinner at Mansion in Atlanta last week, it was clear to most in attendance that their lack of interaction spoke volumes about the reality of this relationship.

Several sources told me that she arrived more than an hour late, appeared to be upset for unknown reasons upon her arrival and despite sitting at the host table next to Usher, it appeared that he made it his business to stay as far away from her as possible throughout the dinner and never once posed for photos together.

More so, I am told that the 30-year-old star really wanted to wait until after Foster-Raymond gave birth to his second child in December before deciding whether to dissolve this marriage or not – because after the backlash he received in 2007 from the fallout with his mother, the last thing he wanted was to now be perceived as a man abandoning his pregnant wife!

(Read 'Mother Knows Best: Usher Rehires His Mom As His Manager' for more on that story.)

But these recent occurrences has the singer frustrated beyond belief and the future of this relationship, as one source told me, is a done deal!

Now, with the way Usher's marriage was on-again, off-again, and then on-again, off-again; there's no telling what may really happen with this couple.

In the meantime, it appears that by hook or by crook, 37-year-old former stylist is pulling out all of the punches to either keep her man or at least corrupt the public perception of him to sway it in her direction.

I realize that there is some online speculation that this whole saga is some sort of publicity stunt to generate press for Usher.

Back in 2004 when 'In The Mix' star launched his 'Confessions' CD, rumors about his dating life and an alleged baby were used as tools to drum up interest in that CD's release.

While 'Confessions' went on to sell more than 10 million copies in the United States, his current release 'Here I Stand' is unquestionably a dud, only selling just over one million copies since its release in May.

Trust and believe, this type of negative press has tremendously affected Usher's overall success with his current CD and a fabricated story about his marriage ending would do nothing to invoke life into that project.

Usher married the former Ms. Foster in August 2007 and they welcomed their first child, Usher Raymond V in November 2007.

She has two children from her previous marriage to designer Ryan Glover and a third son from a teenage romance.

A rep for Foster Raymond denied most of this report.

Usher's rep didn't return numerous calls for comment.