Dreka Gates spent more than two decades building a life alongside Kevin Gates. She managed his career from the early mixtape years through his Billboard chart success. She co-founded a record label with him. She raised two children while simultaneously constructing her own wellness empire. Then, on July 30, 2025, she walked into Los Angeles County Superior Court and filed for divorce. The filing cited “irreconcilable differences.” What followed that document, however, was anything but standard. Court records, public social media rants, explosive financial allegations, a $7 million IRS lien, and the revelation of a separate 52-day Islamic marriage to a reality television star turned a quiet legal proceeding into one of the most talked-about celebrity divorces of the year.
Who Are Kevin Gates and Dreka Gates?
Kevin Jerome Gilyard, known professionally as Kevin Gates, is a rapper, singer, songwriter, and entrepreneur from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He was born on February 5, 1986. His debut studio album, Islah, debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart in 2016 and made him a household name in hip-hop. Subsequent albums, I’m Him (2019) and Khaza (2022), extended his commercial reach.
Dreka Gates: More Than a Rapper’s Wife
Dreka Gates, born Shadreka Centuri Haynes on August 31, 1986, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, built an independent reputation that stands entirely apart from her marriage. She co-founded the Bread Winners’ Association record label alongside Kevin. She served as his booking manager and career manager for nearly two decades. Beyond music, she launched the DREKA wellness brand, founded the cannabis company Love’s Harvest, and built a 43-acre wellness farm in Mississippi growing more than 60 crop varieties. Her estimated net worth sits at $2 million as of 2025, according to multiple outlets. She has amassed over three million followers on Instagram.
Kevin and Dreka met around 2003, according to a 2020 Instagram post in which Dreka noted they had been together for 17 years, as reported by TMZ. Their daughter Islah Koren Gates arrived in 2012. Their son Khaza Kamil Gates followed in 2014. The couple formally married on October 17, 2015. Together, they converted to Islam and completed the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in 2016.
| Key Timeline | Date |
|---|---|
| Kevin and Dreka begin dating | 2003 |
| Daughter Islah Koren Gates born | November 30, 2012 |
| Son Khaza Kamil Gates born | May 10, 2014 |
| Kevin and Dreka marry | October 17, 2015 |
| Both complete Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca | 2016 |
| Kevin Gates releases debut album Islah | January 29, 2016 |
| Kevin Gates releases I’m Him | 2019 |
| Kevin Gates releases Khaza | 2022 |
| Kevin Gates and Brittany Renner marry (Islamic ceremony) | April 6, 2025 |
| Brittany Renner and Kevin Gates divorce | May 28, 2025 |
| Dreka Gates files for divorce | July 30, 2025 |
| Dreka files for $73,467 monthly support | October 2025 |
Why Did Dreka Gates File for Divorce?
Dreka Gates filed for divorce on July 30, 2025, in Los Angeles County Superior Court, according to court documents obtained by E! News. The official reason listed in the filing is “irreconcilable differences.” The separation date is listed as July 10, 2025. The filing does not name a specific cause. It does not accuse anyone of infidelity or financial misconduct by name. It keeps the stated reason broad and legally standard.
The Events That Built Toward the Split
The marriage did not break down overnight. Kevin Gates publicly suggested in early 2026, via social media, that the couple had been effectively separated since 2020, according to The Shade Room. That claim significantly reframes the public narrative. For years, the pair appeared to present a united front to the world. Behind that image, however, the relationship had apparently already ended years before Dreka filed the paperwork.
Dreka’s court filings, obtained by TMZ, allege that Kevin began dismantling the family’s financial foundation in late 2021. She claims he stopped paying school tuition for their children. He allegedly stopped covering property taxes on their shared assets. According to documents reported by Hot 97, he also allegedly purchased 18 luxury vehicles and a $4.7 million estate in Calabasas, California, during the same period. Those purchases happened, Dreka alleges, while she and the children went without basic financial support.
The IRS Lien That Put the Farm at Risk
Perhaps the most dramatic financial detail in the divorce filings involves the couple’s Mississippi farm. That property represented Dreka’s most significant entrepreneurial asset, the land behind her DREKA wellness brand and Love’s Harvest cannabis operation. According to court documents reported by Celebrity Net Worth and Finance Monthly, a $7 million IRS tax lien now threatens that farm with foreclosure. Dreka’s filings attribute the lien to Kevin’s alleged failure to manage and pay federal tax obligations. The farm that once symbolized their shared vision now sits at the center of a bitter financial dispute.
What Role Did Brittany Renner Play?
The Brittany Renner development arrived before Dreka filed any paperwork and added an entirely new dimension to an already complicated situation.
The 52-Day Islamic Marriage
Brittany Renner is a fitness influencer, model, and reality television personality who appeared on Basketball Wives. She converted to Islam in August 2024. By March 2025, she and Kevin Gates appeared together publicly on social media. During the Basketball Wives season 11 premiere in early May 2025, Renner spoke to People magazine about the relationship. “I’m with the person that I quite literally dreamed of,” she said. “He’s just the most beautiful person inside and out that I’ve ever met.”
On June 7, 2025, Renner appeared on REAL 92.3 LA for an interview and disclosed the full story. “We got married April 6 and divorced May 28,” she told the station, as reported by E! News. That amounts to 52 days. She explained the Islamic framework behind the timeline. “There is a 90-day waiting period in Islam where you have 90 days to see if you’re pregnant, then he would be responsible. And also in those 90 days, it’s for reconciliation, because Allah wants you to stay married,” she said, as reported by E! News. That waiting period is known in Islamic practice as the iddah.
Renner expressed no bitterness about the ending. “I gave 100 percent. I followed my heart, and there’s no stone left unturned,” she told People.
The Legal Complication of a Parallel Marriage
The Renner marriage created a significant legal complication. At the time Kevin and Renner conducted their Islamic ceremony on April 6, 2025, Kevin remained legally married to Dreka. Their civil divorce had not yet been filed. Dreka did not file until July 30, 2025. The Renner arrangement was a religious ceremony under Islamic law, not a civil marriage recognized by the state, as noted by multiple outlets including My Foreign Half.
That distinction matters legally but did not reduce the public impact of the disclosure. Dreka had publicly denied cheating rumors in May 2025. According to E! News, she wrote on Instagram Stories: “I HAVE to address this because it’s gone a little too far and I don’t care for social media to continue to spread this misinformation. I have NEVER had any type of sexual or romantic encounters with my personal trainer or any hired help and will NEVER.” The timing placed her personal denial in direct contrast with the simultaneously unfolding Renner situation involving her husband.
What Did Kevin Gates Say About the Divorce?
Kevin Gates did not comment publicly on the divorce when it was first filed in July 2025. His representative told E! News at the time that he was not commenting on the matter. By early 2026, however, that silence ended.
Kevin’s Social Media Response
Kevin took to social media and delivered an extended and heated response, according to The Shade Room. He accused Dreka and members of her family of stealing from him during the marriage. He alleged the couple had been separated since 2020, meaning the marriage had functionally ended years before the legal filing. He accused Dreka of filing for divorce only after he stopped sending money. He challenged her to “tell the truth” about their relationship.
Kevin also introduced a highly significant legal argument. According to court documents reported by Celebrity Net Worth, he claims the couple was never legally married. His position is that their October 2015 ceremony constituted a spiritual union under Islamic law, not a civil marriage binding under California law. If a court accepts that argument, Dreka’s claim for spousal support could be significantly impacted or eliminated entirely. Dreka’s legal team responded by calling the position “factually baseless,” according to Rap-Up.
How Much Is Dreka Seeking in Support?
The financial demands in the divorce filing escalated substantially between July and October 2025. Dreka’s updated court filings, first reported by TMZ and confirmed by Celebrity Net Worth, detail the following requests.
The Full Financial Request
Dreka is asking the court to order Kevin to pay $27,193 per month in child support for their two children. She is also seeking $46,274 per month in spousal support for herself. The combined total reaches $73,467 per month, which amounts to more than $876,000 annually if granted by the court, according to Rolling Out.
Dreka is also seeking temporary primary physical custody of the children. Her filings state that the children have spent approximately 95 percent of their time with her since 2023, according to TMZ. She additionally seeks to prevent the court from awarding Kevin any support payments, essentially arguing the financial burden of the separation should rest entirely with him.
Dreka’s documents claim Kevin stopped covering the children’s school tuition and property taxes while simultaneously making luxury purchases. Those allegations paint a picture, from her perspective, of a husband who withdrew from family obligations while maintaining a high-profile lifestyle elsewhere.
Where Does the Divorce Stand in 2026?
As of early 2026, the divorce proceedings remain active in Los Angeles County court. Both parties have submitted financial claims. Kevin’s “never legally married” defense and Dreka’s “factually baseless” counter-response represent two fundamentally opposing legal positions. The resolution of that central question will determine whether spousal support applies at all.
What Happens to the Children?
Both parents share two children, Islah and Khaza. Dreka’s filing originally requested joint legal and physical custody. Her later filings sought temporary primary physical custody, citing the children’s established living patterns with her. Kevin Gates has not publicly responded to the custody specifics. The welfare of the children has been a recurring emphasis in Dreka’s public statements throughout the proceedings.
The divorce also carries broader implications for the Bread Winners’ Association and the shared business interests the two built across nearly two decades together. Untangling the legal and financial aspects of a marriage that produced two children, a record label, a wellness farm, and multiple branded businesses will not be simple or quick. The couple’s shared faith in Islam, which once united them publicly and privately, now frames the central legal dispute over whether their 2015 ceremony created a civil marriage at all. The outcome of that argument will shape every financial decision the court makes. Whatever the result, this case will carry consequences that extend far beyond the personal lives of two individuals from Baton Rouge who fell in love two decades ago and built something remarkable before it fell apart.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Dreka Gates file for divorce from Kevin Gates?
According to court documents obtained by E! News, Dreka Gates filed for divorce on July 30, 2025, citing “irreconcilable differences.” The filing listed July 10, 2025, as the separation date.
Did Brittany Renner cause the Kevin Gates and Dreka Gates divorce?
Brittany Renner revealed in a June 7, 2025, interview with REAL 92.3 LA that she and Kevin Gates had been married April 6 and divorced May 28 in an Islamic ceremony. Dreka filed her legal divorce paperwork the following month. The Renner disclosure was a major public development, though the legal filing does not name Renner as a cause.
How long were Kevin Gates and Dreka Gates married?
Kevin and Dreka married on October 17, 2015. Dreka filed for divorce on July 30, 2025, meaning they were legally married for approximately nine years and nine months.
How much is Dreka Gates asking for in support?
According to court documents reported by TMZ and Celebrity Net Worth, Dreka is seeking $27,193 per month in child support and $46,274 per month in spousal support, totaling $73,467 per month.
Did Kevin Gates claim he was never married to Dreka?
Yes. According to court documents reported by Celebrity Net Worth, Kevin Gates claimed their 2015 ceremony was a spiritual Islamic union rather than a legally binding civil marriage. Dreka’s legal team called that position “factually baseless,” according to Rap-Up.
What is the $7 million IRS lien in the Kevin Gates divorce?
According to court filings reported by Celebrity Net Worth and Finance Monthly, a $7 million IRS tax lien threatens the couple’s 43-acre Mississippi farm with foreclosure. Dreka’s filings attribute the lien to Kevin’s alleged failure to manage federal tax obligations.
How long was Kevin Gates married to Brittany Renner?
According to Renner’s June 7, 2025, interview with REAL 92.3 LA, as reported by E! News, the marriage lasted 52 days, from April 6 to May 28, 2025. The ceremony was conducted under Islamic law.
Who has custody of Kevin Gates and Dreka Gates’ children?
Dreka’s filing originally sought joint legal and physical custody of their children, Islah and Khaza. She later sought temporary primary physical custody, stating the children had lived with her approximately 95 percent of the time since 2023, according to TMZ.
When did Kevin Gates and Dreka Gates start dating?
According to a 2020 Instagram post from Dreka, cited by TMZ, they had been together for 17 years at that point, placing the start of their relationship around 2003.
What is Dreka Gates’ net worth?
Dreka Gates’ net worth is estimated at approximately $2 million as of 2025, earned through her wellness brand DREKA, the cannabis company Love’s Harvest, her Instagram influence, and her role as co-founder of the Bread Winners’ Association.
This article reflects information available as of early 2026. Divorce proceedings for Kevin Gates and Dreka Gates remain ongoing in Los Angeles County Superior Court. Details may change as the case develops. All financial figures and legal claims cited in this article derive from court documents reported by named outlets including E! News, TMZ, Celebrity Net Worth, Rap-Up, Essence, Hot 97, People, and Rolling Out.
