Who Is Matt James? 5 Things to Know About the First Black Bachelor

Credit: Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock

Who Is Matt James? 5 Things to Know About the First Black Bachelor

Will you accept Matt James’ rose? The Bachelor made history on Friday, June 12, by naming their first black lead for the upcoming 25th season. While the 28-year-old was set to compete for Clare Crawley’s heart on season 16 of The Bachelorette, ABC opted to make him the next Bachelor after her season was postponed amid the coronavirus pandemic. “Matt has been on our radar since February, when producers first approached him to join Bachelor Nation, as part of Clare’s season. When filming couldn’t move forward as planned, we were given the benefit of time to get to know Matt and all agreed he would make a perfect Bachelor,” ABC Entertainment president Karey Burke said in a statement on Friday. “We know we have a responsibility to make sure the love stories we’re seeing onscreen are representative of the world we live in and we are proudly in service to our audience. This is just the beginning and we will continue to take action with regard to diversity issues on this franchise. We feel so privileged to have Matt as our first black Bachelor and we cannot wait to embark on this journey with him.” [jwplayer sGNglsKf] During James’ appearance on Good Morning America on Friday, ABC confirmed that Crawley’s season is set to air in the fall. According to reports, the 39-year-old salon owner will start filming in July. James’ season of The Bachelor is expected to premiere in January 2021. “It’s an honor [to be the first black Bachelor],” he said on GMA on Friday. “I’m just going to lean into myself and how my mom raised me, and hopefully when people invite me into their homes on Monday nights, they’re going to see that I’m not much different from them and they see that diverse love stories are beautiful.” ABC’s decision to pick James comes less than a week after Bachelor Nation started a petition to get more diversity in the franchise. Rachel Lindsay, who is the show’s only black Bachelorette, has also been vocal in recent years about her issues with the dating show. “I have come to the conclusion that if changes are not made on the inside and outside of the franchise, I will dissociate myself from it,” Lindsay wrote on her blog on Monday, June 8. “I am tired of asking for change and my requests have been ineffective. These changes have to extend beyond casting a lead of color. The whole franchise needs a diversity makeover.” Scroll through for five things to know about James: Listen on Spotify to Here For the Right Reasons to get inside scoop about the Bachelor franchise and exclusive interviews from contestants.

Credit: Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock

Who Is Matt James? 5 Things to Know About the First Black Bachelor

Will you accept Matt James’ rose? The Bachelor made history on Friday, June 12, by naming their first black lead for the upcoming 25th season. While the 28-year-old was set to compete for Clare Crawley’s heart on season 16 of The Bachelorette, ABC opted to make him the next Bachelor after her season was postponed amid the coronavirus pandemic. “Matt has been on our radar since February, when producers first approached him to join Bachelor Nation, as part of Clare’s season. When filming couldn’t move forward as planned, we were given the benefit of time to get to know Matt and all agreed he would make a perfect Bachelor,” ABC Entertainment president Karey Burke said in a statement on Friday. “We know we have a responsibility to make sure the love stories we’re seeing onscreen are representative of the world we live in and we are proudly in service to our audience. This is just the beginning and we will continue to take action with regard to diversity issues on this franchise. We feel so privileged to have Matt as our first black Bachelor and we cannot wait to embark on this journey with him.” [jwplayer sGNglsKf] During James’ appearance on Good Morning America on Friday, ABC confirmed that Crawley’s season is set to air in the fall. According to reports, the 39-year-old salon owner will start filming in July. James’ season of The Bachelor is expected to premiere in January 2021. “It’s an honor [to be the first black Bachelor],” he said on GMA on Friday. “I’m just going to lean into myself and how my mom raised me, and hopefully when people invite me into their homes on Monday nights, they’re going to see that I’m not much different from them and they see that diverse love stories are beautiful.” ABC’s decision to pick James comes less than a week after Bachelor Nation started a petition to get more diversity in the franchise. Rachel Lindsay, who is the show’s only black Bachelorette, has also been vocal in recent years about her issues with the dating show. “I have come to the conclusion that if changes are not made on the inside and outside of the franchise, I will dissociate myself from it,” Lindsay wrote on her blog on Monday, June 8. “I am tired of asking for change and my requests have been ineffective. These changes have to extend beyond casting a lead of color. The whole franchise needs a diversity makeover.” Scroll through for five things to know about James: Listen on Spotify to Here For the Right Reasons to get inside scoop about the Bachelor franchise and exclusive interviews from contestants.

Credit: Swan Gallet/WWD/Shutterstock

He’s Tyler Cameron’s Best Friend

The two men, who met while attending Wake Forest University, moved in together in New York City in October 2019.

"You have no choice but to be inclusive. The thing about NYC, regardless of your culture, religion, gender, etc. if you’re competent and work hard then you will succeed!" James told DeacLink in 2019. "You aren’t discriminated against (like some parts of the country) as NYC is a melting pot like no other city."

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, however, they moved back to Cameron’s hometown of Jupiter, Florida, and subsequently started making headlines for their social media content with their “quarantine crew,” which included Hannah Brown.

Cameron, who competed for Brown’s heart on season 15 of The Bachelorette, has campaigned for his bestie to be the Bachelor since 2019.

According to Entertainment Tonight, Cameron’s late mother, Andrea, who died in February, was the one to nominate James for The Bachelorette.

Credit: Courtesy of Matt James/Instagram

His Job

After graduating from Wake Forest in 2015 with an Economics degree, James tried to make it in the NFL. The wide receiver earned tryouts with the Carolina Panthers and the New Orleans Saints, but didn’t make the team. He later scored a job at PNC Bank in Pittsburgh before moving to NYC, where he worked as a research analyst for commercial real estate company CBRE.

Credit: Paula Lobo/ABC

He Had Drama With Clare

After Crawley’s season was postponed, James, who had a following from his friendship with Cameron and college football career, started raising money for COVID-19 relief. Crawley, however, wasn’t impressed, tweeting, “If you are doing interviews and creating Cameo accounts before you are even on my season… you are in it for the wrong reasons… #dontwasteyourtime.”

While the hairstylist denied throwing shade at James specifically, he was the only member of her cast on Cameo.

James has only ever had nice things to say about the future Bachelorette, however. “I was looking forward to meeting her. I had set aside all this time and we had gone out to California and been called back with quarantine so I'm super excited for her and her season but looking forward to meeting her eventually,” he said on GMA on Friday.

Credit: Gregory Pace/Shutterstock

His Charity Work

James and Cameron work together on ABC Food Tours, which the Raleigh, North Carolina, native cofounded. The nonprofit provides culinary experiences to elementary school students in NYC.

Credit: ABC/Craig Sjodin

What He Wants in a Girl

James is looking for a wife who reminds him of his mother.

“Selfless, honest, caring, compassionate and those are qualities found in women all shape, sizes and races,” he explained on GMA. “It’s not a black or white thing so I'm hoping that when that limo puts up there is a lot of diversity and I see every type of woman coming out of that limo.”