The gorgeous Maya Jama, 31, has become a regular on our TV screens in recent years – and her rise to fame has been nothing short of meteoric.
Whether it’s hosting Love Island or sitting at the panel on The Masked Singer – which returns today with a brand-new series (January 3) – Maya is booked, busy and sitting pretty at the top of the entertainment TV pile.
But Maya certainly has not had it easy over the years. From a tragic teenage romance to having a fraught relationship with her dad, here, ED! is taking a look inside Maya Jama’s rise to fame.
Maya Jama on her tough childhood
Maya, who is of Somali and Swedish descent, was born August 14 1994 in Bristol. However, throughout her childhood Maya endured years of upset due to her father being in and out of prison for violent crimes.
“I did visit my dad in jail up until I was about 10,” she told The Guardian in 2020. However, she added: “I realised that I don’t want to dedicate my time to visiting somebody who doesn’t want to dedicate their time to staying out of jail.”
Despite her troubled childhood Maya has said that the tough years made her “more determined to prove everybody else wrong”. She explained: “My upbringing was not very… I think, statistically, the things that happened to me, or the situation I was born into, I shouldn’t have been where I am now.”
Maya ‘had no money for food’
Keen to make something out of herself, Maya moved to London at the age of 16 years old to pursue a media career. But according to Maya, she seriously struggled during those days.
“Being 16 years old and moving to London was mad for me because I was much more naïve back then,” she said on the Who We Be TALKS_ podcast.
“There were times I had no money for food, I lived with one of my family members that was on drugs. I wouldn’t eat, I’d get the bus to work and I’d be taking clothes from shops then returning them.” She added: “I was doing all them little things that I know a lot of people still probably have to do now.
“I was coming into work and acting like, ‘hey!’, every single day. Because that’s who you’ve got to be. But knowing that there’s no hot water at home or electric so you want to stay at work for an extra hour so you’re not sat in darkness.
“Just mad stuff that one day I will probably go into more detail about when I’m older and probably write a book. All those struggles make you appreciate things more now.”
Maya’s boyfriend’s sad death
Sadly, Maya was dealt more heartbreak when her boyfriend Rico Gordon was tragically killed while he was on the phone to Maya. Rico was 21 and Maya was 16 at the time. She now has a tattoo dedicated to him – his initials RG – on her ribcage.
Rico was caught in the crossfire between two rival gangs, and Maya heard the harrowing gunfight over the phone.Two men have since been sentenced to life imprisonment. A third has never been identified.
Speaking to Cosmopolitan in 2020, Maya spoke about Rico’s death and revealed: “When I was 16 I went through a lot. With my boyfriend passing, it gave me a fearless approach to things. I felt like life was really short.”
She continued: “Out of everything that has happened in my life, that was a reality check on a massive scale. At 16 you think the world is a fairy tale and it took me out of that. It made me even more determined.”
Maya Jama previously made history
After moving to London, Maya bagged a job as a presenter for JumpOff.TV. In 2014, she started presenting content about the FIFA World Cup in Brazil. After this, she joined MTV as a presenter.
Talking about why she chose to go down the presenting route, Maya told Vogue: “I didn’t have any other skills than talking. I could talk to anyone, at any time of day, from any walk of like, and really enjoy finding out about new people. I’m like, how does that turn into a job?”
Building her public profile, Maya made appearances on shows like Loose Women before becoming the youngest person ever – aged 23 – to co-host the MOBO Awards in 2017.
Maya has also worked on radio over the years. In 2018, she joined BBC Radio 1, presenting its Greatest Hits segment. She then went on to have her very own show on Fridays and Saturdays.
Maya Jama on Love Island
It was in 2023, when Maya landed possibly her biggest job to date: the presenter of Love Island.
“Growing up, I never saw an East African woman host a show. And no Black or mixed-race woman hosts such a big primetime TV show, other than June Sarpong,” Maya said about becoming the host of Love Island.
She added to Vogue: “This is definitely a big moment for all of us in that sense. And I hope it just opens way more doors for other people from similar backgrounds and cultures as myself.”
Maya on Davina McCall being her ‘inspiration’
Presenter Maya joined ITV’s The Masked Singer in 2025, replacing Rita Ora. Maya appears on the show alongside Jonathan Ross, Mo Gilligan and Davina McCall. And it turn out co-star Davina is another one of her major inspirations. After growing up watching her on TV, Maya said she decided: “I want to do that job!”
Talking to The Guardian, Maya revealed that one of her role models was Davina, after “finding out that she’s been through her own struggles [with drug addiction] and made it out the other end”.
She also told Metro: “I think she [Davina] is such a legend that I don’t need to say her last name. But yes Davina McCall is my ultimate inspiration. I look up to her.”
Meanwhile, talking to Channel 4, Maya gushed: “She was the first woman that I saw on TV who just seemed so fun, genuine and free.”
The star added that it’s a “massive” full circle moment for her “just to be around” Davina.
What’s next for Maya?
Next for Maya, is hosting Love Island All Stars later this winter.
She’s also diving into acting with a role as a gangster’s wife in Guy Ritchie’s Netflix series, The Gentleman. Reports also suggest she’s being eyed for a major new entertainment show on Amazon Prime.
Watch Maya on The Masked Singer on Saturday (January 3) on ITV1.
Read more: Maya Jama ‘confirms’ romance with footie star Ruben Dias in new video
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