After an eight-year relationship, QUEEN LATIFAH has split with her lover and is stepping out with her choreographer, say sources.
Eboni Nichols is dancing her way into the entertainer’s life on the heels of Latifah’s breakup with longtime galpal Jeanette Jenkins.
“Latifah and Jeanette had lots of problems,” said an insider.
“Their arguments were tearing them apart. But it was the Queen’s longtime friendship and professional relationship with Eboni that eventually drove a wedge between her and Jeanette. Even though they’ve broken up and gotten back together before, this time it definitely seems like the end.”
Latifah, 41, and Eboni, 33, have been friends since 2009, when Eboni choreographed a guest appearance by the Queen on “Dancing with the Stars.”
Even though Latifah and Jeanette were arm-in-arm at the 2010 BETAwards and the two spent time together that summer on a yacht off the Italian coast, weeks later the Queen and Eboni were together enjoying a trip to Barcelona, Spain.
The Queen always insisted that she and Eboni were “just friends” – but personal trainer Jeanette was not buying it.
“Needless to say, Jeanette was not very happy about their relationship,” said the source. “And she let Latifah know about it in no uncertain terms.”
As The ENQUIRERrevealed, the pair had already been butting heads over the Golden Globe winner’s unhealthy habits – including drinking, smoking and overeating – when Eboni’s friendship came between them.
Surprisingly, Latifah and Jeanette – who once planned to start a family together – remain cordial despite the recent breakup, say sources.
“Their relationship had been rocky for a while, and during one of their ‘breaks’ Latifah spent time with Eboni,” the source revealed. “Still, it was hard for her to end her relationship with Jeanette.”
But not long after that, the Queen and Eboni were spotted sitting close together in a private box at the recent U.S. Open tennis tournament in Queens, N.Y.
“Ever since the tennis tournament,” said the source, “the two seem inseparable.”