Haliey Welch Reveals the Identity of Her Mystery Boyfriend 'Pookie': 'The Moment the World's Been Waiting for'
Haliey Welch previously revealed she and her boyfriend made their relationship official in October
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Haliey WelchHaliey Welch revealed the identity of her mystery boyfriend "Pookie" on an episode of the Talk Tuah podcast on Nov. 12
Kelby Blackwell is a plumber from Welch's hometown who likes his small-town life
Welch revealed that she and Blackwell made their relationship official last month
Haliey Welch's mysterious "Pookie" has officially been revealed!
The 22-year-old internet star hard-launched her boyfriend Kelby Blackwell — who she has lovingly referred to as "Pookie" — on the Talk Tuah podcast on Nov. 12, one month after the pair made their relationship official in October.
"I just want to show the people that I can pull a bad b—," she gushed about Blackwell before the reveal. "My man is a bad b— and I'm proud of it, that's my arm candy right there. I'm so proud of him."
Afterward, she called out to Blackwell to join her in the hot seat and cheered him on.
Blackwell — a plumber from her hometown — opened up about how he initially wanted to stay out of the public eye but eventually had a change of heart when Welch asked him to appear in the episode.
"I was asked how I felt to be on the podcast and I said, 'You know what, I'll do it,' " he said. "It's more for Haliey because if she can branch off from this and get more views, I'm going to do that for her."
Welch then dived into the interview, asking him his initial reaction to her viral "Hawk Tuah" video from in June that shot Welch into the spotlight.
Related: Haliey Welch Opens Up About Mystery Boyfriend 'Pookie' as She Confirms They're 'Officially' an Item
"I didn't really know what to say," he said about seeing the video for the first time. "I just know that I woke up one morning to a Snapchat from you that said 'You're gonna see something this morning that you probably don't want to see, just disregard it,' and then I opened up my TikTok and there it was."
"I first thought, 'She's drunk as s—," he continued. "I know you personally and you're used to being a very stay-to-yourself quiet girl and just to see that video was like, 'What the f—.' " He then went on to share that after the video came out, Welch was crying when they were on the phone together and he "didn't want to add to the hurt and ask her to keep pushing forward."
Welch revealed that when the video first came out, she and Blackwell were "not serious" at the time, joking "he's been playing hard to get for the last three years." However, he pushed back on that comment, noting he "finally" gets to share his side of the story of how their relationship came to be.
Welch first announced they were an official couple on an episode of the Talk Tuah podcast in October, while Blackwell clarified they've been seeing each other since "last year."
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"Last year I was in a relationship for around two and a half years and we broke up around last March and it kind of was like a dirty breakup," he revealed. "So the last couple months I was considering Haliey, I was more working on myself and working on being able to bring her what she needed for herself to where I didn't want to bring the hurt onto her."
"When I figured that out I was like 'Okay fair enough,' but I'm also an impatient b— and when I want something, I want it right then and there," Welch added.
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He then addressed how he felt about guys "sliding into her DM's," noting it depended on the type of messages.
"Famous people can come into the conversation and I really don't care," he said. "I'm a very jealous person, what's mine is mine, but it doesn't necessarily bother me when they say to her what they say, it's if she feels the need to text them back. I understand [the context] can be business, but I'm not used to that."
Blackwell added that he was "proud" of how Welch has "turned things around for herself" after she went viral. "I never anticipated her coming through since she was always that quiet girl, but I am proud of her. You turned around and made a good name for yourself."