It’s been six months since Miya Houston tied the knot with actor and film producer Marques Houston, who was first introduced to the world as a member of the world-renowned boy band Immature. Under the tutelage of manager Chris Stokes, Houston transitioned to acting in the mid-’90s with his first role as Roger Evans on the hit television comedy series, “Sister, Sister,” also starring Tia and Tamera Mowry.
After Houston’s six-year run on the sitcom came to an end, he next starred in the box-office smash, You Got Served. Despite ample success in his decades long career, including more than 25 film credits and 19 producer credits, it wasn’t his professional life that had thousands of people talking about him on social media in June 2020. Instead, it was a tweet that read, “Can someone please explain why Marques Houston, a 38-year-old geezer, is engaged to a 19-year-old girl who he allegedly knew before she was 18?”
The post went viral with more than 40,000 replies and Miya Houston, now his bride, had remained silent about it — until now.
Rolling out sat down with the Houstons to finally set the story straight.
Everyone wants to know who Miya Dickey Houston is. Where did she come from? Why did she marry a man 19 years older than her? Where are you from, and how did you and Marques meet?
Miya: Well, I’m from San Bernardino, California. Both Marques and I share the same religious faith. We met casually in a group setting through a mutual friend at our annual District Convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Was Chrissy Stokes, the daughter of music mogul Chris Stokes, the mutual friend?
Miya: Yes. I initially was with one of my girlfriends, and we saw this pretty girl, which happened to be Chrissy, and we just went over to her, like, “Hey, let’s be friends.” We have formed a close friendship since that convention. We go makeup shopping, and we now have our YouTube channel. She’s amazing.
Later, during the three-day convention, I met Marques, which almost seemed inevitable … as the three of them were like family. But we all just met as friends that weekend.
You often refer to Chris Stokes as your dad. Are you in any way related to him?
Miya: I am not related to Chris Stokes. Shortly after I met Chrissy she introduced me to her Dad. I refer to him as my spiritual father because my biological father has not been a part of my life. My grandparents were actually my rock in my teenage years. I lived with my mom’s mother mainly as a teenager, and she introduced me to the true religion — Jehovah’s Witnesses — and I will forever be grateful to my grandma for that.
When did you realize Marques might be the one?
Miya: Well Marq, he was very standoffish in my presence. I guess it was after he got more comfortable around me being in the group, he began to talk more. So, after we engaged in conversations more and I got to know him a little better, I was, like, “OK, you’re pretty all right.” I could be around you more. Over a period of time, I eventually begin to feel like there was mutual interest. But maybe I should start off with explaining how we date as Jehovah’s Witnesses.
First, it’s the courting, and how you get to know each other as a family. So, he met all my siblings and my grandparents. He asked my grandmother for her permission to date me, and she said yes. Then he met my uncles and, of course, they had to drill him. Last, he asked me if we could date exclusively and I said yes.
To be clear, what age were you when you first started to date?
Miya: We definitely didn’t date until I was 18, and when I was 19, we got engaged. The internet has my birthday totally wrong. My date of birth is Oct. 7, 2000. We dated less than two years and then we got married. For the record, I am currently 20 years old.
Why do you think people have such a hard time believing that you didn’t wait until you were married before you had sex?
Miya: Because it’s so not normal now to be in a relationship without it being sexual. It’s just not typical of the way people date in the world.
Any plans to expand the family, Marques?
Marques: You know Miya has always wanted kids since she was younger, and I was against having kids until I met Miya and fell totally in love with her. You know when you love someone so much, of course, you want to have a baby with them. Now I find myself wanting to actually have a baby more than her.
I love being a husband, and I love being married, and I don’t want to sound cliché and say we are very happy, but we are truly happily married, and we make sure our God Jehovah is always first in our marriage and that we keep the communication lines open.
