Beauty and business maven Raynell Steward, better known as Wuzzam Supa, made her name and then her money sharing her life on social media. Her following has spent years rooting for her happiness in life and love. So, they certainly had something to celebrate when her then-boyfriend Rayzor Breaux got down on one knee and asked Supa to be his wife this past May on their one-year-anniversary.
In celebration of their pending nuptials, the Louisiana lovebirds posed for a vibrant engagement shoot and spoke exclusively with ESSENCE about what brought them together.
The couple first met in 2019 when Steward attended Breaux’s club, the Vogue Lounge, in New Orleans. She was following him on social media but didn’t know him personally. Although they were strangers, Supa left an impression on him that night.
“I thought she was beautiful when I first saw her,” Breaux tells ESSENCE. “She had this aura about herself that demanded the attention of everyone.”
But the timing was off. In 2019, both parties were in relationships, so neither one of them pursued anything romantically. Breaux says he “turned those feelings off ASAP.”
The two did communicate periodically on social media. When the time was right, and they were no longer attached to others and able to start dating, Steward wanted to keep things private until she knew exactly what she wanted. He was happy to oblige.
“In the beginning Ray respected my privacy so much to where he was renting out locations for us to have dates,” she recalls. “We wasn’t hiding from the world but we wasn’t in plain sight either.”
After loving, losing and learning, all in the public eye, she may have wanted to be a bit more restrained about things, but she was still open to love.
“I always told myself that I’ll never give a man so much power over me to where he’ll take my ability to love again,” she says. “I try my best not to fault a man for what the previous man has done. I move on with grace and forgiveness.”
Her ability to take the high road paid off. And thankfully, with Breaux, she didn’t have to deal with any of the drama that marred her past relationships.
“In the beginning of my former relationships, I always dealt with another woman, scandals, and social media embarrassment,” she says. “Things that had me second guessing if I wanted to be in a relationship. I also thought I had to deal with it to prove I’m worthy, or to show a man I’m down for him.”
Breaux showed her something different.
“Being with Ray made me realize that I didn’t have to go through those things. Ray stepped in and was sure about what he wanted and inserted me into his life. I didn’t have to pry my way in or insert myself. That’s when I knew he was the one,” she says.
Breaux was able to make room for her in his life once he realized he cared about her in a different, deeper way.
“More than loving her, more than protecting her, I felt the need to always be there for her as her best friend,” he says. “When we have tough days and we aren’t in a loving place or I start to forget some of the promises I made to her in the beginning, I always have it in my heart and soul to be there for her as my best friend and life partner.”
He attributes their bond to the fact that Supa knows how to handle the responsibility that comes with being in love.
“When you love someone, in most cases you inevitably give them power over you,” Breaux says. “Not everyone knows how to deal with that, but Raynell does. She never abuses her power and that allows me to be completely vulnerable with her and allows me to love her with no limits. She’s the reason we are best friends and life partners. We wouldn’t make a move without each other.”
It’s a sentiment she echoes as she reflects on her hopes for married life.
“I’m looking forward to us being represented as one,” says Steward. “I want a stronger connection, deeper bond, longer talks, earlier mornings as a family. I want us to strategize our plans for our children together. Set up their future for greatness as one. I’m really ready to make decisions with my husband for my family. I’m so used to making them alone. It feels good to have a partner with just as much input as me. I’m ready to tackle life with my teammate.”
Car provided in the shoot is from Lynn’s Garage of The Turkey Leg Hut.
