Bachelor star Rachael Kirkconnell recently appeared on the podcast Call Her Daddy, where she opened up about her split from Matt James after four years together.She revealed that James broke up with her “out of nowhere” during a recent trip to Tokyo.
Rachael Kirkconnell Opens Up About Matt James Split
Earlier this month, James announced his split from Kirkconnell on Instagram, writing, “Father God, give Rachael and I strength to mend our broken hearts. Give us a peace about this decision to end our relationship that transcends worldly understanding.”
Kirkconnell told host Alex Cooper that “some days are better than others” as she deals with the breakup, adding, “One day I’m feeling kind of empowered … and then the next day, I can barely get out of bed, and I just miss him, and I’m sad about everything.”
She shared that she and James were “talking about engagement” on their trip to Tokyo together earlier this month. That’s why the breakup came “out of nowhere” for her. It started with them being “a little irritated with one another” and then turned into a bigger conversation.
“He said that at the end of the day, there were just qualities about me that he worries about having in a wife,” Kirkconnell recalled. “He just had this realization that ‘I should want to propose to you by this time … and I should be ready for that, but I’m not still … I can’t actually see myself married to you.'”
Kirkconnell told James that he “should know by now” if he wanted to propose, and they “probably shouldn’t be together” if he still wasn’t sure about marrying her. She asked if he thought his “perfect person” wasn’t her, and he said he didn’t think it was.
Kirkconnell had already planned to leave Tokyo before James. She said she saw James’ Instagram announcement before her plane took off. She said she was surprised that he posted it, and added that after speaking to him about it, he “acknowledges that that was not the right decision.”
The couple met on Season 25 of The Bachelor, as James became the first Black lead of the series. He chose Kirkconnell as the winner, but he didn’t propose to her. The pair briefly split in early 2021 after Kirkconnell’s racist social media posts came to light, but they later rekindled their romance.
Even though Kirkconnell said she forgives James for how he handled things, she doesn’t think they’ll ever get back together. She explained, “As hard as it is, I think the right decision is to just stand up for myself and be on my own.”
Words by:
Jill O'Rourke Jill O’Rourke is a contributor at Talent Recap, writing news stories and recaps for shows like ‘AGT,’ ‘The Voice,’ and ‘American Idol.’ She graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in English and Film Studies, and has been writing about pop culture since 2012, with previous bylines at Crushable and A Plus. Jill spends her free time binge-watching sitcoms and daydreaming about life as a hobbit
