Who is Mel B and Eddie Murphy’s daughter? All we know as reports allege the actor and singer’s child changed pronouns

Ashim
80th Annual Golden Globe Awards - Press Room - Source: Getty
Angel Iris is the only child of Eddie Murphy and Mel B (Image via Kevin Mazur/Getty Images)

Eddie Murphy is the father of 10 children, and Angel is one of them. The only kid of the former Saturday Night Live star and one of the Spice Girls, Melanie “Mel B” Brown, aka Scary Spice, recently made headlines.

According to The Daily Mail, Angel, born a female, has changed pronouns and now reportedly identifies as a man. The outlet also pointed out that the 18-year-old currently prefers “him,” as reflected on his Instagram handle “@angel.mbrown.” Per MailOnline, Mel B and Eddie Murphy are reportedly supportive of their kid’s decision. Insiders told the website,

“It’s a decision Angel made and Mel has been understanding, likewise Eddie. [...] There was no big event to mark it. Angel just wanted it to be known what pronouns are now suitable.”

Angel Iris Murphy Brown was born on April 3, 2007, but his parents were involved in a paternity dispute months before his birth. Mel B had maintained that Eddie Murphy was the father, while the comedian was skeptical and even shared his concerns in the press. Eventually, Angel was born, and Scary Spice revealed the results of a DNA test, confirming the Dr. Dolittle star as the father.

The pair shared a tumultuous relationship, but the thing ultimately worked out. Mel B remarked on the “coparenting relationship” she shares with Eddie Murphy during a May 2025 cover story with Us Weekly. She praised the comedian for being “a proper father” to his 10 kids, including Angel, who turned 18 in April. On her middle child's 18th birthday, Brown also dedicated an Instagram post to him.

She shared her kids’ recent and childhood pictures and wrote a heartfelt message,

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY ANGEL !!! I cannot believe youre 18 You are so special and so bright and so talented!!”

Mel B added,

“I couldnt be prouder of watching you grow and become the person you are but youll forever be my babyyyy I hop you keep chasing yor dreams and be kind to everyone around you like you always have been my Angel Love you always ❤️❤️❤️”

Eddie Murphy initially disputed the paternity of Mel B’s child but made amends in the following years

According to Melanie Brown’s 2007 interview with Larry King on his eponymous show, the singer-songwriter dated the Coming to America actor for a brief period in 2006. At the time, Mel B had sued Eddie Murphy for the sole legal and physical custody of Angel. She told King about her relationship with the comedian-actor,

“Our relationship may have been brief but it was intense, and we were very much in love and wanted to have a family together. That’s that. I mean we’re both tattooed. You don’t tattoo somebody’s name on your body if it’s brief and unimportant, let’s put it that way.”

Before her appearance on Larry King Live, Brown had claimed during a chat with Essence that she and Eddie planned the pregnancy and had decided to get married. She was quoted saying,

“[W]e planned to get married at Christmas, but then we had to change it once I got pregnant and we decided that after the baby was born we'd get married.”

Murphy had previously shared his doubts while answering RTL Boulevard in December 2006,

“I don’t know whose child that is, until it comes out and has a blood test. You shouldn’t jump to conclusions, sir.”

More than two months after Angel was born, Mel B publicly revealed the results of a DNA test, confirming Eddie Murphy as the father. The singer-songwriter had previously told People,

“He [Eddie] hasn’t seen his daughter. My people have contacted his people and they just had no response to anything.”

After Melanie Brown sued Murphy, the comedian-actor admitted in public that he was Angel’s father. Arnold Robinson, Eddie’s publicist, told Access Hollywood,

“Eddie Murphy always has and will continue to honor his responsibilities as a father. Mr. Murphy and Ms. Brown dated very briefly and never made any plans of ANY sort. He acknowledges paternity of the child Angel, and has paid child support to Ms. Brown as well as covering the expenses of her pregnancy. Mr. Murphy views this as a private matter and as such, will not be making any further comments about it.”

Their coparenting relationship began on a bitter note, but in the following years, Murphy made amends. The New York Daily News reported in 2010 that Eddie was making efforts to get to know Angel. In 2018, a source told People that the Beverly Hills Cop actor was an “amazing father” to all of his kids, including Angel.

Mel B, who is one of the mothers of Eddie Murphy’s children, spoke to Us Weekly last month and said,

“I think being in the kind of [situation] that I was in, it was hard for me to step out and have that relationship [with Eddie] flourish. I managed to do it bit by bit.”

She also added,

“Angel is coming over [to Murphy’s house]. They spend time together. They go on holiday together. He has [10] kids and he’s a proper father.”

Last month, the comedian’s other kid, Eric, was in the news for eloping with Martin Lawrence’s daughter, Jasmin, to have a private marriage at Church. Eddie Murphy joked that he and the Blue Streak star didn’t have to pay for the big wedding.

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Edited by Ashim