Tracee Ellis Ross Shares How Dating Younger Men Helps Her to Avoid “Toxic Masculinity” (2025)

“I have been long been past the age where I feel like it’s my job to teach somebody or grow them up,” she said. “That, I’m not interested in.”

After all, the Girlfriends actress expressed that she has spent a long time finding what works for her, makes sense for her and feels safe for her. Rather than swiping through dating apps, she found that she prefers meeting new people in the wild, only choosing to pursue relationships that she truly believes will make her life better.

“I do date and it’s a fascinating adventure out there,” Tracee shared. “Mostly though, I think there’s really good men out there. I think to a certain extent, I’m a very unique sort of unicorn of a woman and so it’s gonna take a unique person. And in the meantime, I’ve really learned how to live my life and enjoy it and not sit around waiting.“

Though Tracee—daughter of Diana Ross and Robert Ellis Silberstein—embraces being “one of the first generations of choice,” in which a woman has the freedom to “find their own delight and pleasure and choice around how she navigates dating,” she still finds herself mourning the picture-perfect wedding and life she once dreamed of.

“I grieve the things that I thought would be and that are not,” she admitted. “I’m not married. I don’t have children, and I think I grieve that at times.”

“As much grief does surface for me around not having children and not having a partner,” she noted, “I still wouldn’t want the wrong partner.”

For more stars that have spoken out about their relationship age gaps, keep reading.