Manuela Testolini Is Prince's Ex-wife Is Now Married to Halle Berry's Ex

Businesswoman Manuela Testolini has quite a fascinating dating history, including her 5-year marriage to legendary singer Prince. She is currently married to Halle Berry’s ex-husband, Eric Benet.

At first glance and even after taking a closer look, you can’t tell that Manuela Testolini was born in the mid-1970s. Her natural beauty and ageless face are two features that have made her stand out through the years.

Manuela Testolini was born in Toronto, Canada. She is the founder and president of Gamillah, Inc., a production company that also features other ventures, including a line of designer candles.

Prince performing at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 26, 2008, in Indio, California | Photo: Getty Images

The Canadian businesswoman who studied Law and Sociology at York University is also involved in several philanthropic efforts and non-profits, including YouthCARE and United Communities Against Poverty.

She also founded In A Perfect World, a charity focused on empowering children to become responsible leaders. Testolini’s selflessness and kind heart have endeared her to many. These virtues formed the bedrock of her relationship with music legend Prince.

HOW MANUELA TESTOLINI AND PRINCE MET

Prince and Testolini met at a time when she was consulting with several non-profits in a bid to help them find funding and support to stay afloat. One organization she consulted with was a women’s shelter in Toronto that was on the verge of closing.

Testolini had contacted several philanthropic organizations to save the shelter, and the first organization that responded was Prince’s organization, Love 4 One Another.

Manuela Testolini and Prince during Clive Davis’ 2005 Pre-GRAMMY Awards Party – Cocktail Reception at Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills | Photo: Getty Images

She subsequently worked on different one-off projects for the artist’s organization, and by 2000, she accepted a full-time job at Love 4 One Another. During a 2017 interview with Rolling Stone, Testolini recalled her experience working for Prince. She said:

“I wasn’t aware at the time, but when Prince would visit different cities for a concert, he would have work going on to complement the places he visited.”

During her time working for Prince, the two connected over their shared love for helping others and providing support for society’s most vulnerable. Barely a year after the couple began working together, they married despite the 19-year age difference between them.

Prince and Manuela Testolini at the Los Angeles premiere of “Ocean’s Twelve” on December 8, 2004 | Source: Getty Images

As they became an official couple, they made Toronto their home, and Testolini revealed they had so much fun. She said:

“It was all very normal, really. We used to ride our bikes from home on the Bridle Path all the way to Sunnybrook Park to meet my family, barbecue and play badminton.”

The businesswoman further stated that people were respectful of their privacy, and the superstar was able to enjoy being anonymous.

PRINCE AND MANUELA TESTOLINI’S QUIET DIVORCE

Prince and Manuela Testolini were married for five years, and throughout that period, the couple remained very private about their romantic life. The former couple occasionally made public appearances together but never gave any details about what was happening in their personal lives.

While they were married, Testolini took Prince’s last name, Nelson. However, she eventually filed for divorce in 2006, and they finalized the divorce in 2007.

Nearly a decade after the divorce, records from the former couple’s unsealed divorce papers revealed some hidden details about Prince’s marriage to Testolini.

For instance, the couple lived a luxurious lifestyle, but more importantly, the records also showed that Prince packed her things into a box and locked her out of their home in Chanhassen while they were married in May 2005.

Although things did not work out between Prince and Testolini, she still has profound love and respect for the “fierce philanthropist.” Since Prince’s death in April 2016, she has helped build two schools in his name in Malawi through her charity organization, In a Perfect World.

Before Prince married Testolini, he was married to his backup singer Mayte Garcia from 1996 to 1999. After her divorce from Prince, Testolini began a close friendship with Garcia, and they are still friends.

MANUELA TESTOLINI FINDS LOVE AGAIN

The ink from the final divorce papers had barely gone dry when Testolini began dating singer Eric Benet. The couple dated for three years, and in November 2010, the “Spend My Life With You” singer dropped down on one knee and proposed to her with a beautiful antique diamond ring he designed himself.

Benet and Testolini exchanged vows in July 2011 and welcomed their first child, daughter Lucia Bella in December 2012. The ecstatic parents shared the first images of their baby with the world a month after she was born. While speaking about his wife, Benet gushed:

“She is perfect in every way, and as expected, Manuela is truly proving to be the world’s best mother. She is so attentive, nurturing and loving.”

The couple’s representatives confirmed in March 2014 that they were expecting their second child together. Amoura Luna, their second daughter, was born in July 2014.

Apart from his two daughters with Testolini, Benet also has a daughter, India Benet, from a previous marriage. On Valentine’s day 2015, the singer showed off his beautiful family in an adorable family portrait.

The couple is very much in love and recently celebrated their 9th wedding anniversary. Testolini commemorated the special day by sharing a cute picture with her husband while confessing her love for him.

The mother of two also doted on her beautiful daughters and celebrated her daughter Amoura Luna when she turned six in July 2020 with a sweet birthday post.

Testolini is not the only activist in her family, as her children are also working in her footsteps. When Lucia turned ten in 2021, she asked everyone to support her campaign to help kids facing poverty, hunger, and homelessness instead of asking for gifts.

In March 2022, her daughters were each awarded a grant from Sodexo Stop Hunger Foundation to help feed needy kids and spread awareness about childhood hunger. Her kids later planned a “SOUPer Bowl for Kids!” workshop and food drive.

When Luna turned eight in July 2022, she and her big sister also decided to help 1,000 kids get backpacks filled with the school supplies they needed in a backpack drive.

Meanwhile, before his marriage to Manuela Testolini, Eric Benet married iconic actress Halle Berry from 2001 to 2003. The union ended very publicly after Benet reportedly cheated on her.

In a 2005 interview, Benet finally set the record straight about his divorce and revealed he even agreed to go into rehab despite not being a sex addict to save the marriage.

Manuela Testolini’s husband, Eric Benet, has put that episode behind him. While responding to a subtle diss from rapper Jay Z on the song “Kill Jay Z,” the singer let the world know his wife is the undisputed queen of his heart and “the baddest girl in the world.”

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