Patti LaBelle has spent six decades teaching audiences two things: how to sing and not to test her.
She rarely needs help with either. When the Philadelphia native draws a line, her fans stand behind her.
At 82, the two-time Grammy winner has earned the right to protect her peace. Therefore, fans rush to her defense to protect Auntie Patti from any potential slander, not even from family members.
On Aug. 20, LaBelle’s nephew and adopted son, Sir Byl Holte, claimed his support for Trump cost him his place in her family.
In a lengthy post on X, he exposed his political views, which caused tension with LaBelle.
“Here’s what supporting TRUMP cost me,” Holte wrote on X. “My aunt is Patti LaBelle, famous singer AND DEMOCRAT.”
He detailed what happened around Christmas 2019 when LaBelle told him he had to move out of the home they had shared for 12 years.
When relatives began discussing Trump as a threat to their community, Holte says he asked, “Why should I be afraid of Trump when you’re the one who just made me homeless?”
Holte claimed relatives “instantly attacked” him and threw him out.
He said LaBelle later objected to him discussing their life online and imposed what he called “LIFETIME BANISHMENT.”
Here’s what supporting TRUMP cost me:
— Byl Holte (@SirBylHolte) August 20, 2026
My aunt is Patti LaBelle, famous singer AND DEMOCRAT.
Christmas 2019, she had just informed me that I had to move out of the home I had happily shared with her for 12 years.
So when I heard her and my family talking about what a threat… pic.twitter.com/GBQr5Xh8kR
“And as of today, she’s still not speaking to me,” Holte continued. He said nobody in LaBelle’s circle speaks to him either.
He blamed Democrats, arguing that they disrespect free speech, before adding, “I’d rather vote Republican because I WANT to, than Democrat because I HAVE to.”
Commenters on the Neighborhood Talk apparently missed the part where they were supposed to feel sorry for him.
“No Patti slander will be tolerated,” one fan warned. Another wrote, “We’re not talking to you either #WeStandWithAuntiePatti.”
Someone added, “I wish I could’ve heard her cuss him out,” as one other person declared, “I know that’s right, Patti. Cut him off.”
“And this is why we love Auntie Patti,” another wrote. “WTF u telling us for???? Go tell Trump, see if you can move in with him,” another wrote.
It’s not just her fans, other family members have jumped in, according to the nephew.
“You in trouble now,” a cousin allegedly texted him, adding, “You shouldn’t put your family on blast like that.”
A cousin sent me this screenshot of my Patti LaBelle post jumping over to Instagram, with the note:
— Byl Holte (@SirBylHolte) August 21, 2026
“You in trouble now.”
ME: “Why?”
HER: “You shouldn’t put your family on blast like that.”
ME: “They’re not speaking to me, so as far as I’m concerned they’ve decided I’m not… pic.twitter.com/RyWB3V4CRZ
Holte’s social media history shows his politics have hardly been subtle.
In February 2025, Pam Bondi became U.S. attorney general. LaBelle’s nephew celebrated her swearing-in, writing, “Dear Swamp; Pam Bondi has been sworn in. Prepare to face The Kraken!”
The prediction did not age particularly well. The administration later fired Bondi over its handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files and her defense of the president.
Four months later, Holte marked the anniversary of Trump’s 2024 debate against Joe Biden. He called it the “2nd-happiest moment of my life” and said watching Biden struggle was a “supreme triumph” because it proved to liberals he had been “RIGHT.”
Today is the one-year anniversary of the 2nd-happiest moment of my life:
— Byl Holte (@SirBylHolte) June 27, 2025
The night I got to see MY PRESIDENT destroy Biden at the debate.
For 4 years, that ahole had made a MOCKERY of being the leader of the best country on earth.
He had spat out the word "MAGA" like it was… pic.twitter.com/F8eIbsfdYK
By November, he had turned his attention to Martin Sheen after the actor criticized Trump. Holte called him a “Washed up actor,” attacked his career and family, and told him, “GTFOH and go seek psychiatric help. Your TDS is off the charts.”
On July 4, Holte celebrated America’s 250th anniversary by praising Trump again.
He said he was “especially grateful” that he helped return Trump to the White House and struggled to imagine the country’s future “beyond Trump’s leadership.”
Then on Aug. 1, Holte responded to the backlash in a post about “The Black Panther” movie starring Chadwick Boseman.
He replied by posting a photo with LaBelle and writing, “Of course I’m a racist, but in case you haven’t figured it out, I’m a BLACK racist.”
Of course I’m a racist, but in case you haven’t figured it out, I’m a BLACK racist: pic.twitter.com/ueUmctHm26
— Byl Holte (@SirBylHolte) August 1, 2026
But the reaction to Holte’s latest claims speaks volumes about his aunt’s enduring legacy. Fans weren’t simply rejecting his politics — they were defending a woman they’ve watched, loved, and fiercely protected for generations.
LaBelle earned that affection by being unmistakably herself, turning “Lady Marmalade” into a cultural landmark and building a solo catalog including “If Only You Knew” and “New Attitude.”
Her fans are just as outspoken when it comes to protecting her, and that same energy greeted Holte’s family complaint. He may have wanted the internet to question his aunt.
Instead, people decided Auntie Patti had her reasons—and they’re rocking with her not-so-“new attitude.”
