Apparently, Jessi Draper was not always Team Taylor Frankie Paul!
Before ABC cancelled the MomTok leader’s season of The Bachelorette two months ago, the hairstylist showed her support not for Taylor but for Dakota Mortensen in their domestic dispute! Whoa! And there’s a voice note obtained by TMZ on Friday to prove it, too! According to the publication, Jessi reached out to the Unwell Winter Games star on March 5 after production halted on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives due to the latest domestic violence incident involving the former couple to say:
“Hey, um, just wanted to send you a voice note because I don’t know how much Jordan has told you about what’s going on on, like, productions end, but pretty much everyone’s in alignment as far as the cast goes about not really wanting to publicly support Taylor at the moment with The Bachelorette stuff just because we all feel so uneasy about if this comes out and just honestly, morally, none of us can just sit by and be like, ‘Oh my gosh, we’re so excited for her’ when we know the truth.”
Related: Taylor Reacts To Hearing Results — After Surprising Exchange With Dakota’s Mom In Court!
Although the entire cast feels that way, Jessi claimed production and management are gaslighting “the f**k out of us.” She continued:
“Danielle specifically is just like saying crazy things, like ‘You guys have no idea. Like she’s the victim. It’s all him and him and Cru are making things up.’ And they’re definitely trying to spin that narrative to protect her in the show. And I think we’re all as parents, just like, this isn’t okay. Like we know that this situation is dangerous and it needs to change. And if she gets away with this with no consequences, then like, it’s not good for anyone, especially the kids.”
Jessi went on to ask if Dakota would show the cast the videos, presumably of Taylor’s alleged abuse, to make sure no one gets “gaslit by production and management” because she thinks “they’re trying to spin a story” that he’s “lying.” She added:
“I just feel like it would be helpful if some of them saw, I don’t know how many are interested in seeing them. I know Mikayla is for sure. She’s actually the most vocal about this right now. And she’s like, ‘I don’t want anything to do with this, and I think it’s disgusting if you guys are trying to hide this.’”
However, Jessi made it clear to Dakota only to show the footage if he’s “comfortable,” and she doesn’t want to “bombard” or “pressure” him.
“I hope you’re doing okay. I know this is freaking hard right now, and I’m sure both you and Taylor are struggling, and that’s what freaking sucks about this is no one wins. At the end of the day, no matter what happens, no one wins. Like everyone’s in pain. Everyone’s hurting. The kids are hurting you guys. And I love Taylor, and I just am sad that it’s gotten to this point. But I honestly think something needs to happen for her to learn some lessons, and I hope this is helping you, too. I know it’s probably really, really hard. So I just wanted to let you know that we’re all thinking about you and Ever, especially, and Taylor too. Like, we’re all just so sad about this.”
Listen to the entire leaked audio (below):
Exclusive: “Mormon Wives” star Jessi Draper changed her tune on Taylor Frankie Paul ???? pic.twitter.com/VkFb3VTkuv
— TMZ (@TMZ) May 1, 2026
It’s unknown if the cast ever saw the footage, but most of them have kept their distance from the drama since the news broke — except Jessi! She got involved, but not for Dakota’s side! She switched to Taylor’s team, which is what makes this voice memo so shocking! How did she go from bashing her co-star to even helping her out in the restraining order battle against Dakota? Well, Jessi is clearing it all up!
The JZ Styles owner took to Instagram Stories to clarify the situation, starting by saying:
“Good morning. Another day of men trying to ruin our lives. So I’ve been told that Cru Eaton, Dakota’s roommate, is going to be releasing a voice memo that I sent to Dakota. So clearly it’s coming straight from Dakota, and it’s been sent to TMZ, which I do think is proof that they go to TMZ for all of their leaks. So any video that’s been released, anything that’s ever come from TMZ has clearly come straight from Dakota and Cru.”
Hmm…
As for the voice note? Jessi explained she was “fighting with Taylor” at the time she sent the message, and Dakota allegedly manipulated everyone into believing all these stories about her:
“This is back at the beginning of season five, when I was fighting with Taylor. You guys will see that coming out soon. Me and all the girls were fighting with Taylor, and Dakota was on his best behavior to start a smear campaign against Taylor. He showed us a bunch of videos. He told us all these stories. And yes, at the time, me and the girls were frustrated with Taylor’s behavior, and we were concerned because all of these videos, you guys have seen, you know, one of them, and the things we have heard that you guys have now heard discussed in court were worrisome. So yes, I was under that spell, and I did believe it all.”
Furthermore, the 33-year-old reality star accused her estranged husband, Jordan Ngatikaura, of ridiculing her if she ever turned against his best friend Dakota:
“Important context here is I was married to someone who was also best friends with Dakota. And if I ever tried to say anything defending Taylor or going against Dakota, I was ridiculed. And I was also told I was not allowed to be friends with Taylor. And this was a year and a half ago. And I was constantly being controlled and told who I could and couldn’t talk to, what I could and couldn’t do. And this is just with friendships by the way. So I was with someone who was best friends with Dakota, and it was very, very, very heavily influenced, is all I’m going to say.”
Now, Jessi feels “terrible” about sending the voice note. She insisted she told Taylor about the situation, and they’ve had “so many discussions about this.” They’ve “gotten a lot closer” recently, especially talking about their “experience in abusive relationships.” Jessi continued:
“We’ve gone through similar things and similar behaviors and patterns, and she’s become one of my closest friends. And we’ve really been there for each other when no one else has been able to understand what both of us have gone through. So it’s just really crazy to me that me defending my friend and coming around and being released from the relationship I was in so that I could actually look at both sides without getting in trouble is now turning into this. All I want to do is move on from my marriage and heal. I want Taylor to do the same.”
Although Jessi once felt animosity toward Taylor, she made it clear she doesn’t anymore! While bashing Dakota and Cru, she said:
“Clearly, Dakota and Cru just feel like their only chance at redemption is to release things that were private, hence the videos and now this voice memo. And I’m going to full on admit that everything I said, yep, that’s how I felt at the time. Things have changed. And I think you guys have seen a lot of that play out. I will always be team Taylor forever and ever and ever. No one else understands what I’ve been through, but her and vice versa. So yes, at the time I did feel a certain way. Cru thinks he’s got me with it, but I think all he really has is that him and Dakota run to TMZ and they clearly have a contact there. Let’s also not forget that a judge himself yesterday called Dakota calculated. So I think this proves that as well.”
Unfortunately, as Jessi pointed out, fans are missing a lot of “context” to the situation between her and Taylor since Season 5 isn’t out yet. Hopefully, we’ll get more deets about what led to the voice memo when the show drops! Clearly, a lot has gone down since the beginning of the year! Watch the entire explanation from Jessi (below):
What are your thoughts, Perezcious readers? Do you believe Jessi? Sound OFF in the comments!
[Image via Hulu/Call Her Daddy/YouTube]
