Turns out Kofi Siriboe is a lot like his character in Harlem.
Source: Variety / Getty
The actor and model, who plays the non-monogamous character Seth on the third season of Harlem, recently spoke to LEVEL Man about his own, personal relationship style. Siriboe revealed that he practices ethical non-monogamy, delving into his reasons for not wanting to settle down with one person.
The Ghanaian-American star explained that his first two relationships lasted nearly five years, and because his life changed so much after the breakups, he decided to pursue something different.
“I started working every day. Then there’s the fame element and the abundance of people and exposure,” he explained. “I’ve just had different shifts and different seasons where it feels like, sometimes, monogamy feels like role-playing. And it sometimes feels restrictive. So there’s an element of it that feels performative and I understand the tradition of it. … But then there’s a part of me that just had questions.”
The actor continued, “So I went through some phases where I’m like, ‘Well, why? Why do we do it like this and is this how I want to do it?’”
While he watching other “people who play those roles,” including his parents, Siriboe said he notices some “blind spots” while still respecting the practice of monogamy.
“I honor the tradition and I love the simplicity of monogamy and how we can still remain whole and still remain true to ourselves as individuals, as independent thinkers living this life,” but insists the “real goal” is for everyone to find out what style of relationship works out for them.
“Whatever you do, just do it wholeheartedly,” Siriboe said.
He also spoke about his character Seth, saying that he was “ten toes about what he needed and what he wanted” while dating Grace Byers’ character, Quinn Joseph. In the series finale, Joseph left the relationship after meeting one of Seth’s girlfriends, saying the non-monogamous arrangement wasn’t fitting her needs–but that didn’t seem to turn Siriboe off from the idea.