LIFE couldn’t be better for Maya Jama right now.
Not only has she found lasting love with footballer , her businesses are booming and she is taking the acting world by storm.
TV sensation Maya Jama’s businesses are booming and she is taking the acting world by stormCredit: Refer to source
Maya hosting the Love Island All Stars final in a black and white dress that seemed to be modelled on a sharp tuxedo jacketCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
Maya has found lasting love with Premier League footie ace Ruben DiasCredit: Splash
All that, whilst staying true to her TV roots and this week wrapping another hit series of .
The sexy black and white dress she wore for Monday’s All Stars grand finale in Cape Town seemed to be modelled on a sharp tuxedo jacket — perhaps fittingly, because Maya means .
Over the last 12 months, her stock has risen in every area of her life thanks to a series of canny moves.
A source said: “Just when you think Maya’s hit her ceiling, a new mad move comes along.
“She’s had the best year ever and seems untouchable right now.”
Maya’s masterstroke has been staying loyal to Love Island, the show which rebooted her primetime TV career after an early misfire.
Most viewers have forgotten that her first big gig, presenting Simon Cowell’s singing competition in 2021, was panned and axed after just six episodes.
Two years later, ITV2’s Love Island came calling in the wake of host Laura Whitmore’s departure — and Maya hasn’t forgotten how fortunate she is to have landed the gig.
Staying loyal to the show has kept her relevant with young, online audiences and taken her global as host of international , which features contestants from a variety of countries.
The Sun revealed yesterday that she has been
Chatting to trade mag Variety in January, she said: “I have no plans to leave yet. Before I started Love Island, I would say you can get what you need out of a show in two years, and then you move on.
“That was always kind of what I had in the back of my mind.
“But with a show like Love Island, it just feels like it keeps growing and I’d be silly to leave now.
“It’s not my whole life and it’s fun, so as long as I enjoy it, I’ll keep it up.”
bosses will be desperate to keep her on the hook as long as possible.
This series of Love Island: All Stars has now been streamed 100million times — averaging 2.5million per episode, which is more than most of our soap operas.
Some 58 per cent of the audience are watching on , and the show commands the largest 16 to 34 audience of any programme on a commercial channel.
In October 2024 Maya became co-owner of Swedish plant mink company SproudCredit: Sproud
Maya Jama alongside Jack Whitehall on The Jonathan Ross ShowCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
Maya was their favourite aspect of the show, with 74 per cent stating they “loved” her as host.
Maya has been at the helm of the dating show through her own relationship dramas.
She was single when she first took on the programme in May 2023, then rekindled her love with her ex three months later.
The rapper attended the final of the first All Stars in Cape Town in February 2024 but split that July.
Now she is loved-up with Man City defender Ruben, who she met at MTV’s VMAs in November 2024 but did not begin publicly dating him until January last year.
They moved into a plush mansion in a leafy suburb together last December.
A source said: “Their relationship just works.
“Being with Ruben has helped Maya find a rhythm and she’s happier than ever. Ruben’s lifestyle places health and happiness at the centre of everything they do and it shows. Maya is glowing.”
Maya’s business moves are also paying off.
In December she joined comic , actor Daniel Kaluuya and singer as a founding member of The Artists Collective, an investment fund to boost over 20 early-stage tech companies.
The collective hopes to emulate the success of The Players Fund — a venture capital firm for athletes with Olympian and cricketers and among its investors.
Maya’s fund writes cheques of between £50,000 and £300,000 for start-ups with a focus on AI, software, cybersecurity, fintech, health and media.
Some of the firms helped by Maya and pals so far include AI translator Palabra, toothpaste company Gutology and Lowlu saunas.
One of her own investments is paying off, too.
In October 2024 she became co-owner and strategic advisor of Swedish plant milk company Sproud. Speaking at the time, she said: “The products taste amazing but ultimately I like what the company stands for in terms of health and .
“The Swedish connection also really appealed to me. My mum is half Swedish and I have very happy childhood memories of summers in with my grandparents.”
The milk is formed from yellow split peas and recently launched a new ready-to-drink matcha flavour.
Latest documents filed by the firm at show 38 per cent year-on-year growth.
But far more exciting for her fans will be Maya’s move into acting.
In May last year The Sun revealed she had of Guy Ritchie’s gangster series The Gentlemen, which Maya finished filming before jetting out to Majorca for Love Island in June.
Maya has bagged a role in the second series of Guy Ritchie’s gangster series for Netflix, The Gentlemen, starring Theo JamesCredit: AP
Chatting to Variety about the gig, she said: “Acting has always been something in the back of my mind, but I’ve just been so busy with presenting that I’ve never had the chance to pursue it.
“I never want to do something and it be s**t, so I was like, if I’m going to do it, I want to train with someone and get as good as I can.
“So I said to my manager, ‘OK, I’m ready to maybe try some acting now,’ and we got an agent and he just started sending out loads of things.
“They were like, ‘You got an audition for The Gentlemen!’ And I didn’t have to change my accent for [the character] or anything like that, so I felt like, OK, this is a safe entrance point.
“It happened really quickly, like a week and a half later, ‘You’ve got the role.’
“I did the tiniest little cameo in a series called The Duchess, but it was one day filming, whereas this was my first one where I had to properly learn lines and be on set for a few days.”
It sounds like she did a good job, as industry whispers have spread and Maya has now been sent a number of scripts to consider.
A source said: “Maya’s diving into a stack of scripts at the moment and is exploring more acting roles, which is something she’s really excited about.”
What ITV bosses hope, though, is she stays just as enthused about their sizzling Love Island singles as that enticing stack of scripts.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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