Zaya Wade is all grown up. Literally.
The beauty turned 18 on May 29 and celebrated her entrance into adulthood with a birthday bash in LA. It not only marked this significant milestone in her life but also uplifted the LGBTQIA+ community.
The event, “The Venus Ascension Ball,” taking place right on the heels of PRIDE month on May 31, also honored the one-year anniversary of her organization, Translatable. It’s a digital platform she formed with her father, Dwyane Wade, which operates as a safe space for LGBTQIA+ youth.
The whole thing took place at NueuHouse Hollywood. Tickets were $20, with all proceeds going to Translatable. Of course, Dwyane and Gabrielle Union, and little sister Kaavia, were there to support, and the ball was sponsored by MAC cosmetics, H&M, the Utah Jazz, and Folx Health. The Trans Wellness Center, under the leadership of Marian Marroquin, was a non-profit partner. MAC donated $100,000 to the Trans Wellness Center in Zaya’s honor.
In addition to a mission-centered celebration, it was a true ball, with $15,000 in cash prizes awarded to those who participated in the various categories. Zaya herself took to the runway to show out with help from Miss Ebony Lane. She wore a long, beaded, strapless gown with a tulle train, which she showed off on stage, and changed into a short, white laced number later in the night. To work with the theme, she also had a two-tiered cake depicting The Birth of Venus, a masterpiece of a painting by Italian artist Sandro Botticelli. The goddess Venus is depicted arriving, fully grown, on the shore after her birth. And Zaya, in essence, is making a new debut as a fully-grown woman in the world.
Overall, the night was a great time, and she celebrated a good cause dear to her heart.
“It was indescribable,” Zaya shares. “Imagine an explosion of love and light wrapped up into one magical night. You’re not even close to what it felt like yet.”
Zaya was celebrated at the party, but also on social media. Union shared clips of Zaya in her element at a photo shoot, lauding her in the caption and wishing her well in this next chapter. “Happy 18th birthday to you @zayawade!!!” she wrote. “You are so loved and cherished and you make us so proud daily. May year 18 bring you blessings, adventures, and glorious peace. Love you!!!”
Dwyane also shared a podcast interview with Zaya as a guest, on her birthday, where they delved into their relationship, and he made it clear that there are so many layers to their relationship that people don’t see.
“The trans conversation is not the entire conversation with us,” he said. “This is 10 percent of our relationship. We have regular conversations about anything. Chicken fingers, French fries, mustard…I tell you guys all the time, I always create moments with my village, with my people, especially my kids. I find these moments to create with them. I date them all the time.”
“And so I find these little small moments to date my kids. But that’s the moments when you get to know them,” he continued. “And then they get the chance to get to know you outside of the father figure and the child figure that’s in the home. And so when we get out of the home, we get in the car, we go to restaurants, we go to different places, we go to parks, the shield is off. And now we’re just two people trying to get to know each other.”
We love all of the love that has been poured into Zaya, allowing her to feel uplifted on her special day, and every day! Happy birthday to her, and welcome to adulthood. We’re looking forward to seeing what’s next for the young trailblazer and changemaker.