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Phaedra Parks sat down for an exclusive two-part interview with DailyMailTV, revealing how her glow is back after meeting an actor and talks of her struggles of being a single mother. In part two of the interview, which airs Friday, Parks talks of a possible return to RHOA and her infamous feud with former co-star Kandi Burruss. 

Her convict ex husband briefly reared his head before getting thrown back in the slammer.

But that isn't troubling The Real Housewives of Atlanta alum Phaedra Parks too much.

In an exclusive interview with DailyMailTV the reality star reveals she's finally moved on from her bad boy ex Apollo Nida - jailed for eight years for bank fraud and identity theft - and has found love once again.

The 45-year-old claims she's 'happy' and 'excited' after getting together with a 'tall, dark and handsome' actor she met recently online.

And the reality star gushed that she's finally hooked the guy of her dreams after a year long search of the 'man pond'.

In a wide-ranging two-part interview single mom Parks also opens up about the difficulty of raising her two young sons alone; her disappointment that her ex has messed up again leaving her children devastated; and how her relationship with her husband all came crashing down.

 The Real Housewives of Atlanta alum Phaedra Parks revealed to DailyMailTV in an exclusive interview that she's finally moved on from her bad boy ex Apollo Nida - jailed for eight years for bank fraud and identity theft - and has found love once again

In a wide-ranging interview single mom Parks also opens up about the difficulty of raising her two sons alone; her disappointment that her ex has messed up again leaving her children devastated. Phaedra with her ex husband Apollo and their two sons together Ayden and Dylan

Parks claims she's 'happy' and 'excited' after finally hooking the guy of her dreams after a year long search of the 'man pond'. But while Parks is coy about sharing the identity of her new hunk, DailyMailTV can reveal she's in fact dating handsome actor Medina Islam (pictured together) who is ten years her junior

On her new romance, smitten Parks, 45, told DailyMailTV: 'I didn't date for four years and so I put my foot into the man pond I guess about nine months to a year ago.

'I dated a guy and that didn't quite work out and so I found another guy that's more suitable for me and I'm quite excited and happy about him.

'He's very smart, very intelligent. He's kind, we are both socially active. He's really sober and smart. He's a great father. So I'm excited about it.'

But while Parks is coy about sharing the identity of her new hunk, DailyMailTV can reveal she's in fact dating handsome actor Medina Islam who is ten years her junior.

Parks has been seeing Islam, the star of Tyler Perry's The Haves and Have Nots on the Oprah Winfrey Network, for four months - and the couple is smitten.

The 35-year-old 6ft 2in actor and model, who also works in the tech industry as Urban Initiatives Director for Block Chain real estate firm Propy, is originally from Newark, New Jersey.

Parks met him through Raya, the latest exclusive dating app used by the rich and famous.

'We've been in the same circles for some years, but he heard that I was on this dating site and he joined to meet me,' she explained.

'You choose someone and if they like you back, they send a rocket blast. And so the rocket blast came through and I answered the call.'

The pair started chatting online at first before taking things to the next level, going out on dates and Islam has been traveling to Atlanta to see his new girlfriend.

It's about time Parks found happiness after divorcing her ex Nida in 2017 after a three-year legal separation and nearly five years of marriage.

Despite Parks' reticence to officially unveil her man, our photographers caught the new couple enjoying a romantic date during a recent trip to Santa Monica, California and Phaedra looks smitten. DailyMailTV exclusive photos show the couple heading for The Misfit Restaurant and Bar where they enjoyed lunch and plenty of PDA while sitting on the terrace

The bible-quoting Buckhead-based socialite also revealed how her new lover is a tee-total vegan exercise fanatic who has converted to Islam. 'He doesn't even eat sugar, honey. But hopefully he eats chocolate,' she said with a mischievous giggle

In June Nida - who had served five years of an eight year sentence for fraud and identity theft - was released early from FCI Fort Dix in New Jersey and moved into a halfway house in Philadelphia where he was expected to stay until the middle of October. 

But the former RHOA star landed himself in jail again after violating his parole.

The 40-year-old was rearrested after, according to the United States Marshals, breaking a 'technical requirement pertaining to the rules of his release.'

Parks was in Nickelodeon Slime City in Atlanta with her sons Ayden, nine, and Dylan, six, when she heard the news - two days before Father's Day. 

In June, Nida - who had served five years of an eight year sentence for fraud and identity theft - was released early from FCI Fort Dix in New Jersey and moved into a halfway house in Philadelphia where he was expected to stay until the middle of October

Parks maintains primary physical custody of their sons, but shares joint legal custody with Nida - who speaks on the phone to his two boys weekly.  

After hearing Nida was back behind bars, Parks said her sons were 'sad' and 'disappointed' at the news - the boys had planned to send a Father's Day package to Nida in Philadelphia with all the arts and crafts they had done for him over the years.

'There's a box of Father's Day cards, mugs, little plates and things that they've made that I was going to send him,' she said.

'And so my youngest son was like, "so daddy will be here for Father's Day?". And I had explained to him, no.

'He couldn't come anyway because he was in the halfway house transition home.

'But you know, they can't talk to him at all now because he's back in prison.'

Parks said she wasn't surprised Nida was back in prison.

She said: 'Apollo had been telling me that he was coming home early. I'm of the mindset, "I'll believe it when I see it".

'And so when he called us on FaceTime and he was in a car and we could see that he was outdoors and so he said, "I've been released" and we were all excited because of course I want the boys to have a relationship with their father - and it would be great to have that support from Apollo.

'But of course, you know, nine days later he was rearrested.' 

It's about time Parks found happiness after divorcing her ex Nida in 2017 after a three-year legal separation and nearly five years of marriage. After he was jailed in 2014 the attorney agreed to joint legal custody of their two sons - whom Nida speaks to weekly - but Parks maintains primary physical custody

Parks was in Nickelodeon Slime City in Atlanta with her sons Ayden, nine, and Dylan, six, (pictured) when she heard the news Nida was being sent back to prison - two days before Father's Day. Parks said her sons were 'sad' and 'disappointed' at the news - the boys had planned to send a Father's Day package to Nida with all the arts and crafts they had made

She continued: 'I was disappointed, but at the same time, I don't know if I was that shocked because he is a risk taker and I just hate it because now it's just above all of us, only Jesus can fix it.

'I can't make him be what he doesn't want to be. He has to want to change.' 

Parks says she hasn't heard from Nida since his rearrest.

He's expected to serve the rest of his sentence with a scheduled release date of October 19, 2019. 

She added that 'life goes on' and she hopes for her sons' sake Nida gets it together.  

The working single-mom said: 'Being a parent does not come with the manual. So I don't think that there's any perfect parents, but obviously when you have a parent that is absent, like my ex husband, it makes it very difficult because I am the sole provider. You know, a woman cannot really teach a young man how to be a man.

'And so that's been a source of frustration for me, but I make sure that I keep them surrounded with my dad, my two brothers, great coaches.

'I make sure I have great guys from the Church that mentor them. And so I have a village of people that really help me parent them and make sure that they're getting the things they need as young African American boys.' 

'My sons have been through a lot, they've seen a lot of good things, they've seen a lot of bad things and nobody's life is going to be perfect, so we're just going to continue and keep our schedules as they have been and we're going to hope and pray that Apollo can get it together.'

Things weren't always like this.  

Parks said her and Nida started dating after Nida randomly flagged her car down on the I-285 highway in Atlanta in 1995.

'He saw me, flagged me down, we met and he followed me home and walked up to my doorstep and said, "Hey, I want you to be my girlfriend". And so that's how we got together.

'Apollo was extremely nice, always very generous, just a really good guy,' she recalls.

Things weren't always like this. Parks said her and Nida started dating after Nida randomly flagged her car down on the I-285 highway in Atlanta in 1995. 'He saw me, flagged me down, we met and he followed me home and walked up to my doorstep and said, "Hey, I want you to be my girlfriend". And so that's how we got together'

The working single-mom said: 'Being a parent does not come with the manual. So I don't think that there's any perfect parents, but obviously when you have a parent that is absent, like my ex husband, it makes it very difficult because I am the sole provider. You know, a woman cannot really teach a young man how to be a man' 

The couple continued dating on and off for ten years but were on a break when Nida was first jailed for six years over a car theft scheme in the early 2000s.

Parks said they stayed friends and Nida called and wrote letters but she really wasn't 'receptive' to any romantic attention.

But on his release, apparently seeing the error of his ways and realizing Parks was the girl for him, Nida reconnected with his old flame.

'I was the first person he went to, he came to my job and he said to my receptionist that he wanted to take me to lunch,' she said.

'I was out of the country and he brought me some flowers. And so that's how we started dating again.'

Parks said Nida convinced her that he was a 'changed man'.

'I thought he was changed, I honestly did, he seemed like he had matured a lot,' she said.

'He was very focused on settling down and having a family, he was still very much in love with me and I thought he was still cute. I just knew we always had a true connection and had known each other for over a decade.

'I knew his family, he knew my entire family and we had been around each other.'

She says the pair started making plans for the future and they had their eldest child Ayden, now aged nine, in 2010.

Nida was operating a couple of businesses, a fitness company and a company that refurbishes homes.

But when Parks was pregnant with their second son Dylan, now aged six, Nida dropped a bombshell.

He told her a warrant had been issued for him related to his business deals, but insisted he had done nothing wrong.

Parks said she had never suspected a thing and was 'overwhelmed', 'disappointed' and 'embarrassed' by the news.

Parks says she still doesn't know whether Nida cheated on her during that time and his exact crimes are also still unclear. 'I don't think it ever became clear,' she said. 'It's sort of a blur, it was very overwhelming, I had so much going on' 

Parks (second from left) hints in part-two of an exclusive interview with DailyMailTV, airing on Friday, that she has considered returning to The Real Housewives of Atlanta

'I had no idea what he was doing until after the news broke and I read about it in the media,' she recalls.

'To be honest, I was pregnant with our second child I was getting up at 3am to drive to Alabama for mortician school and I was a lawyer and was on a TV show and had another small child to take care of.'

Initially Parks supported her husband and retained the 'best attorney in town' for him.

'When I asked him if he was guilty, he said, "no, I'm not". So of course I tried to help him as much as I could because I believed him.

'I had no reason not to because it didn't make sense.'

The star said Nida got up every morning, put on a suit and went to work so she didn't suspect a thing.

'I'm not a micro manager, I'm not that type of wife - whatever you tell me, that's what I'm trusting that you're doing,' she said.

'I'm definitely not checking up on him, I'm not one of those type of women, even if I was I never had the time.'

Nina was jailed for eight years for bank fraud and identity theft in July 2014 over a $2.3 million money laundering scheme.

He was busted by federal investigators for conspiring along with some cohorts to cash US Treasury checks and pension fund checks from Delta Airlines, before funneling the money through bank accounts using over 50 stolen identities and filing fake tax returns among other things.

Parks now knows that Apollo wanted the money to fund a flashy lifestyle away from his family.

'I make a very good living and all the things he said he wanted, he had. He had a family, he had a beautiful home in Buckhead, he had a beautiful child with another on the way. 

'I supported him in whatever business endeavor he was doing, I was a very supportive wife, but it clearly wasn't enough for him.'

But when Parks was pregnant with their second son Dylan, now aged six, Nida dropped a bombshell. He told her a warrant had been issued for him related to his business deals, but insisted he had done nothing wrong. Parks said she had never suspected a thing and was 'overwhelmed', 'disappointed' and 'embarrassed' by the news

Inevitably the relationship fell apart when Parks realized her husband had been lying to her about his crimes. 'Once I worked out he hadn't been truthful with me, I could no longer support him. I'd already paid out over $100,000 in legal fees,' she said. The bombshell was 'devastating' for the star

Inevitably the relationship fell apart when Parks realized her husband had been lying to her about his crimes.

'Once I worked out he hadn't been truthful with me, I could no longer support him. I'd already paid out over $100,000 in legal fees,' she said.

The bombshell was 'devastating' for the star.

'To do something this crazy when there's no rhyme or reason to do it, he was financially set, he did not think about me or his sons. It was very selfish. He broke the law to be flashy to impress people.'

Parks has since learned Nida was going to nightclubs and strips clubs where he would blow his cash.

'We didn't have joint bank accounts so he needed money to spend on that flashy life, he was narcissistic.'

She added: 'I was done. From the moment I discovered that he had done all this stuff, I was finished with that relationship.'

Parks says she still doesn't know whether Nida cheated on her during that time and his exact crimes are also still unclear.

'I don't think it ever became clear,' she said. 'It's sort of a blur, it was very overwhelming, I had so much going on.'

But now Parks says she's got a new found 'glow' since meeting her man - evident in DailyMailTV exclusive photos.

The couple were photographed heading for a romantic date at The Misfit Restaurant and Bar in Santa Monica, California, where they enjoyed lunch and plenty of PDA while sitting on the terrace.

The bible-quoting Buckhead-based socialite also revealed how her new lover is a tee-total vegan exercise fanatic who has converted to Islam.

'He doesn't even eat sugar, honey. But hopefully he eats chocolate,' she said with a mischievous giggle.

But now Parks says she's got a new found 'glow' since meeting her man - evident in DailyMailTV exclusive photos. The couple were photographed heading for a romantic date in Santa Monica

The couple went for a romantic stroll in Santa Monica and 5ft 1in Parks tightly gripped her much taller beau every step of the way

The pair started chatting online at first before taking things to the next level, going out on dates and Islam has been traveling to Atlanta to see his new girlfriend. Parks remains cautious, however, and she's not yet introduced him to her two sons Ayden, nine, and Dylan, six

'He is definitely the type of guy I want to take home to my mother though.

'He's the type of guy you could really be proud of. He is healthy, he's an exercise guru and his body is to die for. He doesn't drink, he doesn't do drugs.

'He's very spiritual and you know, I love the Lord, but you know, he's Muslim.

'So that's a little interesting fact about him. I haven't told my parents that yet because they're pastors in the Methodist church, but he's adorable and my mother loves him from the show he was on for years.'

Phaedra, dressed in ripped blue skinny jeans and a white low slung T-shirt, couldn't keep her hands off her new man, dressed in black jeans and jacket, and she leaned in for a hug and kiss at every opportunity.

The couple went for a romantic stroll in Santa Monica and 5ft 1in Parks tightly gripped her much taller beau every step of the way.

The couple were all smiles as they enjoyed some time together before heading to the Fairmont Miramar Hotel.

Parks remains cautious, however, and she's not yet introduced him to her two sons Ayden, nine, and Dylan, six.

The entertainment lawyer says she's a very 'proud' person and being a mom-of-two she wants to make sure she's chosen the right person to bring into her life.

'That's important to me... but I've known about him for years, he's just a super cutie pie, he's tall, dark and handsome.'

Parks says she watched her boyfriend on TV before they met and he already has her mom's seal of approval.

'He's a great actor and he's on my mother's favorite TV show. And so she was thinking he was adorable as well. So it's sort of all worked out perfectly.'