Basic Information
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Full name | Michael Conrad Braxton (often styled as Michael Braxton Sr.) |
| Role | Patriarch of the Braxton family |
| Occupations | Methodist clergyman (pastor); power-company employee |
| Known for | Father of Toni, Michael Jr., Traci, Towanda, Trina, and Tamar Braxton; appearances on family reality TV |
| Birth year | c. 1947 |
| Hometown | Severn, Maryland, USA |
| Religious affiliation | Methodist |
| Marital history | Formerly married to Evelyn (Jackson) Braxton; later remarried |
| Children | Six: Toni, Michael Jr., Traci (1971–2022), Towanda, Trina, Tamar |
| Public visibility | Featured during 2011–present via reality television and entertainment media |
| Notable TV | Braxton family reality series (2010s–2020s) |
| Signature themes | Faith, family leadership, intergenerational music legacy |
Roots, rhythm, and responsibility
Michael Conrad Braxton Sr. stands at the quiet center of one of R&B’s most recognizable families. Raised in faith and anchored in work, he split his life between the pews and the power lines—shepherding a congregation as a Methodist clergyman while clocking hours for a power company to support six gifted children. In Severn, Maryland, where the Braxton siblings learned harmony in church before they learned fame in studios, Michael Sr. modeled steadiness: a pastor’s cadence, a provider’s consistency, a father’s gravity.
By the late 1960s, the family tree had begun to take shape. Toni Michele Braxton arrived in 1967, followed a year later by the family’s only son, Michael Jr. The household grew through the 1970s—Traci (1971), Towanda (1973), Trina (1974), and Tamar (1977)—and with it grew a sound: layered, soulful, disciplined. The sanctuary became a rehearsal room; the dinner table, a roundtable of ambition.
The Braxton family roster
| Name | Born | Role/Notability | Publicly known children |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toni Michele Braxton | 1967 | Grammy-winning R&B icon | Denim Cole Braxton-Lewis; Diezel Ky Braxton-Lewis |
| Michael Conrad Braxton Jr. | 1968 | Music-adjacent; private figure in the public family | Lauren Braxton (deceased 2019) |
| Traci Renee Braxton | 1971–2022 | Singer, reality-TV personality | — |
| Towanda Braxton | 1973 | Singer, TV personality | Braxton Montelus Carter; Brooke Carter |
| Trina Evette Braxton | 1974 | Singer, TV personality, entrepreneur | Caleb Mojica; Eric Mojica |
| Tamar Estine Braxton | 1977 | Singer, TV personality | Logan Vincent Herbert |
The constellation orbits the patriarch. Michael Sr.’s moral and musical influence threads through each child’s story: discipline from the pulpit, perseverance from the day job, and a tolerance for bright lights earned the hard way—by standing behind, not in front of, the stage.
Michael Conrad Braxton Jr.: the family’s quiet anchor
In a household of powerful voices, Michael Conrad Braxton Jr. is the quiet constant. Born in 1968, he is the second child and only son. While his sisters toured, recorded, and filmed, Michael Jr. lived largely off-camera, surfacing in family updates and milestones. His daughter, Lauren, who died in 2019 at 24, is among the next generation most often mentioned in public remembrances. In a family defined by sound, Michael Jr. is the rest between notes—subtle, essential, revealing the shape of the melody.
Faith, work, and the balancing act
Michael Sr.’s dual career—pastor and power-company employee—tells its own American story. He bore two callings: one spiritual, one practical. On Sundays, he guided souls; on weekdays, he secured the home. The push and pull of those roles shaped how the children learned to manage spotlight and storm. Even as the family’s visibility surged, his clerical grounding offered a compass: gratitude in triumph, humility in conflict, and grace in return.
The reality-TV era: a private life made public
Beginning in 2011, reality television opened the Braxton household door. Audiences watched sisters joke, spar, perform, and reconcile, often with their parents nearby. Michael Sr. appeared in episodes that documented milestones and friction alike—holidays, reunions, and the complex aftermath of divorce and remarriage. The show spotlighted uncomfortable truths with a candid edge, yet it also revealed a family that kept finding its way back to the table. For Michael Sr., the dynamic demanded a pastor’s patience and a father’s resolve.
Milestones and markers: a concise timeline
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1967–1977 | Births of the six Braxton children: Toni (1967), Michael Jr. (1968), Traci (1971), Towanda (1973), Trina (1974), Tamar (1977) |
| 1980s–1990s | Church performances evolve into professional pursuits; Toni’s solo career ascends internationally |
| 2011 | Family reality series premieres, shining a spotlight on the parents, siblings, and evolving relationships |
| 2010s | Multiple seasons feature family gatherings, career arcs, and on-camera dialogues with Michael Sr. |
| 2019 | Death of Lauren Braxton at age 24, affecting Michael Jr.’s branch of the family |
| 2022 | Death of Traci Braxton (1971–2022), mourned by the family and fans |
| 2020s | Continued family media projects keep the patriarch and his legacy in public view |
Dates and headlines convey scale, but the subtext is simple: endurance. The Braxtons encountered public grief and private growth under relentless attention. Through it all, Michael Sr.’s presence—sometimes central, sometimes peripheral—remained a point of reference.
What the numbers say about a legacy
- Children: 6
- Generations in public view: 3 (parents, siblings, grandchildren)
- Decades of visibility: 3+ (1990s to 2020s)
- Common threads: faith, family, music, resilience
Numbers can’t tell you what it felt like to watch daughters turn harmony into history or to steady a family in the crosswinds of fame. But they sketch a silhouette: a father who saw life as stewardship—of gifts, time, and truth.
Grief, growth, and the family circle
Loss carved its mark on the Braxton story. The deaths of Traci in 2022 and Lauren in 2019 reverberated across media and memory, reminding fans that celebrity does not soften grief. In televised tributes and private reflections, the family emphasized the values instilled long ago: pray together, sing together, heal together. In such moments, Michael Sr.’s pastoral core—ritual, remembrance, community—moved from backdrop to foreground.
Culture, community, and the Braxton imprint
Beyond charts and cameras, the Braxton name signals a way of being: excellence with roots. Toni’s global achievements, Tamar’s showmanship, Towanda and Trina’s entrepreneurial turns, Traci’s warmth and candor, Michael Jr.’s quiet strength—all trace back to a Maryland home where talent met discipline and love negotiated disagreement. If fame is a bright flame, Michael Sr. supplied the lantern: a structure that helped the light travel without burning out.
FAQ
Who is Michael Conrad Braxton Sr.?
He is the father of the six Braxton siblings and the family’s longtime patriarch.
What does he do for a living?
He has been known as a Methodist clergyman and also worked for a power company.
How many children does he have?
Six: Toni, Michael Jr., Traci (1971–2022), Towanda, Trina, and Tamar.
Who is Michael Conrad Braxton Jr.?
He is the only son among the siblings, a relatively private figure connected to the broader family’s public life.
Did the Braxton family appear on reality TV?
Yes, multiple seasons in the 2010s–2020s featured the siblings and their parents.
Where did the Braxtons grow up?
Severn, Maryland, where church and family shaped their early musical foundation.
Is there information about his net worth?
Reliable public reporting does not document his net worth.
What happened to Traci Braxton?
She died in March 2022, and the family publicly mourned her passing.
Who was Lauren Braxton?
She was Michael Jr.’s daughter and died in 2019 at age 24.
Is Michael Sr. still involved in his children’s lives?
Yes, he has appeared across family milestones and media projects over the years.
