Keke Palmer Stars in Usher's 'Boyfriend' Music Video After Darius Jackson Controversy

On Wednesday, Usher dropped the music video for his new song, "Boyfriend," featuring Keke, with the track -- and video -- including several not-so-subtle references to her boyfriend, who was hit was backlash last month after he called Keke out over the outfit she decided to wear to Usher's Las Vegas residency concert, where she was serenaded during the show.

The video begins with Keke, 29, and Usher, 44, getting ready for the night out in Las Vegas. Keke then gets into an elevator with two friends, and the song stops before Usher's 2001 hit, "U Remind Me," starts playing, and she sings along.

As "Boyfriend" begins again, Keke pops out of the elevator dressed as Usher, and busts out some impressive choreography in the casino. The video flashes between Keke and Usher before they both meet up in the casino.

The music then abruptly stops, and cuts to Keke being woken up by a phone call in her hotel room. She answers her phone, seemingly a "boyfriend," who asks where she is.

"What time is it? Damn it! I missed the show. I'm so tired. I'm a mother, after all," Keke replies, winking at the camera.

The last line was undoubtedly a reference to the star's "I'M A MOTHA" merch, which she released after controversy surrounding Jackson, with whom she shares a 5-month-old son, Leo.

And since Keke was in his video, Usher seems to poke fun at drama with Jackson in the song's chorus as he sings, "Somebody said that your boyfriend's looking for me."

Meanwhile, Keke shared a clip from the music video on her Instagram, praising Usher in the post's caption.

"Usher! I remember when I was 12 and auditioned for 'In The Mix'🤣 You have been killing it all my life," she wrote. "As a true lover of the arts, your talent and craftsmanship are a rare combination that I aspire to achieve as a performer. You are a living legend who is worthy of awe! Thank you for encouraging me and seeing me as the entertainer I am."

"I know I'm a gUrL but when I watched your videos, I never wanted to be the girl in them, I wanted to be YOU," she added. "Thank you for making a dream come true."

Usher replied to Keke in the comment section of her post, writing, "my goal in life as an artist is to make things that people feel...things that make the next generation feel inspired to chase their dreams. Thank you for inspiring me and being inspiring."

Fans went wild after Usher posted a preview clip of "Boyfriend" to X on Tuesday, teasing his new song and video, as well as Keke being featured in the video.

This comes a little over a month after Jackson was roasted online for criticizing Keke's outfit she wore to Usher's concert in Vegas.

Jackson reposted a photo of Keke wearing a sheer black dress over a black bodysuit as she was serenaded by Usher. He added, "It's the outfit tho ... you a mom."

In a follow-up post, he doubled down on his stance, saying, "We live in a generation where a man of the family doesn't want the wife & mother to his kids to showcase booty cheeks to please others & he gets told how much of a hater he is." He concluded, "This is my family & my representation. I have standards & morals to what I believe. I rest my case."

Keke seemed to address the mess by releasing a new line of t-shirts with the words, "I'M A MOTHA" emblazoned across the front.

"One thing is certain and one thing is true," she wrote on X. "I'M A MOTHER, through and through!"

"To all my moms out there, how did your baby change you?" she asked. "Mine empowered me! On such another level, my perspective changed because when my baby is good I'm GREAT! Look at that face! Gratitude galore."

The controversy surrounding Jackson had people questioning whether or not he and Keke were still together.

Some fans speculated that Keke threw shade at Jackson during her performance at Broccoli City Festival last month when she changed the lyrics to her song "Bossy."

"lil booties matter, my son gave me some ass/ I'm my own boss and I got my own cash/ I don't need a n----, only thing I need's a bag."

Meanwhile, a source told People on Tuesday that Jackson has "moved on," but Keke and Jackson have yet to reveal the current status of their relationship.