Chelsea Waddell has confirmed she has split from Flight Facilities star Jimmy Lyell.
The fine arts consultant took to her Instagram Stories on Tuesday to announce her ‘painful’ separation from the Australian DJ, with whom she shares two children.
In an emotional statement, she penned: ‘After a lot of reflection, I need to share that my relationship with Jimmy has come to an end. This wasn’t a decision made lightly.’
‘This is an incredibly hard time for myself and our two kids, but my focus now is on healing, growing, and creating a positive future for myself and my two little boys,’ she went on.
‘The children we share are my absolute priority and my greatest source of strength as we move forward.
‘As a very private person, I’m not sharing this to invite sympathy or to open up conversations about it.
Chelsea Waddell has confirmed she has split from Flight Facilities star Jimmy Lyell (both pictured)
‘I’m sharing this because I want to be honest to the people we are connected with, but mostly I want to avoid the pain of having to explain this over and over to people.
‘So I ask with kindness, that if you see me, we leave this topic out. This is a conversation that is too painful for me to have right now.
‘Thank you for respecting my privacy and giving me space as my boys and I navigate this huge change in our lives.’
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Chelsea and Flight Facilities for comment. Chelsea declined to comment.
The couple, who live in Byron Bay, have been together since 2017 but they are believed to have first met back in 2009.
In a 2021 interview, Chelsea said: ‘Jim and I met in what now, during 2021, seems very romantic and old fashioned – it was 12 years ago in a nightclub.
‘I was working on the door, and he was the DJ playing there that night.’
They didn’t strike up a romance until later and Jimmy, also known by his stage name Jimmy2Sox, first began featuring in posts on Chelsea’s Instagram in March 2018.
It is not known exactly how long the couple (pictured), who live in Byron Bay, have been together but they are believed to have first met back in 2009
They welcomed their first child together, a son called Louie, in April 2020 and welcomed their second child less than a year ago in June 2024.
They also run a luxury rental accommodation called Joints in Byron Bay and frequently share glimpses inside the sprawling pad on social media.
Jimmy is best-known for being one half of popular Aussie DJ group Flight Facilities, which he founded with Hugo Gruzman in 2009.
They shot to fame in 2014 with their debut album Down to Earth, which features names such as Kylie Minogue, Emma Louise, Reggie Watts and Bishop Nehru.
Just weeks ago in December, the DJing duo came under fire as were accused of drug-shaming fans when they shared a shocking video from their concert.
Flight Facilities posted a now-deleted video of two fans in the crowd high on drugs, with fans then accusing them of ‘preying on people’s vulnerability’.
Followers slammed the electronic musicians for ‘disrespecting’ the concert-goers by sharing their experience – and faces – on drugs with millions of online viewers.
One TikTok user, AnneArchery, made her own video criticising Flight Facilities for the shocking move, saying she was ‘disgusted’ they would do such a thing.
The couple welcomed their first child together, a son called Louie, in April 2020 and welcomed their second child less than a year ago in June 2023
Jimmy is best-known for being one half of popular Aussie DJ group Flight Facilities, which he founded with Hugo Gruzman (both pictured in 2014) in 2009
‘I was shook. I was actually disgusted that artists are using the safe space of a rave which they go on about, you know, rave culture, PLUR [Peace Love Unity Respect], everyone having a good time, everyone respecting each other, but then not respecting people in the crowd,’ she fumed.
‘The level of disrespect that you would have to have for your fanbase to do that. Maybe the people in the crowd don’t care. But now it’s like, would I go to a Flight Facilities event? Probably not.
‘And if I did go I definitely wouldn’t be having a good time because I would be f***ing wigging out the whole time.’
Anne said that while she doesn’t condone the use of drugs, it isn’t anyone else’s business if someone decides to take them, claiming Flight Facilities were ‘preying on people’s vulnerability’ for the sake of online views.
Save Our Scene UK live music advocate George Fleming also told The News Movement that ‘using someone’s vulnerability for viral content is deeply unethical, irresponsible, and potentially very harmful’.
Flight Facilities deleted the video following the backlash, but have a similar video from September still pinned to their TikTok page.
Daily Mail Australia reached out to representatives of Flight Facilities for comment at the time.