Nick Cannon knows what people say about him, and he’s not running from the commentary.
In a new cover story for Vulture, the media mogul got candid about the headlines and hot takes surrounding his ever-growing family.
Cannon, who shares 12 children with six different women, reflected on the year 2022, when five of his kids were born — each with a different mother. “It was also a little bit of, like, ‘Okay, God, how did I have five kids in one year?’ Probably careless activity,” he admitted.
The births of Legendary Love, Onyx Ice Cole, Rise Messiah, Beautiful Zeppelin, and Halo Marie over that year had people questioning Cannon’s intentions — some even accusing him of trying to rival Elon Musk, who has 14 kids, in the race to repopulate the Earth. But according to Cannon, it wasn’t that deep. He explained that his fatherhood journey was more a result of trying to please the women in his life or support friends who wanted to start families.
Still, the “Wild ‘N Out” creator insists he’s doing his best to show up for all his children. “I always say people have so many different opinions about my parenting and who I am as a father, but one thing I know is that whatever my children want to do, I can help cultivate and amplify — whether that’s through finances, whether that’s through connections, whether that’s through my ability to just parent well, to where I can put you in the best schools,” he told the publication.
He went on to explain how his approach, while unusual, still offers value to his children. “They get the cheat code. It’s maybe not the traditional or conventional way of parenting. Everybody else says, ‘There’s no way he could spend all the time with them kids and be present for all them kids.’ But I’m doing my best, and where I fall short, hopefully the things that I do have that bring me an advantage, I can lend to them.”
Apparently, Quincy Jones predicted Cannon’s path
Elsewhere during the conversation, Cannon credited the late Quincy Jones as someone who helped shape his thinking on work ethic and fatherhood. The two met in 2007 while working on “ Star Camp,” and Jones had words for Cannon even when he was just a dad of two.
“He used to talk to me when I only had two kids, and it was just me and Mariah,” Cannon recalled. “He’s like, ‘Yeah, that’s light work. You going to get tired of that soon.’ And I was like, ‘What do you mean? … I got an amazing wife who’s my dream girl!’”
According to the actor, Jones responded, “I know your kind… You’re cut from the same cloth as me.”
For Cannon, Jones -- who had seven children and passed away last year at 91 -- became a model for managing a big family. “People ask, ‘Why you got 12 jobs?’ Because I’ve got 12 kids!” he said, adding that Jones was able to leave each of his children a sizable inheritance. “I was like, ‘He did it right.’”
So, is the 44-year-old done making babies?
Cannon isn’t making any promises. “The world is a crazy place,” he said. “I never say, ‘Never’!”