Her greatest job. Mariah Carey has gushed about the way becoming a mother has changed her outlook on life.
After just six weeks of dating, Carey exchanged vows with Nick Cannon in April 2008. The pair expanded their family with their fraternal twins, son Moroccan and daughter Monroe, in 2011.
Before giving birth, the songwriter opened up about how their kids would be rainbow babies following a past miscarriage. “It kind of shook us both and took us into a place that was really dark and difficult,” she told Access Hollywood in October 2010. “When that happened, I wasn’t able to even talk to anybody about it. That was not easy.”
Following six years of marriage, Carey and Cannon called it quits in 2014. They finalized their divorce two years later. The former couple have candidly addressed their attempts to coparent their kids after parting ways.
“It’s all about love,” the comedian said during an interview with Amazon’s Style Code Live in February 2017. “You put the kids first, but then when you understand that you have unconditional love for these human beings and you want the best existence for them, then you put whatever differences you may have had aside.”
Cannon continued: “A lot of times, when you think about breakups in relationships, it’s usually over ego. And if you can remove your ego from that, and make it about your loved ones, then that’s what it’s about.”
The Grammy winner has continued to focus on raising her kids. Carey previously explained how the reality of parenting differed from her expectations.
“I’m going to have to quote Mean Girls and be, like, ‘I’m not a regular mom. I’m a cool mom.[‘] There are no rules in this house,’” she exclusively told Us Weekly in December 2021. “No, there are rules in this house, that’s the difference. Like, I want to be that — I don’t like being the bad guy, I have to say. I really don’t, like, I hate that more than anything. So, you know, I do want to be, like, ‘I’m not really a mom, I’m a cool mom.’ But you’re never a cool mom, like, you just never are.”
The singer also discussed how her kids view her career accomplishments as they get older.
“They’re aware of the success, the records and this new diamond certification. They see these things and they see it on a list with songs of like the most current artists. Then they see it at No. 1 and they’re like, ‘What in the world,’” the “All I Want for Christmas Is You” performer shared with Us, before joking, “Because, obviously, everybody knows I wasn’t born. I was just here, here I am. And I’m not even a real person. I’m just an animated character.”
Cannon, for his part, has expanded his own family since his divorce from Carey. The Nick Cannon Show host shares sons Golden and Rise and daughter Powerful with Brittany Bell and twins Zillion and Zion with Abby De La Rosa. He also welcomed a baby boy with Alyssa Scott, Zen, who passed away at 5 months in December 2021. The duo are expecting a second child.
The TV host welcomed son Legendary with Bre Tiesi in July 2022 and daughter Onyx with Lanisha Cole two months later.
According to a source, Carey is “happy” for her ex-husband as he continues to become a father.
“Mariah and Nick are really great coparents and have a good relationship [and] friendship now,” the insider explained to Us in February 2022. “They’re in a good place and they’re supportive of each other no matter what. As long as Roc and Roe are still very much a part of Nick’s life, which they are, and he gives them equal attention, that’s what she solely cares about. They spend a lot of time with Nick, and he seems to balance time well with all the children.”
Scroll down for Carey’s most candid quotes about being a mother:
