Nick Cannon, who has fathered 12 children with six different women, has expressed his dislike for the term ‘co-parenting’. Over the past 14 years, Cannon has had children with Mariah Carey, Brittany Bell, Alyssa Scott, Abby De La Rosa, Bre Tiesi, and LaNisha Cole. His children are named Monroe, Moroccan, Golden, Powerful, Zion, Zillion, Zen, Legendary Love, Onyx, Rise, Beautiful, and Halo.
Recently, during an episode of his podcast, Nick Cannon @ Night, the 44-year-old addressed a listener’s question about ‘blended families’ that was shared on social media platform X. The question posed was: “Curious to hear Nick’s perspective on managing multiple co-parenting relationships while dating. It’s a unique situation that could offer some real insights for blended families.”
Cannon, who once attended a party hosted by Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs at the age of 16, emphasized, “When you start throwing labels on things, I think it does more harm than help and can get very dangerous, because then everybody else has a preconceived notion of what you’re doing.”
He admitted, “I haven’t figured it out yet. I haven’t gotten it all the way right. But also to your point, if I just step into every situation with respect and compassion and individuality. That’s the other thing I always do with anyone I’m involved with in my life.”
Addressing the six mothers of his children, Cannon noted that he avoids grouping them together in discussions. “I really try my hardest not to be like, ‘Oh yeah, my baby mamas’, you know, unless I’m telling a joke or something like that, but no one wants to be grouped into anything,” he explained. “Everyone wants to be treated like an individual with respect and compassion.”
In a previous conversation with Dr. Laura Berman, Cannon shared his views on fatherhood. Dr. Berman likened him to the biblical figure Abraham, to which he responded, “I’ve never heard that clarity, but I’ve heard ‘Yo, you’re going to be a father of many. You’re a great influence, your lineage, your offspring are going to do great things.'”
When asked if he planned to have more children, Cannon replied on The Language of Love with Dr. Laura Berman podcast, “Only God can let me know when I’m done.” He added, “As much as I was open to every single child that I have, I can’t say the majority of them were planned. If you would have told me in 2012 when I was still married and just diagnosed with Lupus that 10 years from now… that I would have 12 children, I would be like f**ck out of here! There’s no way in the world that I would ever plan that.”
Cannon was diagnosed with Lupus nephritis, a chronic autoimmune disease affecting the kidneys, in 2012. He faced early complications such as kidney failure and blood clots in his lungs and has since adjusted his diet and sleeping habits to manage the disease’s symptoms.