Nick Cannon, the multi-talented entertainer and entrepreneur, has long made a name for himself in the entertainment industry, from his teenage years as a stand-up comic to his success with Wild ’N Out, Drumline, and high-profile hosting gigs like The Masked Singer and America’s Got Talent, among others. But in recent years, one identity has come to dominate the public narrative about him—that of a father to 12 children with six different women.
In a recent interview with Vulture, the 44-year-old said that he wasn’t trying to become like X owner Elon Musk, who has 14 children.
However, Cannon said his large brood was a “by-product of his eagerness to appease the women he was dating or his single friends who wanted kids.” Still, he admits that it wasn’t always that simple. “It was also a little bit of, like, ‘Okay, God, how did I have five kids in one year?’ Probably careless activity,” he confessed.
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According to People, Cannon welcomed five of his 12 children in 2022 alone. His son, Legendary Love, was born in July 2022 to Selling Sunset star Bre Tiesi. In September 2022, he welcomed daughter Onyx Ice Cole with model LaNisha Cole and son Rise Messiah with Brittany Bell.
Cannon and Bell already shared two children: son Golden Sagon, born in 2017, and daughter Powerful Queen, born in 2020. In November 2022, Cannon and Abby De La Rosa welcomed daughter Beautiful Zeppelin, joining their twins Zion Mixolydian and Zillion Heir, born in 2021. In December 2022, Cannon welcomed daughter Halo Marie with Alyssa Scott, the mother of his late son Zen, who passed away in 2021 at just five months old due to brain cancer. Cannon also shares 14-year-old twins Moroccan and Monroe with his ex-wife Mariah Carey.
Despite the many headlines, Cannon said he’s not planning any more children at the moment. “The world is a crazy place. I never say ‘never’,” he said.
He previously told People that while he wasn’t expecting to welcome more little ones anytime soon, he might consider expanding his family three or five years in the future.
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At the time, Cannon said, “There was a point in time where I was just like, ‘Nah, I’m done,’… And, then I was like, ‘Who am I to say that?’ It seemed like it was such an emphatic thing. I never imagined that I would have 12 kids. So, it’s one of those things where I love children. I love my life, and if it could keep going in the direction that it’s going, why not?”
His large family has sometimes made him the butt of many jokes but though Cannon is able to laugh at himself, he’s also taken steps to process and understand his unique path. After his divorce from Mariah Carey in 2016, Cannon entered what he jokingly calls his post-divorce “rumspringa,” involving a series of high-profile relationships and resulting in his blended family.
In response to this spotlight, Cannon has begun integrating his personal experiences into his creative work. He launched the mental health podcast Counsel Culture, where therapists and psychologists explore his personal and family dynamics, which stemmed from Cannon’s own therapy sessions, which now include his eldest children.
Despite the jokes, Cannon’s actions show he takes his role as a father seriously. He continues to work nonstop across multiple jobs to support his children and maintain what he refers to as “love” in all forms—for his kids, their mothers, and the life he’s built.
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