“Right now the narrative is, ‘He has a bunch of kids,'” Nick Cannon told Amy Kaufman of the LA Times in a May 7 feature. “But I’m really at a place now where I don’t care what people know,” added Cannon, 42. During the chat, the father of twelve addressed the allegations and hateful comments that he couldn’t be a good father to all of his twelve kids. “I’ve been villainized,” he said. “I hear all the time: ‘You can’t be present for all those children.’ So, therefore, I get this deadbeat dad title.”
It’s hard to ignore that Nick’s family tree has sprouted a lot of branches recently: he shares two 12-year-old twins, Monroe and Moroccan, with Mariah Carey; he and Brittany Bell share Golden, 6, Powerful, 2, and 7-month-old Rise; he and Abby De La Rosa have twins Zion and Zillion, 1, and 5-month-old Beautiful; Brie Tiesei gave birth to Legendary nine months ago; he and Alyssa Scott share 4-month Halo and the late Zen; and Nick shares Onyx, 7-months, with LaNisha Cole.
Cannon dismisses the deadbeat label, saying that he bought homes for all his children and their mothers and “there’s nothing that they could ask [him] for” that he would say no to. He also revealed that he can afford to provide for his growing family. “When you think about my lifestyle, I have to generate at least $100 million a year,” he said in the LA Times profile. “Everybody thinks Ryan Seacrest has tons of money. I do everything that he does times 10. Well, not times 10 — times three. Because he does a lot.”
From there, Nick breaks down his bag: he’s paid “more than $20 million” for hosting two seasons a year of The Masked Singer. He hosts Wild’ N Out, which films its 21st season next month. There’s the Live Nation Wild’ N Out arena tour. He’s filling in for the ill Jamie Foxx to host Beat Shazam. Nick and Kevin Hart’s Celebrity Prank Wars is airing on E! He recently shot Counsel Culture, an all-male version of The View, for Amazon Freevee. He’s also involved in podcasts and movies and running his own imprint at Republic Records. On top of all that, Nick owns sports bars, restaurants, and gyms — all of which generate a healthy income.
Though he’s financially set to care for his kids, Nick did admit that he feels guilty about not being able to spend enough time with his children. Nick says he talks about these feelings in therapy. He also focuses on being present as possible with the children whenever they’re together. “It’s not about what I do for you or what I say to you, it’s about how you feel when I’m with you,” he said. “If you feel loved when you see your dad, that’s what’s gonna resonate.”
At this point, Nick is focused on his career and life rather than combatting what other people think. “I’d rather just operate,” he says. “It’s more about really being a good person instead of telling people you’re a good person.”