Nick Cannon celebrates baby number EIGHT at surprise gender reveal party

Daughter Monroe and son Moroccan Scott, 10, with Mariah Carey

Nick and Mariah tied the knot on in the Bahamas in 2008, and they welcomed the rapper’s first kids on April 30, 2011 – a set of twins named Monroe and Moroccan Scott.

According to People, Monroe was named after late actress Marilyn Monroe, who was said to be an inspiration to Mariah. They decided not to give her a middle name since Mariah doesn’t have one.

As for Moroccan, the idea for his name came from the Moroccan décor in Mariah’s apartment, which is where Nick proposed to her.

His middle name, Scott, is also Nick’s middle name and his grandmother’s maiden name.

Back in December, in the wake of Zen’s death, Nick spoke out about how hard it was for him to tell the twins, who are now 10 years old, about Zen’s passing – but credited their support, especially Monroe, with helping him get through the tragedy.

He said Monroe is so ‘so pure and so honest,’ and called the 10-year-old his ‘best therapist.’ 

‘Having to explain that to 10-year-olds … is pretty intense,’ he admitted to People.

‘But their understanding and them being there for me probably helped me keep it together as well as really deal with it. Specifically, Roc and Roe. They were there for the entire journey.

‘My daughter, really, she’s so in tune and in line and wise beyond her years. I got a lot of therapists, but she’s probably my best therapist.

‘She keeps me in check. She’s so pure and so honest. To be 10, she asks some really strong and powerful questions.

‘Really, just it’s all out of love. She’s my oldest child. Even though they’re twins, she came out first and she lets everybody know it. She’s helped me keep it strong.’

Back in 2016, after the birth of his second son, Golden, Nick opened up about the twins’ relationship with their younger sibling, and he revealed that they really enjoy having a little brother.

‘They love hanging out with him, and it is almost like they are more concerned about him having fun than them having fun,’ he gushed to Entertainment Tonight.

‘They are always trying to make them laugh, and he is walking now, so they are trying to get him all the toys.

‘Watching that whole older sibling thing take place, they understand the responsibility of it. They understand that they can teach him things, so it is really cool.’

He also called them ‘geniuses,’ and admitted he was not happy with how fast they were growing up.

‘I’m fine with my son growing up. It’s my daughter that I have a problem with,’ he joked. ‘I mean, shotgun’s loaded.’

As for how he his ex Mariah were co-parenting the twins, he explained in 2016 that they had come to a place of ‘understanding and unconditional love.’

‘When you come from a place of understanding and unconditional love for so many things, you can’t really go wrong,’ he said.

‘It would be very easy to throw our egos in – what we believe we want to do with our time and effort – but then you step back.

‘When it comes to my kids, it is whatever they want at whatever time, and I build my schedule around it.

‘Those children are the most important thing to both of us. It kind of turned her into this wonderful mother, that I feel like the world started to connect with her on that level.

‘There will always be unconditional love and a great relationship. That is one of my best friends in life, so it is always going to be that.

‘The fact that there is no bad blood and we can still coexist, I think that is the best place for it.’

Son Golden, four, and daughter Powerful Queen, one, with Brittany Bell 

After his split from Mariah, Nick dated Phoenix Suns dancer Brittany Bell on-and-off for years.

They welcomed a son together, named Golden Sagon, on February 21, 2017.

At the time, Nick gushed on Instagram, ‘Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning!

‘No matter how hard the world may hit you, God always reminds us of our purpose! Welcome to Earth, son. #TrueHappiness #Awakened.’ 

Reports came out that the couple had split after that, but in November 2020, they were seen walking hand-in-hand at his 33rd birthday celebration – with Brittany sporting a growing baby bump.

They then welcomed their second child, Powerful Queen, in December 2020.

‘The best gift ever,’ Brittany, who is also a model, shared on Instagram at the time.

‘We have been surprised with… A GIRL! Powerful Queen Cannon came this week, perfect timing for Christmas.

‘So much more to share. All I can say is that Nick was my rock through the most intense yet empowering natural water birth.

‘It was nothing but POWERFUL. Merry Christmas! THANK YOU GOD.’ 

One month later, Nick was asked by Power 106 radio hosts if her pregnancy had been an ‘accident,’ and he insisted that it was not. 

‘I’m having these kids on purpose,’ he said. ‘I didn’t have no accident. [There were] a lot of people that I could’ve gotten pregnant that I didn’t. You only live once.’

In December 2021, just after Powerful Queen’s first birthday, the Masked Singer host couldn’t stop raving over how smart she was on Instagram.

He shared a clip of her saying words like ‘nose, cat, dog, and tree’ while he held up flashcards for her.

‘Wow! Look at this brilliant baby!’ he captioned it. ‘They got mad when we named her POWERFUL QUEEN! Y’all lucky I didn’t go with my other choice GENIUS EMPRESS!

‘LOL. I can’t take any of the credit here though! That’s all her amazing mommy.’

Sons Zion Mixolydian and Zillion Heir, seven months, with Abby De La Rosa

Nick and Abby De La Rosa, who is a DJ and broadcast professional, kept their relationship a secret until they announced that they were expecting twin boys together in April 2021.

‘Our dearest sons – my miracle babies, thank you for choosing me to be your mommy,’ Abby wrote on Instagram at the time, in a now-deleted post.

‘I know the Lord has destined me and prepared me for the gift of not one but two little angels.

‘I pray that God gives you both the strength to walk brave and boldly in your individual truth just like your daddy… That God bless you and your brother and guide you into living out your full purpose.

‘Your dad and I will always be here for you both; in complete unison and support.

‘No matter what this world may throw your way, know that forgiveness is key and what is for you – is for YOU! You both are already so loved and we can’t wait to meet you both.’ 

The boys – who they named named Zion Mixolydian and Zillion Heir – were born on June 14, 2021.

In an Instagram Q&A, Abby later revealed that she and Nick accidentally got pregnant in April 2020, but sadly, they lost that baby. Then, they became focused on getting pregnant again. 

‘First pregnancy, April 2020, was definitely not planned, but Nick was such a great friend to me and just so good to me, and then our focus became to have a baby,’ she explained. ‘Little did we know we would end up having twins.

‘Let me just add that this planning wasn’t like us sitting down with a calendar and being like, “You gotta be pregnant by this date.” It had already been a thought and it happened.

‘It had already been out there, it was something we were manifesting and we were just letting it flow.’ 

Son Zen with Alyssa Scott

Nick met Alyssa Scott when they both starred in MTV’s Wild ‘N Out. Years later – in January 2021 – they announced that they were having a baby together.

Their son Zen was born on June 23, 2021, with Alyssa writing at the time, ‘I will love you for eternity.’

But when the baby was two months old, they noticed he had come down with a cough that wouldn’t go away, and decided to have it checked out by doctors.

‘I always noticed he had a cough and so I wanted to check it out,’ Nick later said on The Nick Cannon Show.  

‘He had this interesting breathing and by the time he was two months, I noticed he had this nice sized head too, we called it a Cannon head.

‘We didn’t think anything of it, but I wanted to take him to the doctor for his sinus and breathing.’

After taking the newborn in for a ‘routine’ checkup, they were told he had a malignant tumor and needed emergency surgery immediately. 

He had also developed hydrocephalus – a condition where fluid builds up in the cavities of the brain causing the head to increase in size and ultimately putting pressure on the brain. 

He unfortunately passed away on December 5, 2021 – spending his last moments by the ocean.

‘He was the most loving. We called him Z Chilling. He was always smiling. He had the most beautiful spirit,’ Nick said after his death.

On the Today show, Nick praised Alyssa – ‘who carried a beautiful child for nine months and nurtured and cared for him every single day through this process’ – for her ‘strength.’

‘[Alyssa] is strong,’ he said. ‘She is definitely one of the strongest individuals I’ve known.

‘I couldn’t imagine – I mean, as a father, it’s painful, but for a mother who carried a beautiful child for nine months and nurtured and cared for him every single day through this process.

‘There were so many medicines and so many trips to the hospital and the doctor, and also she’s a mother-of-two so to watch her go through this…’ 

At the time, he said he was using his faith and therapy to get through the immense loss. 

‘I’m taking it – as my therapist says – five minutes at a time, but I’m optimistic in finding the purpose through all of the pain, so I’m attempting to smile, I’m attempting to be the high-frequency individual that I’ve set out to be, but along the way there’s definitely some curves in the journey, so I’m taking it five minutes at a time.

‘Honestly [there] was a lot of fear involved [in telling people about Zen’s death]. I’m so used to being upbeat and outspoken and even vulnerable at times, where I’ll talk about anything.

‘But this was probably the most delicate and the most precious thing I’ve ever had to talk about.

‘And I didn’t know how to talk about it, I never imagined having to be in this scenario, so as much as it was such an outpouring of love, there was a lot of fear, there was obviously some hurt.

‘I wanted to be the protector as well for all of the rest of my family, Alyssa and [everyone], so I wanted… It’s a very delicate thing, even when talking about this.

‘And that’s coming from a person who is used to talking to people each and every day live here on television. It’s scary.’

After the tragic passing, Nick opened up about the ‘guilt’ he feels about having to divide his time between working and being a dad.

‘I’m a father, first and foremost. There’s a lot of guilt that I feel and I talk about this in therapy all the time,’ he admitted.

‘It’s rooted in not having enough time to spend with my loved ones, specifically my children, because I have a lot of children.

‘I’m also spread so thin in my work because that’s how I cope. That’s how I deal with things.

‘I have several jobs and several shows and movies and music, all that stuff. And I call myself a provider for many, but one thing no matter how much money I generate, one thing I can’t generate is time.

‘It’s not about quantity, it’s about quality. And it’s really just having quality moments with my children, quality moments with my family.

‘Had a lot of quality moments with Zen in his short time here. I always say time is a manmade thing, but love and energy is a godsend.’

In January 2022, just days before his gender reveal party, the star admitted that he was ‘still missing his little dude’ Zen in an emotional Instagram post.

‘Still missing my little dude… His spirit and brightness were so strong #ZensLight,’ he captioned a throwback snap that showed Moroccan, Zion, Zillion, and Monroe sitting with him, as he held Zen.

He added: ‘The whole family, we ALL miss you young King! Forever Our Angel!’