Nick Cannon And Alyssa Scott Honor Their Late Son On His 'Heavenly Birthday'

Nick Cannon and Alyssa Scott continue to keep their late son's memory alive. They didn't let his first heavenly birthday pass without making it a special day of celebration. In honor of their baby boy Zen, Cannon, 41, and Scott, 28, announced a new foundation with the goal of helping to find a cure for pediatric cancer on their Instagram pages, on what would have been his first birthday.

To commemorate the new foundation, Cannon and Scott attended a lighting ceremony to honor the life of their angel. Cannon captioned an Instagram post, "We are proud to announce his new foundation that will help so many others in this world. Zen’s Light'[‘s] mission is to foster global excellence in hope, grief-care and pediatric healthcare for families and children in need.” He continued with, "Can’t wait for next year where our Lighting Gala will continue grow to help find a cure for pediatric cancer, further research and help console more families during difficult times.”

Scott posted her own tribute to her son's life on her Instagram page. She captioned a post, "Happy heavenly birthday Zen. At the root of all the emotions I have today there is insurmountable love. I always try my best to remain positive but right now I can't help but cry out 'it's not suppose to be like this.' In my mind I can see him smashing his cake and crawling around, tugging at my legs. But the reality is I will be the one to blow out his first candle. I wish he was still here with us."

Zen was born on June 23, 2021. Cannon announced on his talk show in December 2021 that his 5-month-old son had died of brain cancer that was diagnosed three months earlier. Shortly after Zen's birth, it was discovered that there was fluid building up inside the baby's head, as well as a malignant tumor that required surgery. Cannon said on his talk show, "We were faithful and hopeful for that time. We carried on, he was still just playing with his brothers and sisters, I embraced every moment."

The diagnosis came after what was expected to be a routine visit to the doctor. Cannon explained on his show, "I always noticed he had a cough and so I wanted to check it out. He had this interesting breathing and by the time he was two months I noticed he had this nice sized head too -- a Cannon head. We didn’t think anything of it. But I wanted to take him to the doctor for his sinus and breathing. We thought it would be routine."

After his son passed away, Cannon made this announcement on his show, "Over the weekend I lost my youngest son to a condition called hydrocephalus that is pretty much a malignant, midline brain tumor -- brain cancer."

Zen was Cannon's seventh child. Cannon is also father to 10-year-0ld twins Monroe and Moroccan with ex-wife Mariah Carey, 5-year-old Golden "Sagon" and 18-month-old Powerful Queen with Brittany Bell, and 1-year-old twins Zion Mixolydian and Zillion Heir with Abby De La Rosa. He is currently expecting his eighth child with Bre Tiesi. For those doing the math, that's Cannon's fifth baby in less than two years.