Why Nick Cannon Wants His Kids To Pursue Non-Entertainment Careers

In a recent interview, Nick Cannon expressed his desire for his children to pursue non-entertainment careers to avoid being labeled "repo babies." The rapper shared that he encourages his kids to play sports to develop valuable life skills.

Despite his preference for non-entertainment careers, Cannon supports his children's musical development, providing them with music lessons and the opportunity to explore their musical talents. 

Keep on reading to learn more.

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Nick Cannon expressed his desire for his children to pursue non-entertainment careers to avoid being labeled as "repo babies."

As a multi-talented host of popular shows like "The Masked Singer," a radio show, and the comedy game show "Wild 'n Out," the rapper who has had 12 children with six different women over the past decade recognizes the potential ease for his children to enter the entertainment industry due to their famous parentage.

However, Cannon's aspirations for his children go beyond the allure of showbiz and "go outside of the box." He explained, per Insider: "Out of all my kids, I'm like, if they want to be in entertainment, that's fine, but that's almost easy." He continued, "I want you to do something challenging, go outside the box, so you can see effort and perseverance because they're a nepo baby. There are advantages to a kid. You're just like, 'Oh, this is natural.'"

Cannon elaborated on his perspective, emphasizing his enthusiasm for seeing his children engage in sports to develop valuable life skills. He shared, "That's why I love... to see my kids try sports because it has nothing to do with anything. It is how much work you put in and how hard you go that you'll succeed in that space. They can learn all those cool principles by having fun with their friends."

Cannon expressed his hopes for a few children to pursue athletic careers, saying, "I hope I can be that dad on the sidelines somewhere rooting for them. But, again, if they want to be accountants or equestrians, I don't care."

In a twist, the father of 11 revealed that despite his preference for his children to pursue non-entertainment careers, he still supports their musical development. The rapper acknowledged the benefits he missed by not learning music theory and expanding his musicality at a young age, saying, "I wish I would have learned theory and all the musicality at a very young age because then I would be such a better musician even today."

He added, "So I'm giving them that gift. I'm like, 'Look, you'll get the lessons. You'll know how now you can do whatever you want. You get to impress the girls, or you can make a career out of it.'" Interestingly, most of Cannon's children are still young, with only three over four.

During a recent episode of "The Jason Lee Podcast," Cannon revealed that his eight-month-old daughter Onyx Ice receives most of his time and attention among his children. The "Wild N'Out" host took pride in his solid co-parenting relationship with LaNisha, Onyx's mother, saying, "LaNisha and I have a super strong understanding, and our co-parenting operation is so solid."

Cannon explained that he and LaNisha had established a schedule that worked well for them. "If you see me on Mondays, Wednesdays, or Fridays, my daughter is right next to me, whether I'm on set," he disclosed.

He added, per People magazine, "I got a nursery in my office. I'm going to leave here to make sure that I can spend the most time with her—not against all my other kids because all my other kids, they're in school, they're babies, as well as Onyx — but the fact that I appreciate that LaNisha gives me the respect enough to allow me to have, really, as an equal amount of time as she does."

Cannon also emphasized that spending time with baby Onyx does not affect how much time he spends with his other children.