Mom’s the word
Cardi B the latest celebrity to get real about her role as a new mother
Cardi B is at the height of her career, but earlier this month she hit the pause button to give birth to a daughter she shares with fellow rapper Offset.
Still, she had planned to hit the road with Bruno Mars this fall for the remainder of his 24K Magic World Tour. Recently, she said she is bowing out.
“I thought that after giving birth to my daughter that six weeks would be enough time for me to recover mentally and physically,” she wrote on Instagram. “I also thought that I’d be able to bring her with me on tour, but I think I underestimated this whole mommy thing.
“Not only am I just not ready physically, I’m not ready to leave my baby behind since the doctors explained it’s not healthy for her to be on the road”
She is just the latest celebrity to open up about her expectations of motherhood and confronting the reality of the situation.
It’s worth noting that plenty of mothers have no choice but to return to their jobs very soon after giving birth.
Still, because of the wealth and fame that gives celebrities the best products, health care and nannies (or even nannies at all), it’s easy to think famous women are also super-humans with perfect pregnancies, trouble-free deliveries and easy entries back to their jobs. But even Serena Williams, one of the world’s greatest athletes, faced life-threatening complications.
Williams opened up about the scary moment, and even filmed an HBO docuseries about her pregnancy and return to tennis. Her experience also highlighted the fact that black women are more likely than white women to suffer complications.
“I was in a really fortunate situation where I know my body well, and I am who I am, and I told the doctor: ‘I don’t feel right. Something’s wrong.’ She immediately listened,” Williams said. “Unfortunately a lot of African-americans and black people don’t have the same experience that I’ve had.”
We’re in a moment of celebrity where fans love to see their favourite stars get real, and being a tad rough around the edges just adds to the charm. Cardi B is the perfect encapsulation of this: Much of her stardom has been driven by her adept approach to social media.
But even more private superstars have also taken time off and returned to the spotlight well after giving birth. Beyoncé, who gave birth to twins in June 2017, performed in April at Coachella.
Beyoncé told the crowd how she came up with the entire show: “I had time to dream and dream and dream with two beautiful souls in my belly, and I dreamt up this performance” she said. “And this is more than I ever dreamt of it being.”
Comedian Ali Wong taped both of her Netflix specials while pregnant, and tells jokes with graphic detail about going through labour and breastfeeding. Her star rose dramatically after the specials and earned her a legion of fans.
In Wong ’s first special, Baby Cobra, she addressed all of the pressures moms face. “I can already see how there’s this crazy double standard in our society,” she said. “It takes so little to be considered a great dad, and it also takes so little to be considered” a bad mom.