13 Celebrities Who Were Raised By Single Moms (PHOTOS)
All mothers deserve our thanks and recognition, but there's something about a single mom that makes some people want to stand up and cheer just a little bit louder. It's hard to be both mom and dad and bear the weight of responsibility for raising a child, but these parents of celebrities did just that and did it well. These celebrities are very successful, and perhaps that's in part to the role models they had as children.
These 13 celebrities were raised by single moms from a young age. We're sure it was hard work at times, but each of their children have gone on to do big things with their lives, such as win Grammys, Oscars and more, so they should be crazy proud of themselves as well as their kids!
Image via JONATHAN ALCORN/Reuters/Corbis
Demi Lovato
She struggled with addiction over the years, but Demi Lovato's mom is still a beacon of strength for the singer. Lovato credits her mom for inspiring her to launch her beauty company, Devonne by Demi.
Justin Bieber
Just teens when Bieber was born, his parents never married. Although he wasn't estranged from his father, he was primarily raised by his mother, Pattie Mallette, who really pushed the star to embrace his talent by entering him in talent competitions and posting videos of him singing on YouTube, which helped get him noticed.
Selena Gomez
Just because Selena Gomez fired her mother as her manager doesn't mean she isn't still close with her. Gomez is thankful for all that her mom has done for her, saying "It’s because of [my mom] that I can do things on my own. I like being professional. I like showing up on time. I like being good to people, and I know that I’m reflecting her at the end of the day.”
Kanye West
Although Kanye West's mother, Donda West, died from plastic surgery complications at the age of 58, she still inspires his music. In 2014, West wrote the song "Only One" to pay tribute to his daughter and mother. Donda shared her story about being a single mom in her book, Raising Kanye: Life Lessons from the Mother of a Hip-Hop Star.
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Leonardo DiCaprio
Often his date to awards ceremonies, Dicaprio credits his mom for his success. “She supported this little kid who said, ‘I want to be an actor,’ at 12 years old, which is ridiculous, and she drove me to all these auditions,” he said of his mom, Irmelin. “She’s the only reason I’m able to do what I do.”
Adele
Let's all thank Adele's mom for giving her the advice "to explore, and not to stick with one thing." She considers her mom her best friend. As she accepted her 2012 Grammy win for "Someone Like You," she gave a shout-out to her mom, saying, "I just want to say, Mum, your girl did good!"
Alicia Keys
Half of her visionary award from the Harlem School of Arts was dedicated to her mom because of all of her sacrifices. Alicia Keys also takes to Instagram to thank her mom, posting, "All I can say is thank you, and it will never, ever be enough!"
Christina Aguilera
She inherited her musical talents from her mother, Shelly Kearns, who was a pianist and violinist. It was she who first noticed Aguilera's talent and helped develop her into a star. When she was on the Mickey Mouse Club, Kearns was voted #2 best stage mom by an InTouch poll (she came in after Justin Timberlake's mom, Lynn Harless).
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Eva Mendes
Now a mom with her own daughter, Eva Mendes is amazed by her mom and how she managed it all by herself. "I cannot believe that by the time my mother was 24, she had three kids under the age of 4. She was in Cuba and totally alone."
Jay-Z
Raised in the housing projects in Brooklyn by his mother alongside three siblings helped shape Jay-Z into the artist he is today. Jay-Z's mom reportedly bought him a boom box after he woke up his siblings banging out beats on the kitchen table.
Angelina Jolie-Pitt
Estranged from her father, Jon Voight, until adulthood, Angelina Jolie-Pitt's mother, Marcheline Bertrand, abandoned her acting career to focus on raising her children. Jolie credits her mother with helping give her the humanitarian spirit, saying, "She always tried to understand the complexity of the world," Jolie explained. "She had a great heart, which was sensitive to the world's violence."
Halle Berry
At the age of 4, Halle Berry's father abandoned her family, leaving her mother, Judith Ann Hawkins, to support the family. When Berry was 18 and a roommate skipped out on the rent, she turned to her mother for help but she refused. The hard lesson angered Berry at first, but she soon realized it was for her own good, saying, "From that moment forward, I became independent."
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Keanu Reeves
At the age of 3, his parents divorced, leaving him in the care of his mother. During his 2005 induction into the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Keanu Reeves thanked his mother, Patricia Taylor, for supporting his dreams. "When I was 15 years old and a kid in Canada, I asked my mom if it was okay to be an actor," the star, 40, recalled. "She said: 'Whatever you want.' So thanks, Mom."