Hot 16: A Mother's Day Salute To 16 Hot Mamas



Sunday, May 13th is Mother's Day, and SoulBounce would like to take this time to pay tribute to a few contemporary soul/R&B singers who belong to an exclusive club: the mommies. These working women record the songs, rock the stages and raise their families right before our eyes or behind the scenes. Some are married, some are rolling solo, some have a few kids to their credit, and one in particular is celebrating her very first Mother's Day this year. This list highlights 16 women with children on the soul/R&B scene, but it only scratches the surface and serves as a salute to all of the female artists out there who are making motherhood happen. 
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Erykah Badu
When she isn't in the studio recording or out on the road, Erykah Badu is about as involved as you can get. From homebirths to homeschooling, Seven, Puma and Mars get a whole lot of face time with their mother. And with recent news that she's working towards a midwifery certification, looks like this Badoula is serious about sharing her maternal gifts with the world. -- Remi

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Beyoncé
At the top of this year, Destiny's Child leading lady, Beyoncé, gave birth to her very own little independent woman. Despite various high profile magazine offers, this new mother tastefully introduced the world to Blue Ivy Carter via a very special Tumblr page filled with personal photographs and a hand-written thank you note. In spite of the rumors based around a now-you-see-it-now-you-don't baby bump and assumed surrogate possibilities, Mrs. Knowles-Carter has managed to win us over time after time by sweeping through New York City with her beautiful baby girl. She now balances caring for Blue and working with her trainer Marco Borges, preparing to get back to business for her upcoming extravagant Atlantic City performances. -- Rob

Mary J. Blige
The "Crispy Chicken" debacle notwithstanding, we've seen hip-hop soul diva Mary J. Blige grow and change in amazing ways over the years. A big part of that change has to do with her marriage to music producer Kendu Isaacs in 2003 and becoming a stepmother to his children (which include rapper/sometimes pugilist Briana Latrise). When asked about her relationship with the children in 2007, Blige said, "We don't get a lot of time with them, but the time we do have, we try to make sure we are walking examples for what their life is going to be." Mary has definitely kept up her end of that bargain, racking up several awards statuettes and platinum plaques (and even movie roles) since. Now wrap all that up in a tasty flour tortilla. -- D-Money

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Brandy
It's hard to believe that it's been nearly 10 years since Brandy gave birth to her daughter Sy'rai (and the unfortunate controversy that surrounded that special moment). Since then, B-Rocka has made several attempts to raise her public profile while successfully keeping her baby girl out of the same harsh spotlight that she was put under during her formative years. While it remains to be seen if Brandy's upcoming Two Eleven will birth a proper return to the charts for the one-time teen star, it's obvious that motherhood has helped Brandy mature into a woman who's much more sure of herself and ready to "Put It Down." -- D-Money

Toni Braxton
Between her recording career, starring role on Braxton Family Values, dealing with her sisters, battling both heart disease and lupus and raising a child with autism, Toni Braxton has a lot on her plate. But the divorced diva and mother
to Denim and Diezel is rarely one to complain or throw a public pity party for herself. She always keeps it strong, classy and cute even when handling younger sister, Tamar, who routinely gets out of pocket and acts like her third child who needs a whooping. Although Braxton and ex-husband Keri Lewis are no longer married, they still work together on the parenting and music tip and are looking for Toni's next big hit. So are we. -- Butta

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Kandi Burruss
Singer, songwriter, producer, reality television star, web show host, sex toy entrepreneur -- Kandi Burruss is many things. And all of those things just so happen to make Kandi money. Her multiple streams of income aside, her most important role is that of mommy to daughter Riley who we see on occasion on the Real Housewives of Atlanta. Kandi is all about getting her paper up, and she'll be getting her own RHOA spinoff, a reality singing competition sereis entitled The Kandi Factory, on Bravo soon. She's proven herself to be a very savvy businesswoman, which is good for her daughter to see in the midst of all the reality show madness that they live through. -- Butta

Mariah Carey
After a seemingly never-ending gestation, Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon welcomed twins Moroccan and Monroe into the world on their wedding anniversary last year. Because of difficulties conceiving, and a difficult pregnancy, when #dembabies were born, MC largely dropped out of sight until they were revealed to the world via a Barbara Walters special and their very own website. Now back on her recording grind, it remains to be seen how the woman whose '90's release cycle would put Rihanna to shame will balance creative and commercial demands with being a mother. So far, she seems to be taking it in stride, telling Shape magazine, "My schedule has always been the opposite of most people's. I sleep during the day and wake up at 10 at night, which is why I've been able to adapt to the babies' schedule so well." -- Remi

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Jennifer Hudson
This Mother's Day will be a bittersweet one for Jennifer Hudson, with yesterday's conviction of her former brother-in-law for the murders of her mother, brother and nephew fresh on her mind. Hopefully this judgment will give JHud the closure that she needs, although it can't bring her family back. Hudson has started a family of her own, however, with finacee David Otunga and their son David Jr.. She's won numerous awards, but little David is her biggest prize of them all. Her baby boy isn't the only thing that has given her a new lease on life, what with her slimmed down physique courtesy of Weight Watchers -- and she'll never let you forget it. She still has yet to release the blockbuster hit album that she's vocally capable of, but hopefully she'll be giving birth to that next. -- Butta

Alicia Keys
Before you begin to throw shade, side-eyes, stink-eyes and salty insults, we should still acknowledge that Alicia Keys is a part of the Mommy Brigade. True, she went about it in a way that I would never do, but her two-year-old son Egypt didn't ask for that. All he knows is that Mrs. Keys-Beatz is "mommy" and if you've seen pictures of them together, you can just see how adorable they are together. Usually when singer/songwriters like Keys hit mommyhood their material tends to go in much more retrospective realms. While Keys has never been evasive in her songs, I can't hide the fact that I am curious to hear what aural poetics she'll loom out about her new roles in life. -- AudioDiva

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Mary Mary
Sisters Erica and Tina Campbell of gospel duo Mary Mary definitely believe in being fruitful and multiplying. Themselves two of eight siblings, they currently have seven children between them -- and counting with number eight on the way. We've gotten a glimpse into the lives and loves of the two Marys on their eponymous WE tv reality show, and it's compelling to see how being mothers is such a huge part of their life and dictates many of their career decisions. Who knew that their respective pregnancies would be so dramatic as it relates to their music? Erica and Tina may be international gospel stars, but for them family comes first. -- Butta

Monica
Go to Monica Brown's Twitter page and you'll see that the first thing she wants you to know is that she's Rocko and Romelo's mommy. She proudly touts their every accomplishment and gushes over their plentiful displays of affection. It's clear her and her boys have an impermeable bond. Motherhood definitely agrees with the natural talent, and given the number of false pregnancy rumors spread since she began dating now husband Shannon Brown, she's not the only one who thinks so. A mother first, and singer second, Monica may have been born to sing, but she lives for her babies. -- Lady J

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Teedra Moses
The Young Lioness, more commonly known as Teedra Moses, has a couple of cubs of her own. The hardest hustling songstress we know is mother to two sons by rapper Ras Kass. As a single mom, Teedra stays on her grind to provide for her children while providing her fans with a steady stream of free music and mixtapes that affords her the ability to tour extensively. Although she's not one to put her kids or business in the street, it's just another reason why we have the utmost respect for one of the coolest chicks in the game. Hopefully the game -- or more specifically Rick Ross and his MMG label -- will do right by Teedra and she'll finally release her official sophomore album, The Lioness, this year. -- Butta

Sade
We all know that Sade is the Queen of Cool -- as well as the Queen of the Recluses. I mean, did we forget that we had to wait a gabillion years for her to reunite with the guys of Sade for Soldier of Love? Since that ponytail holds so many secrets and those smoky eyes warrant time in a brooding film noir, it's really no surprise that we know very little about the bundle of soul that Sade had. I bet you probably didn't even know she was with child at some point and I bet you didn't know that lla Adu, Sade's now 15-year-old daughter, was in the music video for single, "Babyfather"? Well, if you already did, then cookies and milk for you, but if you didn't, don't feel alone as Ila who at one point never saw her mother sing nor even knew that her own mother was famous. In this day and age where celebrity kids can never seem to get any peace from the cameras, it's refreshing to know that Sade maintains keeping her public life separate from her duties as the coolest mum ever. -- AudioDiva

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Jill Scott
If you want to know how much Jill Scott loves her son, Jett, her child with former fiancé and renowned drummer Lil' John Roberts, you don't have to look any further than the opening lyrics for her current single "Blessed": "I mean I gotta see him, I need to breathe him/That's my baby/don't call me crazy/I love the studio but I love him more..." Jill's warmth and loving demeanor have always been present in her music, but when she's talking about her baby boy, a whole new light can be heard in her voice and seen in her eyes. As Jill prepares to hit the road once again during her Summer Block Party Tour and bring us the drama this fall in the upcoming Steel Magnolias remake, rest assured that the light of her life will be coming along for the ride. -- D-Money

Solange
Way before Beyoncé gave birth to the lamb Blue Ivy, the bearer of the first Knowles grandchild was her younger sister Solange. We've watched little Julez, her son with ex-husband Daniel Smith, be a frequent accessory on his auntie's arm, but he is totally his mother's baby. As he's grown up, so has Solange who we've seen step out from Bey's shadow to carve her own niche in entertainment. She's released two albums with another long in the works, experimented with her sound, become a celebrity DJ, been tapped as a spokeswoman for Carol's Daughter, gone natural and pretty much gives no damns what you think. Solange isn't reckless, but she does keep it real, and how cool of a mom would that be to have? -- Butta

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