Fat Joe claims the mother of his firstborn son Joey completely ‘abandoned the kid’ after he was diagnosed with Down Syndrome and autism after he was born.
The Grammy-nominated rapper, 54, appearing on Shannon Sharpe’s weekly podcast Club Shay Shay Wednesday, held nothing back in detailing his parenting journey involving Joey, 33, with the NFL Hall-of-Famer, 56.
The New York City native recalled how doctors informed him and Joey’s mother of the diagnoses after he was born.
‘So, the doctor tells us, “I got bad news to tell you … he has Down syndrome and it’s gonna be a big challenge,”‘ said the entertainer, whose full name is Joseph Antonio Cartagena. ‘His mother said, “Yo, I can’t do this, I’m going to have to give him up for adoption.”‘
The What’s Luv? vocalist said that his mother was furious about his ex’s reactions – calling her a ‘crazy b**** – and the family ceased contact with Joey’s mother at that time.
Fat Joe, 54, claims the mother of his firstborn son Joey completely ‘abandoned the kid’ after he was diagnosed with Down Syndrome and autism after he was born
‘I never seen his mother again is what I’m trying to tell you – she never visited him again – she abandoned the kid,’ Fat Joe said, adding that he, his mother and his father were the people who ‘raised’ Joey.
Fat Joe explained that he never made efforts to prevent Joey’s mother from seeing him.
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‘It wasn’t like I kept the door closed where she couldn’t see her son,’ said the All the Way Up performer. ‘It was always available for her to see her son.’
The Get It Poppin’ artist said that a ‘father’s got to be a father’ and he never took the task of raising his children lightly.
‘I got to take care of my kids regardless and do everything I can for them,’ Fat Joe said. ‘I don’t know how to give up on my kids – I don’t know how to not love on my kids – that’s impossible.’
Fat Joe, who is also to father to son Ryan, 27, from a prior relationship, and daughter Azariah, 17, with wife Lorena Cartagena, said that he doesn’t ‘know how to be a fake father.’
Fat Joe said that Joey, who has been diagnosed with autism multiple times, remains in a consistently good mood despite the ‘challenges’ he faces in life.
‘This guy is happy,’ Fat Joe said. ‘I swear to God, he’s always happy. He’s never sad. He’s like, if you’re stuck in a place, he’s stuck in happiness.’
The New York City native recalled how doctors informed him and Joey’s mother of the diagnoses after he was born
The musical artist posted a pair of pictures last December 16 in celebration of Joey’s birthday
The entertainer, whose full name is Joseph Antonio Cartagena, told Sharpe, ‘His mother said, “Yo, I can’t do this, I’m going to have to give him up for adoption”‘
Fat Joe explained that he never made efforts to prevent Joey’s mother from seeing him
The Get It Poppin’ artist said that a ‘father’s got to be a father’ and he never took the task of raising his children lightly
He said that Joey ‘does what he wants’ and ‘gets what he wants’ as ‘the Don’ of the family.
‘He sits at the end of the table, he knows, “Oh, those are my little brothers and sisters,”‘ Fat Joe said. ‘He’s our biggest blessing because we treat him the way we do because we never gave up on him.’
The musical artist posted a pair of pictures last December 16 in celebration of Joey’s birthday.
‘God bless my First born lil Joey,’ he said. ‘I love you with all my heart … Happy Birthday Joey, you are the Biggest blessing in the world. more life, more greatness. i will always be by your side.’