After Nick Cannon Seemingly Expressed Desire For ‘Fantasy Love’ He Had With Mariah Carey, He’s Clarifying The State Of Their Relationship

screenshots nick cannon and mariah carey
(Image credit: The Masked Singer / Mariah Carey YouTube)

Obviously, Nick Cannon and Mariah Carey have deep history. After a whirlwind romance, the two got married in the Bahamas in 2008. They eventually went on to have a pair of twins together too, but their busy careers and schedules were reportedly the impetus for Cannon and Carey's split. Interestingly, though, the Masked Singer host seemed to express some desire of late to rekindle that “fantasy love” he once had with his ex-wife. However, now he’s seen fit to clarify the true state of their relationship.

Nick Cannon Recently Deemed Mariah Carey His Ultimate Love

Earlier this week, in an interview with The Shade Room’s The Hot Tee Talk Show, Nick Cannon unsurprisingly got peppered with questions about the “All I Want For Christmas Is You” crooner. (A song for which Mariah Carey was sued over recently for $20 million.) Cannon had no hesitation in gushing about the mother of his oldest kids, but his word choice certainly raised a lot of eyebrows. See the clip here:

The sentiment is certainly a fantasy, given the fact that the signer is purportedly still in a relationship with longtime boyfriend Bryan Tanaka. However, many believed that the TV personality was hinting that his ex need only say the magic word and he’s literally “there.” Yet, apparently, that’s not quite the case.

Nick Cannon Addresses Previous Mariah Carey Thoughts

Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, the Wild ‘N Out star explained that the supposed fantasy he was talking about needs more “context,” which he was all too willing to give. He backpedaled that the idea of reuniting romantically with Mariah Carey was more out of nostalgia than actual reality. Nick Cannon stated to the outlet:

I was talking about the fantasy of it all. I was like, 'Yo, if I could have that same vibe of where I was at that state in my life and that age, of course I would do that all over again. But I'm not. Clearly, there is a lot going on in my life now that's completely different from that.

Truer words have probably never been spoken. In the intervening years since divorcing Mariah Carey, the former talk show host has actually sired six additional kids in total, bringing his total to eight, and another child soon the way. He’s in fact found some kinship with fellow baby-maker Elon Musk on Twitter this past week. Nevertheless, the 41-year-old is evidently holding out no hope that Carey wants to deal with the ever-increasing Cannon brood any more than she already has to, saying:

Mariah don't want me. I just show up will all my thousand kids, like, 'Hey, I'm back.'

Truth be told, the infamous baby daddy has been candid that none of his five in total babies' mothers hang out together. He definitely has a favorite baby mama, and the choice might flabbergast fans just as it did Andy Cohen. In regard to the first one, though, Nick Cannon told ET that he and Mariah Carey are just “close friends, the best of friends, great parents together.” Still, Cannon maintains that their relationship was the “biggest fantasy of my life,” and even referenced that one time they “shut Disneyland down” just to renew their vows back in the day.

The star was actually thought to be trying to win Mariah Carey back around Valentine’s Day when he dropped a new single that sampled some of her music. In the wake of the speculation at that time, he revealed that he knew such an endeavor was “impossible.” He continued that Carey had been his “dream girl” who he “messed it up” with but that the song was mainly his way of owning up to his shortcomings in their marriage.

I guess “Always Be My Baby” hits a little closer to home for Nick Cannon than the rest of us… Alas. We'll be keeping an eye out for more on Nick Cannon’s complicated romantic entanglements, along with any news on the upcoming eighth season of his show The Masked Singer, which is slated for a fall release on the 2022 TV schedule.

Lauren Vanderveen
Movies and TV News Writer

Freelance writer. Favs: film history, reality TV, astronomy, French fries.