Brandy Celebrates 'Angel' Daughter Sy'Rai Smith on Her 21st Birthday: 'My Baby Forever'

Brandy is full of love and pride as she celebrates daughter Sy'Rai Smith on her 21st birthday

Brandy is raving about her daughter as she enjoys a milestone birthday.

In an Instagram photo set of collages shared Friday, the actress/singer, 44, shared several pictures of daughter Sy'Rai in celebration of her 21st birthday.

"Happy 21st Birthday to my angel @syraismith ♥️ I’m so thankful to God for you and so blessed that you ARE. I love and adore you soooooo much more than I can ever express," she wrote.

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Related: Brandy Reveals Her Darkest Moment of Depression and How Daughter Sy'rai Saved Her Life

"You’ve made me so proud of you and the woman you are becoming. Continue to be a light and the beautiful soul you are born to be," she continued. "My baby forever no matter how old you get."

Grandmother Sonja Norwood commented, "Love you. You deserve to be 21 and to live your best life! Happy Birthday!❤️"

Sy'Rai also commented on the sweet tribute, writing, "I love you mama with everything in me ❤️ thank you for bringing life to me and so much love, best mommy i could ask for 😘😘😘😘😘."

In 2002, Brandy welcomed daughter Sy'Rai, with her then-partner, producer Robert Smith. The pair would split a year later and Smith would go on to reveal that despite what they'd portrayed while filming a reality TV show during her pregnancy, he and Brandy had never married. "It changed people's perspective of me," she told PEOPLE IN 2020 of becoming a mom and the situation with Smith, "but I had to focus on what was important, which was Sy'Rai."

Years later Brandy would confront both tragedy and controversy, when she was involved in a 2006 car accident that claimed the life of a 38-year-old woman. (Brandy, who wasn't charged criminally, settled out of court with the woman's family and declines to speak of the accident out of respect.) Following this, along with the heartbreak of failed relationships, Brandy found herself deeply despondent.

"I remember laying in bed super depressed," she said. "I [told] myself, 'So, you're just going to go out like this? That's wack. You have a daughter. If you can't do it for yourself, do it for her because this is not the way to leave a mark in her life.'"

She credits Sy'Rai with pulling her out of the darkness she felt. "If Sy'Rai wasn’t here, I wouldn't be either," she said. "The place that I was in, it just felt like I wasn't going to make it through."

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