Sheryl Crow's 2 Sons: Everything She's Said About Being a Mother

Sheryl Crow's kids, Wyatt and Levi, have inspired her work

Sheryl Crow's "priority" is being a mother to her two sons: Wyatt and Levi.

"I have a three-night rule, where I’m not going to leave longer than three nights unless I take them," she told PEOPLE in 2019.

Sheryl opted to adopt the two boys as a single mom after three of her previous relationships didn't pan out. "It's better to have three broken engagements than three divorces," she told Good Housekeeping in 2014.

Luckily, she had lots of support from her mom, Bernice Crow.

"You have a family around you who will stand at the altar with you at baptism and say, 'We are his community or her community,' " Sheryl recalled her mom saying in an October 2021 interview with Hoda Kotb. "The story I was telling myself limited what I thought I could have until somebody stepped in and said ... Families look like all different things."

The "Soak Up the Sun" singer packed her bags and left her business-focused life in Los Angeles behind for a farm in Nashville, where she began prepping to become a mother. "The idea was, if the opportunity came, I would be ready," she told Redbook in 2010.

"Things always work out perfectly," she added. "Generally, when you let go of your vision of how something is supposed to be, the universe hands you exactly what you need."

That came true when she adopted her son Wyatt as a newborn in 2007, followed by his little brother, Levi, in 2010.

In November 2023, Levi and Wyatt were by Sheryl's side on the night she was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

"There is nothing that can compare to the joy and love you've given my life and nothing I do means anything without you guys," Sheryl said during her acceptance speech.

Now that her boys are both teenagers, Sheryl said that they call her "cringey" and wish she would stay away from TikTok.

"My kids, literally, they should have subtitles under them that are like, whenever they talk, you see, 'Mom, you're an idiot. Mom, you do not know anything. Just shut up,' " she said during a March 2024 appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers.

Here's everything to know Sheryl Crow's sons: Wyatt and Levi.

Wyatt Steven Crow, 17

Sheryl adopted her older son Wyatt in April 2007.

"I started the process of arranging to adopt after I completed my breast cancer radiation," she told Woman's Day in 2008. "I was ready to do this, to become a mom. I'd always aspired to do this, and decided I'd put it off no more, even if it meant going it alone."

"I started making the arrangements, and a year later — in April — Wyatt was born," she added. "I knew he was coming." As a young child, he split his time between Sheryl's New York City loft and their 50-acre ranch in Nashville.

"He changed my life completely," she told Elle at the time. "I've really put roots down with him. His happiness is my priority." Still, she had to learn how to set boundaries with her firstborn and find a balance between discipline and affection.

"My mom said it's going to hurt you a lot more than it's going to hurt them," Sheryl said in 2011. "So when I would get upset about putting him in a time out or being stern with him ... she would say, 'Those things are not going to be memorable for him. What's memorable for him is gonna be the feeling of safety.' "

In 2008, Sheryl released a new album called Detours, which she says was heavily inspired by Wyatt. Because she built a studio at her ranch, she was able to have him alongside her through the entire recording process, and even dedicated a song, "Lullaby for Wyatt," to her little one.

"It's such a gift having this little spirit looking to you for protection," she told Woman's Day. "Having him is the greatest reward I have ever experienced."

Though Sheryl shared many photos of Wyatt and brought him along to events — like the World Premiere of Disney Pixar's Cars 2, the EB Medical Research Foundation picnic and the MLB All-Star Charity Concert as a little kid — she became much more focused on both of her children's privacy as they got older. Now, she only posts censored photos of them on social media from time to time.

Still, the artist has shared some key updates on Wyatt's life. In 2009, she told PEOPLE that her son was "really into kids' music" and loved the artist Raffi — though he wasn't such a fan of her singing at the time.

"Right now, he's like, 'Mommy, no! All done! All done!' " she explained, adding that Wyatt was also learning to swim and had "the most wicked sense of humor."

These days, Wyatt is getting ready to get his driver's license and is still passionate about music, but he has some new interests, too.

"He's got a great ear and can play [bass] really well — he's learning James Jamerson just like I did," she told PEOPLE in February 2023. "He wants to be a marine biologist ... So I'm happy for him to go save the reefs. That's what he wants to do."

Sheryl is supportive of her kids, and they encourage her right back. She shared a touching moment with Wyatt after being nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

"My 15-year-old called me today and said, 'Mom, I'm so proud of you. I heard you're nominated,' " she shared with E! News.

Levi James Crow, 14

In 2010, Sheryl added her younger son Levi to the family in a closed adoption after he was born in Mississippi on April 30. She planned to do it when Wyatt was 2, but "a lot of the adoptions fell through," she told Redbook in July 2010.

The singer believes that was how it was meant to be, though. "For Wyatt, 2 would have been too early. It would have been difficult for his self-esteem. But 3 is perfect because he's very well established now in who he is," she told the outlet.

Sheryl was thrilled that her firstborn was so excited to help out with his little brother's baths and burping. "He helps me hold the bottle. He's very involved," she said of Wyatt at the time.

Although she usually obscures his face, Levi has made many appearances on Sheryl's Instagram page. In March 2019, they enjoyed a family ski trip to Copper Mountain, Colorado, and in April 2021, Sheryl and the boys met some basketball greats: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson.

"Arguably the two best of their time at their respective positions," she posted alongside the family photo on Instagram. "Meeting them both was an honor for me and my boys, and left a lasting impression on all of us."

Sheryl broke with tradition in April 2022 and gave an extremely rare glimpse of Levi and Wyatt in her music video for "Forever," which features sweet clips of fun family moments.

"What a blessing to get to experience the world through my children's eyes," she wrote on Instagram about the experience. "Every moment reminds me that life goes fast and being in the moment is so important, so I wrote a song about it called 'Forever.' "

Like his mom and brother, Levi is "musical," but Sheryl doesn't know whether he wants to follow in her footsteps as an artist, she told PEOPLE. "I'm one of those obnoxious parents who's like, 'You have to take piano. Do not argue with me about it,' " she said.

"They're into pop music and they're into rap music, and they're also into country music," she also told E! News about Levi and Wyatt's current interests. "They're both really into Zach Bryan right now, so I'm learning. I'm getting educated on what's current and what's hitting right now."

No matter what her boys end up doing, Sheryl is just happy to be along for the ride, as she told PEOPLE in 2019: "Watching my kids grow into the people that they’re turning into is the greatest joy I have ever experienced."

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