Usher Says His Kids Don't Want Him to Be with Them at Events Because He's Famous

"My kids – sometimes, they don’t want me to come. They don’t want me to be at their basketball game or their recital, or they wanna be very, very low-key," Usher said

Usher may be headlining the Super Bowl halftime show, but sometimes he can’t even score an invite to his own kids’ events.

The singer, 45, is a father of four – he shares two sons, Usher “Cinco” V, 16, and Naviyd Ely, 15, with his ex-wife, Tameka Foster, as well as daughter Sovereign Bo, 3, and son Sire Castrello, 2, with his longtime girlfriend Jenn Goicoechea – but as his teen sons get older, new challenges are arising.

“My kids – sometimes, they don’t want me to come. They don’t want me to be at their basketball game or their recital, or they wanna be very, very low-key, ‘cause they don’t want that energy,” he told podcast host Shannon Sharpe on Wednesday's episode of Club Shay Shay.

“They don’t want, ‘Oh Dad walked into the room and took…’ ” he said as Sharpe added, "All their focus off me."

Usher continued, “And it’s hard, because I try my hardest to have that empathy, but I wanna be there.”

He admitted that there have been “countless times” where he’s sat “at the back of the room, quiet" trying to “keep myself as small as possible and be as quiet as I possibly can” so that he can support his kids without distracting from their performance.

Related: Usher's 4 Kids: All About Usher V, Naviyd, Sovereign and Sire

The “OMG” crooner also opened up about how different his kids’ upbringing is compared to his own — and how that affects them.

“That access and that reality that they’re looking at – it gives them some expectation and unfortunately I can’t take it back,” he said. “I walked so that we could ride. And now that you’re riding, I want you to understand the importance of walking.”

After Sharpe questioned how his kids can be “normal” when they come home to a “six-car garage” and a “nanny, maid and chef,” Usher continued, “That is a harsh reality, which is more the reason why you gotta be harder on them. But mindful that their normal is different than our normal ... the expectation is actually higher. That’s the one thing that I have empathy for my children.”

Related: Usher Opens Up About Co-Parenting While Raising Child with Type 1 Diabetes: 'It Is Very Complicated' (Exclusive)

In particular, the Grammy-winner said he’s sensitive to his oldest son, who shares his name.

“You know, I named my son Usher so every time he’s out, obviously, there’s that pressure," he said.

Of his overall approach to parenting, Usher shared, “It’s equally important to talk to your kids. If you gonna push ‘em that way, you gotta love on ‘em just as much.”

Usher has previously shared that his kids “don’t care” about his fame.

"My boys, they enjoy it. I have one son, Cinco, who does not like to be called Usher, who tries to get away from it," he told Tamron Hall in 2020. "Then another son, Naviyd, who really loves entertainment.”

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Naviyd, who was 13 at the time, had been watching Usher’s Las Vegas residency shows and offering his father some constructive feedback, he revealed.

"Not only does he watch my show, but he gives me critiques," Usher said. "He's like, 'You missed this thing, you didn't do this thing.' And I'm like, 'Yeah that's the point. It's not supposed to be the same every night.’ ”

He added that he doesn't mind the comments. "If it's inspiration for him, then great. And if it's making him feel compelled to be creative, then great."

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