EmRata Tells Julia Fox She "Can't Imagine" Having a Traditional Relationship "Ever" Again

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EmRata and Julia Fox On Being Single MomsGetty Images


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Emily Ratajkowski and Julia Fox just gave us the crossover episode we never knew we needed.

The duo got up close and personal in the latest episode of EmRata's podcast, High Low, in which they openly discussed the complications, struggles, and joys of single motherhood. Ratajkowski shares her one-year-old son, Sylvester Apollo Bear, with ex-husband Sebastian Bear-McClard. Fox also has a one-year-old son named Valentino, whom she shares with ex Peter Artemiev.

"I need advice honestly. How are we gonna raise these boys to not be entitled city brats?" Ratajkowski asked Fox at the start of the episode. "Don’t you feel like New York City kids—even if they’re not raised rich—there is, especially dudes, have even more entitlement than your average guy? So how the hell do we avoid that?"

In response, Fox pitched a unique, potential solution. Debating the benefits and disadvantages of the city's public and private school system, the Uncut Gems star offered a middle ground.

"It’s hard but I just think it would be so cool to create a little pod of kids and then just hire educators to come in. It could literally be a mechanic. We just hire a mechanic. So I want my son to know how to change a tire, how to do his taxes, how the IRS works," Fox said. "I want him to know all these things and I just really want more and I feel like there’s a lot of room for development in the educational sphere. I would love for Valentino to learn farming and how to plant and grow things. … He needs to learn actual useful life skills."

Fox, who is in the process of writing her own book, credited her close-knit group of friends for helping her raise Valentino.

"My friends are so supportive and help me so much with Valentino," she said. "That’s my family, 1,000% without a doubt. That’s my family."

"That’s so special," EmRata replied. "There’s a village raising Valentino."

"Yeah, he has a lot of aunties and a lot of love and he loves it," Fox agreed.

Later in the episode, the duo continued to reflect on the untraditional family dynamics that more and more people are beginning to embrace.

"This mother, father, children structure—I feel like people are really starting to not like it," Fox said. "I feel like a lot of things are kind of shifting and I would not be surprised if maybe a trend started occurring where girls just have a baby with their gay bestie or just a guy that is a friend who also just wants kids and then they kind of just raise him in a group setting type of situation."

"I know some adult people who are basically from that situation. Like their dad was gay and their mom was turning 40 and was like, 'I wanna have a kid.' And they're amazing. They have a really balanced outlook on life," EmRata said.

The My Body author also reflected on raising her son with her best friend, as opposed to a man. "My best friend is living with me right now and we fully co-parent Sly and I wouldn't have it any other way, I love it so much," she said. "Spending time with another woman and just how much I don't have to ever tell her—our instincts are so aligned. When you're living with a man and you're taking care of a child, you have to tell them. It's so exhausting."

"They never get it right," Fox sympathized.

When it comes to seeking out another romantic relationship with a man, Ratajkowski said, "The main thing I would want from a relationship is emotional support, and men are having such a hard time giving that to women, I can’t really imagine wanting that with someone else and having this traditional family structure. What I want is an emotional partner who can help me feel good about myself day to day."

She added, "I don’t know, I’m obviously in a particular place in my life, but I can’t imagine a man doing that. So I’m like why would I ever have a relationship again?"


While speaking for Harper's BAZAAR's November 2022 cover story, Ratajkowski opened up about how her life has changed since she welcomed a baby boy.

"I've never had such clear priorities before in my life," she said at the time. "Number one is Sly, and that's that. [Motherhood] made me re-evaluate what's important to me, like, what do I want to teach my son?"

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