Ice-T has revealed that his seven-year-old daughter, who he shares with wife Coco Austin, still sleeps in the same bed as her parents.
On Tuesday’s episode ofThat Moment with Daymond John podcast, the 65-year-old opened up about his relationship with his child, Chanel, while making the revelation about her sleeping habits.
“I was there when Coco was pregnant, I went to the hospital and Chanel still sleeps in the bed with,” Ice-T, whose real name is Tracy Lauren Marrow, said. “So I’m so much more connected to her than my other kids. But it’s been a beautiful thing.”
He also spoke candidly about his two older children, Letesha, 47, and Tracy Jr, 31, whom he welcomed with previous partners. He explained how he’s more present in Chanel’s life than he was in Letesha’s since he was so young when he first became a parent.
“I think the difference with Chanel and my other kids is I’m very conscious of this baby,” he said. “I had my daughter when I was in high school, I was ripping and running. So it was presents over presence. I wasn’t there.”
The musician confessed that when he welcomed his son, he was extremely focused on his career.
“My son Ice happened right when I was becoming Ice-T, I’d never been famous before, this was a whole new thing, so I’m distracted by that,” he said. “Chanel, I’m comfortable, I’m in a cruise pattern.”
The hip hop artist also acknowledged how welcoming Chanel changed his perspective on everyday life and made him “want to live forever”.
“It made me create new goals. ‘Cause you got bread, you could start slowing down. But nah, not that new baby,” he said. “It’s the best gift I could ever get.”
His comments come two months after he talked about becoming a parent for the third time during an interview with E! News in March. Ice-T explained how he’s been encouraged to stay healthy because of Chanel.
“When Chanel was born, all of a sudden I got more healthy, I’m in shape. Because you can start to slow down—I can’t start to slow down,” he said. “I’ve got grown kids. Now I’ve got a new daughter and I’m so focused with her. It’s just amazing. It’s a great thing. And you’ve gotta have a reason for living, you’ve gotta have motivation. Chanel is my new motivation.”
Ice-T’s parenting comments come months after his wife was hit with online backlash over her parenting habits. In September 2022, fans criticised a video on Austin’s Instagram in which Chanel took a bath in a sink.
At the time, Austin took to Twitter to address the criticism, writing: “Wow just Wow! Here we go again! Giving my lil girl a bath in the sink went Viral? SMH! People,you gotta know by now that I’m an unconventional mother. I do what works and is easier on me. Some may want to take some pointers rather than rag on me!”
Ice-T isn’t the first celebrity to open up about his children’s sleeping habits. In July 2022, Clueless star Alicia Silverstone revealed that her 11–year-old son, Bear, still sleeps in her bed. That same month, Kristen Bell said that her and Dax Shepard’s children had “graduated” and started sleeping in their own rooms, after previously sharing a bedroom with their parents.
