Can we give Ricky Martin an award for outstanding parenting? Despite his superstar status, Martin is working hard to keep his children grounded. He talked about raising two young boys, 10-year-old twins Valentino and Matteo, in a recent interview with ABC News.
“I hear other parents saying, ‘My kids are 10 going on 15.' And I’m like, 'My kids are 10 going on 10,'” Martin said on “Popcorn with Peter Travers.” “And I’m so proud of that. I make sure they stay kids. Even though they travel with me everywhere and we go around the world and they’re so exposed to so many things, they are still kids.”
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Travers asked how the children deal with Martin’s fame as someone recognized around the world.
“It’s funny because for maybe two years, they would only see my concerts from backstage,” Martin, 46, told Travers. “I would sit them next to the sound engineer. And they would only have one perspective which was the side stage. And then when I thought they were big enough, I brought them in front.”
According to Martin, that’s when a lightbulb went off.
“They were like, 'You are Ricky Martin!'” he said. “And I’m like,'No, I’m your father. I’m Daddy.'”
He added, “I guess they were stimulated by the lights and sound and could really feel the energy of the crowd.”
Martin’s children have caught on and have also begun to recognize his talents. He’s even allowed them to see portions of his latest performance in FX’s "The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story" series, which could possibly bring about his first-ever Emmy nomination. Martin plays Antonio D’Amico, Versace’s partner, opposite Édgar Ramírez (Gianni Versace) and Penélope Cruz (Donatella Versace).
“It’s an incredibly important story to tell. If we only see the injustice around this crime it obviously inspired me to be a part of this cast,” Martin said. “For me as an actor, it was heavy, it was intense. It was extremely emotional. I lived as Antonio for nine months of shooting.”
Emmy nominations will be announced July 12.
Be sure to watch the full interview with Peter Travers and Ricky Martin in the video above.