Why does Mo’Nique call her husband ‘daddy’? Comedian issues response to eldest son Shalon's allegations  

Stand-up comedian and actress Mo’Nique appeared on Shannon Sharpe’s Club Shay Shay podcast last week, where she blamed the likes of Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry, and Lee Daniels for blackballing her from Hollywood.

In the same podcast, she also expressed her wish to reconcile with her eldest and estranged son, Shalon Watkins, whom she shares with her first husband and Dallas Morning News sportswriter Calvin Watkins, as per the Atlanta Black Star.

“We’re still very much separated, and it’s one of those things where you have to pray to the universe and say let time do the healing, and that’s it. That’s it. Let time do the healing,” Mo’Nique stated about her son.

In the wake of this, Shalon Watkins recently took to TikTok to respond to his mother’s claims, saying, “neither one of us cares to put forth effort to reconcile with the other,” and Mo’Nique should stop running with a “false narrative.”

He also accused Mo’Nique of being an unsuccessful mother, adding, “If I had to guess, though, her interest in being a mother probably started around the time she married her ‘Daddy’ and had children.”

Previously, in October 2023, the comedian cleared the air on why she called her now-husband Sidney Hicks “daddy.” On Je’Niece McCullough’s podcast, she said that the fond nickname was suitable as it was Hicks who has been “raising” her all these years.

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Exploring the latest feud between Mo’Nique and her estranged son Shalon

Last week, during her appearance on the Club Shay Shay podcast, Mo’Nique mentioned all the sacrifices she made in her personal life to make her career and earn her living.

As part of this conversation, the Precious star wanted to reconcile with her eldest and estranged son Shalon, and acknowledged that she was not the ideal mother to him and was often absent during his formative years. She further added how she took this difficult step to “provide him with options she did not have growing up.”

The 56-year-old said that she was hoping time would heal their relationship and prayed to the universe to end their prolonged separation.

“It may heal it in time, and it may not, and that’s something we as parents have to say…I’ve done what I could do. I’ve taken accountability for it. Now it’s up to you,” she said about the rift.

However, her son Shalon publicly revealed that his mother hasn’t ever taken accountability and needs to learn it. Also a stand-up comic, he clarified the matter over TikTok and said for the first time he “felt the need” to “provide some context” to his mother’s fans.

“I would like to free her of having to continue to tell that lie. Faith without work is dead… We are separated, as she put it because she doesn’t care to be my mother any more than I care to be her son. Neither one of us has had the desire to reach out to the other in a really long time,” he stated.

He further continued by saying that only speaking her own truth didn’t make Mo’Nique “noble” as she often failed to show humility, consideration, and compassion towards him, and only spoke of accountability when it was convenient for her.

Shalon alleged that the Oscar winner even told him in the past how she had no interest in being a mother, and later concentrated on motherhood after she married her third husband Sidney Hicks, and had his two children.

Additionally, he claimed that Mo’Nique called Hicks her “daddy,” and made him her number one priority. As per Shalon, instead of fixing their mother-son bond, Mo’Nique tended to retreat to Hicks, whom he claimed did not acknowledge him.

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Here’s what Mo’Nique and Sidney Hicks said in their defense

In the wake of these revelations, The Parkers actress and her manager husband took to Instagram Live to clear the air in the face of online backlash for being an absentee mother.

“There are some people that are saying ‘Oh you should be ashamed of your mothering skills, you should be ashamed of yourself. This is what I say, ‘Let’s let it play out.’ Because the same ones that were saying Oh, I was crazy, I was deranged, we watched it play out. So just like with my son, we’re going to watch this play out,” Mo’Nique said.

She added that Shalon often considered Sidney as “Uncle Sid” and could never see him as a father figure, which was okay, considering he had his own father and that “daddy” was just what she called her husband affectionately and she owed nobody any explanation on the same.

Hicks also weighed in around this time stating how they reportedly have always been there for Shalon, be it for their grandchild or giving “half-payment” for the car he bought, even though he was 31-32 years old adult at that point.

Sidney addressed Shalon and said that he may have grudges “but somehow your mother and father and I all have a loving relationship and communicate back and forth because of the love we have for you,” adding that Shalon was mean to both his parents on more than one occasion.

Mo’Nique’s husband also said that it was important in the Black community to break the taboos and have these difficult conversations without being embarrassed. He mentioned how both kids and parents should conduct themselves with dignity after a point and “determine their own decision, their own path.”

Notably, in October 2023, Mo'Nique explained during her interview with late comedian Bernie Mac’s daughter Je’Niece McCullough that the “daddy” nickname she had for her husband was because of the “multifaceted roles” he played in her life, that of a husband, best friend, brother, and more. She added then that Sidney Hicks contributed greatly to her personal growth and development and has been “raising” her over the years.

Before that, in November 2020, Mo’Nique appeared on Tamar Braxton’s Under Construction podcast and said she and Hicks shared an open marriage (since 2006), and she called him “daddy” because he gave her everything her father didn’t. She added that while it may sound embarrassing to others, for her, Sidney treated her like a lady, and she followed his lead.