
NEED TO KNOW
- Teyana Taylor is explaining how having kids made her think about her priorities
- The mom of two said that her “grind is different” after having her second daughter Rue
- Taylor shares daughters Rue and Junie with ex Iman Shumpert
Teyana Taylor is admitting that motherhood helped her put her life into perspective.
The singer and actress, 34, was interviewed for InStyle’s new cover story and spoke about how welcoming her second daughter Rue Rose, immediately 4, made her reconsider her priorities. As she addressed her December 2020 retirement from track, Taylor explained that having two kids made her feel like she immediately had two examples to set.
“My grind is different, my hustle is different. Like, I’m not playing with y’all, my tolerance is different, what I’m willing to take and not willing to take — you get what I’m saying?” Taylor said. “Motherhood is what made me start to pour more into the other things that I love to do and also to help other people.”
She went on to explain that she decided to switch from track to acting and put all her efforts into building up that aspect of her career.
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Jason Kim/InStyle
Taylor shares her daughters Rue and Iman “Junie” Tayla, 9, ex Iman Shumpert.
Earlier this month, Taylor posed with her daughters in a rare outing while visiting the SiriusXM Studio in New York City.
Taylor wore an all-black outfit, complete with leather pants, a sheer leading and black glasses. Her daughters matched her casual look, with Junie wearing a graphic T-shirt of her mom’s upcoming album, Escape Room, denim shorts and black-and-white sneakers. Rue wore in a lilac shirt, white pants and pink-and-white sneakers.
Jason Kim/InStyle
Speaking with PEOPLE about her daughters at the Daily Front Row Fashion LA Awards in Los Angeles this past April, the multi-hyphenate reflected on how quickly time has been passing by and how big her daughters are getting. “The babies are good. Getting big,” she said at the time.
She also added that Rue was really starting to chat her up. “My youngest is talking too much,” Taylor joked. “I can’t believe she’s a talking two. She is a talking two, for sure!”
The singer filed for divorce from Shumpert in January 2023 but waited roughly nine months to announce the couple’s separation. On Instagram, Taylor said she and Shumpert would remain “best friends” and successfully co-parent their two daughters.
“Most importantly we are FAMILY & in the 10yrs together, 7yrs married we ain’t ever played with or about THAT,” she said.