Usher has two 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥ren with his ex-wife Tameka Foster and two kids with his wife Jenn Goicoechea

Photo: David Livingston/Getty ; Usher Instagram

Grammy-winning artist Usher has one of the most versatile careers — having acted in films, performed on Broadway and served as a coach on The Voice — but his most important role is dad.

The Super Bowl 2024 halftime performer is a proud father of four 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥ren. He shares sons Usher “Cinco” V and Naviyd Ely with his ex-wife, Tameka Foster, as well as daughter Sovereign Bo and son Sire Castrello with his wife, Jenn Goicoechea.

He told Essence in 2008 that he evaluated “what I feel like I missed from my own father — knowing that I was accepted. That I mattered. And hearing that he cared enough to put me before himself” and vowed to provide his 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥ren with the support and security he never had.

Usher’s kids have also served as the inspiration behind some of his music. He revealed that his 2020 song “I Cry” was inspired by the first time his eldest sons saw him shed tears.

“There was a moment between a son and a father [in the movie] and it got to me — I started crying. So my kids, they look over at me and they’re like, ‘Are you crying?!’ ” Usher recalled. “I’m like, ‘Yeah, I’m crying!’ They’re like, ‘You cry?!’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, I cry, and it’s okay to cry.’ ”

Instagram/usher

Both of Usher’s 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥ren with Goicoechea were 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 during the COVID-19 pandemic. He opened up about the experience during a September 2020 appearance on The Late Late Show with James Corden.

“I think everybody’s had the opportunity to take a beat back and realize what really matters in this time — it’s family,” he said. “It is coming closer to your loved ones and appreciating the ones that you have while you have them.”

Leading up to his major Super Bowl 2024 halftime performance, Usher shared that his kids often avoid attending events with him because of his star power. “My kids – sometimes, they don’t want me to come. They don’t want me to be at their basketball game or their recital, or they wanna be very, very low-key, ‘cause they don’t want that energy,” he told football commentator Shannon Sharpe on his podcast Club Shay Shay.

Usher continued, remarking on the challenges of his kids’ upbringing being so different from his own. “That access and that reality that they’re looking at – it gives them some expectation and unfortunately I can’t take it back,” he said. “I walked so that we could ride. And now that you’re riding, I want you to understand the importance of walking.”

Here’s everything to know about Usher’s 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥ren: Usher V, Naviyd, Sovereign and Sire.

Usher “Cinco” Raymond V, 16Paras Griffin/Getty

Usher’s first son, Usher Raymond V, was 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 on Nov. 27, 2007, to Usher and his then-wife Foster.

Ahead of his 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡, Usher expressed his hopes for his first𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 during an interview with PEOPLE.

“I just want my son to fully be coherent and to be healthy, first and foremost,” he said. “You can wish for a million and one things. But I hope that my son has the same energy I had as a 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥. Hopefully, he won’t be as bad as me. I hope that he’s just a healthy son.”

In 2008, Usher and Usher V appeared on the cover of Essence together. In his interview, the artist discussed how becoming a parent made him reflect on his own father’s role in his life, and how he intended to be a better role model for his son.

“You should never abandon that responsibility, which is to be there, reading with your 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥, being supportive of your 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥’s growth,” he told the outlet. “That is communicating. That is making the choice to put your 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 before your own vanity.”

Paras Griffin/Getty

When Usher V was just 5 years old, he nearly drowned after getting his arm stuck in a pool drain while trying to retrieve a toy.

“I am blessed and fortunate to say that my son Usher V is doing well and is recovering,” Usher said in a statement at the time. “I am overwhelmed by the outpouring of prayers, love and support for my family’s well-being.”

More than 10 years after the accident, Usher told PEOPLE it was “one of the hardest days of my life”. He compared it to seeing Foster lose her 11-year-old son, Kile, in a tragic boating accident in 2012.

“To know that I would have a similar situation that could have just taken my son’s life. It’s like I understand and have great empathy for what both her and Ryan, her ex-husband, had to deal with because I’ve experienced a portion of it in real-time,” he said.

In 2014, Usher V was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at 6 years old. While speaking at the JDRF’s Promise Ball the following year, which aims to raise awareness and money for diabetes research and a cure, Usher shared how proud he was of his son.

“A 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 that every day has to prick himself and has to be cautious of what he eats and also to carry this disorder around — that really is the type of bravery that we all aspire to have,” he said.

After doctors determined that Usher V was diabetic, the “OMG” singer said that co-parenting with Foster became “very complicated” because it requires a “great deal of consideration and commitment” to manage the disease.

“From the moment that Type 1 diabetes was a conversation, it was a re-acclimation to life. The life that we knew changed,” he told PEOPLE in 2023. “The breeding ground of disaster is lack of communication.”

In November 2022, Usher shared how his oldest boys feel about his global fame. He noted that Usher V prefers to go by his nickname to separate himself from his dad.

“I have one son, Cinco, who does not like to be called Usher, who tries to get away from it,” he told Tamron Hall.

Naviyd Ely, 15Gary Gershoff/WireImage

Usher and Foster welcomed their second son, Naviyd Ely, on Dec. 10, 2008.

In June 2009, Usher filed for divorce from Foster. Their divorce was finalized in November and Usher was granted full custody of their two boys.

When Naviyd was just 3 years old, he joined his dad and brother at the 2011 premiere of the documentary Justin Bieber: Never Say Never. Usher served as the “Holy” singer’s mentor when he first broke onto the music scene a few years prior.

After filming his 2016 movie Hands of Stone, Usher told PEOPLE that he took a break from his career to “focus on my kids and personal things.” He then described a perfect moment he spent in Italy with Usher V and Naviyd, who were 8 and 7 at the time.

“I went on an air balloon trip with about 15 people and we were about 3,000 feet in the air,” he said. “Both my boys were up there with me … The whole family was up there. It was cool to just have that little moment away.”

That same year, Usher V and Naviyd attended their dad’s Hollywood Walk of Fame Ceremony on Sept. 7, 2016. The family posed for photos together with Usher’s star on the red carpet.

Usher Instagram

In a November 2022 conversation with Tamron Hall, Usher shared that unlike his older brother Usher V, Naviyd “really loves entertainment.” He not only watches all of his dad’s shows, but he also gives him critiques.

“He’s like, ‘You missed this thing. you didn’t do this thing.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah that’s the point. It’s not supposed to be the same every night,’ ” Usher said.

Naviyd and Usher V supported their dad at the BET Awards in June 2024. While on stage accepting his lifetime achievement award, Usher talked at length about fatherhood. “It’s 100% all about my 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥ren and making certain you understand that your dreams can come true if you’re truly committed,” the R&B star said.

Sovereign Bo, 4Jennifer Goicoechea Instagram

Sovereign Bo was 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 about a month early on Sept. 24, 2020. She is Usher’s first 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 with wife (then girlfriend) Goicoechea.

“We are feeling blessed and full of love with the arrival of our beautiful 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦 girl, Sovereign Bo Raymond,” Usher wrote on Instagram with a photo of his new𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧’s hand. “‘Isn’t She Lovely’ by Stevie Wonder on repeat.”

Usher announced that he and Goicoechea were expecting their first 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 together a few weeks prior on Sept. 2, 2020.

“Babies always bring such joy to a family and [I’m] really excited for my young one — well, my bean’s arrival,” he said on Good Morning America.

Usher revealed the symbolism behind his first daughter’s name in a May 2021 interview with Extra.

“Sovereign, man, is such a beautiful word and name to me, you know, a supreme ruler is obviously the defined name,” he explained. “She’s definitely ruling the household, but Sovereign Bo — Bo is at the end of it, so [she’s] my little ‘reign-bo.’ ”

Usher Instagram

Sovereign is Usher’s only daughter, and she was 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 knowing what she wants, as he told Ellen DeGeneres.

“She came out early,” he said. “She was scheduled to be a Scorpio but decided she had a different plan. Libras, you know, they kinda have their minds made up what they wanna do.”

Talking about his Las Vegas residency at Caesars Palace, Usher told Good Morning America in July 2021 that he was “loving being a girl dad.”

“I’m even changing my colors; I’m wearing pink and cool stuff like that,” he added.

However, Sovereign wasn’t the only 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦 in the house for long. She was still an infant when Goicoechea and Usher announced they were expecting again.

In October 2022, Usher shared an adorable photo of Sovereign dressed as Mirabel Madrigal from Disney’s Encanto for Halloween.

Sire Castrello, 3Jennifer Goicoechea Instagram

Sire Castrello, was 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 to Goicoechea and Usher on Sept. 29, 2021.

The father of four announced his son’s 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡 the following month on Instagram, posting a black-and-white photo of the 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦’s face and the caption: “Hi my name is Sire Castrello Raymond … I am the newest addition to the Raymond crew. I was 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 Sept 29 2021 at 6:42pm weighting 7lbs 13oz. Hear me roar … A.K.A Ra Ra . Gang.”

After Usher said he did a “terrible job” picking the music for Sovereign’s 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡, he was determined to pick a better song for Sire’s entrance into the world; he chose “In Da Club” by 50 Cent.

“The second time, I came fully equipped,” he revealed on The Ellen Degeneres Show. “I had my Mophie. I had speakers. I had backup batteries. I had a whole playlist that I had worked on for about two weeks. It was crazy. It was great.”

Ahead of Sire’s first 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡day, Usher shared a series of photos of the two of them together. In the photos, Usher grins at his youngest son, and there’s a video of the 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦 giggling happily. “Blessings,” Usher captioned the post.

“Me and him have a really cool relationship. He’s different than any of my other kids,” he told PEOPLE. “I’ve managed to have a little code going with him when I talk to him and how we speak to each other. He makes me mush … My new little boy, he’s something special.”

In September 2024, Usher shared videos and photos from Sire’s Cars-themed third 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡day party on Instagram. Not only did they celebrate with cups, plates, napkins, and balloons that all matched the theme, but Sire also got to enjoy a two-tier cake with Lightning McQueen on top.