Rapper Fat Joe recently talked about the dramatic way he became a single dad of his firstborn son Joey, who has autism and Down syndrome.
In a recent interview with Shannon Sharpe on his podcast "Club Shay Shay," the rapper said that the mother of his child "never visited him (Joey) again," after his birth.
Fat Joe was 19 when his son was born.
“When he’s born, the doctor tells us, ‘Hey I got bad news ... he has Down syndrome; he’s going to be a big challenge,’” Fat Joe told Sharpe.
"His mother was like 'Yo, I can't do this. I'm going to have to give him up for adoption,'" said Fat Joe.
That's when his own mother said in no uncertain terms that she did not want her grandchild placed for adoption, he said.
“So," Fat Joe continued, "we raised him. I never seen his mother again.”
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Joey, 33, has been under the care of Fat Joe and the rapper’s parents all his life.
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The rapper told Sharpe that he never shut his son’s mother out from the opportunity to see Joey, “It was always available for her to see her son,” Fat Joe said.
The rapper, whose given name is Joseph Cartagena, said that while learning about a diagnosis of Down syndrome can be scary, quitting on Joey was never an option.
"[A] father's got to be a father," said Fat Joe. "I don't know how to be a fake father. So I got to take care of my kids regardless and do everything I can for them. I don't know how to give up on my kids. I don't know how to not love on my kids. That's impossible."
Fat Joe is also the father of son Ryan, from a previous relationship, and daughter Azariah, who he shares with his wife, Lorena Cartagena.
At home, the rapper said that Joey is happy — really happy.
"This guy's happy," Fat Joe told Sharpe. "I swear to God, he's always happy. He's never sad. He's like, if you're stuck in a place, he's stuck in happiness."
Fat Joe said one of Joey's quirks is that he will only sleep if someone is looking at him, and he's been that way his entire life.
"He doesn't sleep without one person, without someone sitting there looking at him," Fat Joe said on the podcast.
While Fat Joe has two younger children, he explained that Joey is the "Don" of the family.
"He does what he wants. He gets what he wants. He's the Don," explained the rapper. "He sits at the end of the table, he knows 'Oh, those are my little brothers and sisters.'"
While there have been challenges along the way for Joey, Fat Joe said he believes that his son is his biggest blessing.
"He's our biggest blessing because we treat him the way we do because we never gave up on him," Fat Joe said.
This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:
