Nick Cannon's younger brother won season 2 of the ABC competition series.
Gabriel Cannon made Nick Cannon a proud brother on Claim to Fame. In an interview with ET's Denny Directo, the winner of the second season of the hit ABC competition series revealed how his famous brother reacted to him joining the show.
"At first, Nick is like, 'A reality show?' You see the eyebrow raise. He wasn't sure. Like, 'What is this?' He knows me, so he knows I got a big mouth. So he's kind of like, 'I don't know what you're gonna say on TV," Gabriel told ET. "But I think when he's seen the concept and he's seen what we're doing, he literally said, 'Man, yeah, that's brilliant.' He loved it once he saw the concept."
As for what advice Nick had for Gabriel, the latter Cannon noted, "He was just like, 'You been prepared for this. Go get them. And don't make me look crazy.'"
Gabriel succeeded in that request and was proud to tell Nick that he "represented [him] well" while on the show. Gabriel did just that thanks to the love and respect he has for his brother.
"It's amazing," Gabriel told ET of growing up with Nick. "I tell people it's some of the best training I could have got. I could have never paid for the experience. Nick is a jack of all trades. He's not just the actor. He's not just a musician. He's an everything... He put in the work."
"Nick has been famous since [he was] 17. It's a part of him now. I think Nick is uncomfortable if he's not working... It's the greatest example and then to like even to see that clip you just showed me like with somebody like that, who has been celebrated his whole life has worked hard his whole life," he added. "... I did something to make a guy like Nick Cannon proud, so it's like, thank you, Claim to Fame."
Gabriel made himself proud too, telling ET of his big win, "I'm surprised. I'm shocked. But I came to win. I fought hard and I'm victorious. Thank you, Jesus."
Fought hard he did, as Gabriel had many of his competitors believing he was related to a football player throughout much of the competition.
"I'm telling you man it's the shoulders that got them," he joked.
It also helped that Gabriel and Nick's don't look all that similar.
"I throughout my life knew that," the younger Cannon said. "That's gonna throw people off even if they think his name. Just when you look at me, you're gonna need more information. People always ask me, 'Do you play football?' so that was perfect."
When it comes to what he'll do with the $100,000 prize money, Gabriel said, "I think there's hidden gems all in the community and all in our backyard, so I want to use some [of the prize money]... just to shed light on the generation of tomorrow."
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