Tia Mowry opens up to ET about her 'journey of solitude' following her divorce from Cory Hardrict after 14 years of marriage.
Tia Mowry is learning to love her new normal since her split from ex-husband Cory Hardrict after nearly 20 years together. The actress chatted with ET's Deidre Behar at Sunday's 2024 BET Awards, where she gushed over life at home with her two children, 13-year-old son Cree and 6-year-old daughter Cairo, whom she shares with her ex.
While the 45-year-old walked the red carpet solo, Hardrict walked with their teen son, which Mowry revealed was the latter's birthday request.
"His birthday was June 28th and the one thing that he wanted for his birthday was to come to the BET Awards," the mom of two explained. "At first, he wasn't allowed to, but we were able to pull some strings. Anything to make my son happy! I feel like it's not new to him anymore, being on the red carpet, he's like used to it, you know?"
Mowry has made a name for herself on social media by sharing regular bits in which she enlists her children to participate -- usually to their onscreen reluctance.
"Whatever you see on camera is real, like my son actually thinks that he's my father," Mowry quipped about Cree's frequent appearances in her videos. "But I see it as like he's my protector, you know? And he just has, even though sometimes he doesn't want to do it, he has a lot of fun doing it."
For Cree, his dreams have taken a pivot. Though he's a fixture in his mom's TikTok videos -- he's not thinking of following in his parents' footsteps.
"I want to be a professional basketball player when I grow up," he told ET.
While Cairo is much more enthusiastic about joining her mother's online activities, both her kids are such good sports that they inspire her, Mowry told ET. "My children are my why, why I do what I do. I want to be an incredible example for them."
While she strives to be a cool man, Mowry is also focused on making herself happy as she's officially in her single era after she and Hardrict announced the end of their 14-year marriage in October 2022. In April 2023, their divorce was finalized.
"I am really, really enjoying this journey of solitude... I took a little break with dating. I'm dating me right now. Right now, I am becoming the partner that I want, so that takes time," the actress told ET. "I have been in solitude learning a lot about myself. I'm reading this new book called Brave New You by Corey Allen, and it has been so fantastic."
The Sister Sister star continued, "I just want to encourage women out there that you don't have to jump into a relationship and have this sort of rebound. Work on you, work on yourself and [the timing will align]. I'm enjoying myself, you know what I mean?"
Fans will be able to witness Mowry's journey in her upcoming WE tv docuseries, Tia Mowry: My Next Act.
According to a press release, the show -- which was announced in April -- will follow Mowry "as she navigates her newly single status, motherhood, building businesses, and juggling her super busy and ever-evolving career."
"It's all about me just attacking this journey alone, to be honest with you, and I feel like it'll be really relatable," Mowry told ET about her reality series. "I'm all about inspiring and encouraging women, women empowerment, and I'm encouraging people to be courageous as they go through transitions in life, whether it's a divorce, a change in a job, a loss, whatever.
"If I can be that source of inspiration then I feel like I am doing what I'm supposed to be doing," she added.
The 2024 BET Awards, hosted by Taraji P. Henson, airs live on the BET channel from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday, June 30, at 8 p.m. ET/PT. Check out the complete winners list here.
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