Black Paddy, the content creator and MC has a couple of different aliases, Fabio David and Fabu D, being two. But the social media star, whose funny viral videos have made him a household name, has another alias also. He’s daddy to his five year old son and three year old daughter. “Amazing, beautiful kids”, he explains. But he has a new found appreciation of what his mother experienced raising him.
“You kind of get to a stage of like ‘wow, was this the way I was when I was younger? Oh my God I feel so sorry for me ma”.
In the latest episode of Conversations with Parents, Black Paddy speaks to Jen Hogan about parenting energetic children, and how having a public profile can make it more difficult to manage anxiety-inducing, children’s antics when he’s out and about.
He discusses trying to have a different relationship with his children to the one he had with his own dad, who sadly died when Black Paddy was only fourteen years old. A complicated grief followed the death of his father and he explains this, and shares details of his background, with Jen.
Black Paddy also discusses his time of heavy alcohol and drug use, promiscuity (“I’d be riding one girl every night”, he says), and homelessness. And he shares how becoming a father forced him to turn his life around. He opens up on the reality of living in the same house, and co-parenting with his children’s mother, even though they’re not a couple anymore. “It’s been hard”, he admits.
Racism is something Black Paddy has experienced both online, and in person. He discusses the sort of things he has had to deal with, shares how he copes, and shares how he prepares his children for dealing with it in the future. “You are beautiful the way you are”, he tells them.
Plus, he explains why he has, so far, chosen not to feature his children on his social media videos, talks about the reality of being famous, and offers his take on some modern parenting phenomena.
You can listen to Jen’s conversation with Black Paddy on the player above. Or listen to Conversations with Parents wherever you get your podcasts.
And, if you’d like to get in touch with the show, please email parentspod@irishtimes.com
