How many kids does Madonna have? Queen of Pop's son Rocco Ritchie mocks modern nepo babies

Madonna has six children. Her first was Lourdes Leon, whom she had with her then-boyfriend Carlos Leon in 1996. Her second was Rocco Ritchie, the son of the singer and Guy Ritchie. Madonna's third child was David Banda, whom she and Ritchie adopted at the age of 1 from Malawi. The singer adopted her fourth child, Chifundo "Mercy" James, in Malawi when James was three years old.

The singer's fifth and sixth children were also adopted. Twins Stella and Estere were born in Malawi, and the singer adopted them when they were five years old in 2017.

Her second child, Rocco Ritchie, recently appeared in an interview with Fantastic Man. During the interview, Ritchie countered the application of the nepo-baby label to him, stating that he had deliberately chosen to work in a different industry than his mother and father (an artist). He then went on to state that modern nepo-babies are boring:

"I always think it’s funny that back in the day, some of the most beautiful cathedrals that were ever built would be built by generation after generation of the same family. And now, if you are born from a family – and I’m not saying this is wrong – you start looking at nepo babies and they are not the most interesting bunch, are they?”

The term nepo baby is a short term for nepotism baby refers to the child of a privileged, rich person, with the child gaining opportunities due to the position of their parents/family in society, their wealth, and connections. This more often than not happens at the cost of equally meritous but less privileged people losing out on the same opportunities.

Madonna and Rocco Ritchie have a complicated relationship

Madonna and Rocco Ritchie have a complicated relationship. While the singer is a big fan of her son's art career and the two had a cordial relationship initially, the two strained their relationship during the singer's 2015 tour, as well as the singer's and Guy Ritchie's custody battle. The duo, however, patched up their relationship in 2016.

Madonna talked about motherhood and the difficulty she faced in parenting, stating:

"It was the hardest thing, the hardest battle. It was perhaps the most complicated clown performance to bear. Even today, I struggle to understand how to be a mother and do my job. Because, whatever happens, whoever you are, having children and raising children is a work of art."

The singer continued:

And no one provides you with a manual. You have to learn from your mistakes. It is a job that takes a lot of time. And it's tiring because there's never rest."

She later added:

"The thing that makes me happiest is to see how each of them has found their own creativity. I never encouraged my daughter Lola to make music or my son Rocco to paint. But I have always exposed them to art, to music. I'm happy with how they are today. And I am proud of their work."

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Alongside her children, Madonna is known for her charity focused on Malawi and its children, Raising Malawi, which was established in 2006. The charitable foundation is known for its works with Malawi's orphan children, building primary education facilities, supporting hospital surgery, and pediatric programs.

The foundation also established girls' schools, among other contributions. The foundation now enjoys a good relationship with the country's government, following a tumultuous period in 2013.

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