Bring on the tissues! Tamron Hall’s set was filled with teary eyes, including from the host herself, over Stephanie Mills’ unforgettable rendition of her hit song “Never Knew a Love Like This Before.” The singer dedicated the song to her son Farad.
On April 6, Mills included her 22-year-old son, who has Down’s Syndrome, in the tear-jerking performance. The 66-year-old doting mom professed her love for him, singing to tell the audience, “This is my baby.”
Mills looked directly into Farad’s eyes as she sang the lyrics, “You are my sunlight and my rain, and time could never change.”
In the midst of their mother and son dance, Mills, emotionally, belted the lyrics to “Never Knew a Love Like This Before” while hitting a two-step with Farad. After finishing the heartfelt performance, Hall walked back to the stage with tears in her eyes. The “Home” singer went into mommy mode, dabbing the hostess’ eyes with tissue.
She applauded the Grammy-winning singer for transforming the meaning of the iconic love song from romantic love to maternal for her Down’s Syndrome baby, expressing, “I’m sobbing because I know how wonderful a mom you are, and when you sing ‘I’ve never known love like this before,’ it’s this (her relationship with her son) love.”
The talk show host spoke with Mills earlier about how her son has impacted her choices, especially regarding her career. Known originally for her Broadway performance of Dorothy in The Wiz, upon the news of her son’s special needs, she moved away from Los Angeles to North Carolina.
“I wanted to get away from all that, so, when I was pregnant at three months, they told me that my son was going to be special needs with Down Syndrome,” she recalled. “And I was like, ‘I don’t care what it is, if he has one eye, we’re going to rock this world together, and that’s what we do. We rock.”
It’s clear the family is as tight as ever, with Farad sharing that his mom is “the best” and how they have fun while on tour.
For those who are now bigger fans than ever of the singer, her moment in the public eye isn’t over yet either.
Mills is set to debut in her first-ever lead role in Lifetime’s latest film Pride: A Seven Deadly Sins Story.
