Why You Rarely Hear Tyler Perry Talk About His Son Aman
Tyler Perry is one protective dad. The successful multi-hyphenate is father to Aman Tyler, whom he shares with his ex-girlfriend, Ethiopian model and activist Gelila Bekele. Ever since becoming a parent, Perry has worked hard to keep his son out of the spotlight and has rarely if ever talked about the youngster on social media and in interviews (well, save for the occasional anecdotes). And even now that Aman is growing up fast, the "Madea" star still has yet to give the world a first glimpse at his son and is determined to keep him away from the cameras at all costs.
Still, Perry loves talking about his role as a first-time father — such as that time he spoke to ET about the joys of parenting. "Every cliché is true, man," he said. "Just having an opportunity to mold a great human being is a wonderful thing. To help nurture and cultivate his life, in whatever wonderful thing he is going to be, is really awesome." He also gushed about Aman during an appearance on "The Real," saying his son has helped him heal from his traumatic past. "He really has changed my life. He's so beautiful and strong and amazing. And he's a ... healer for me," Perry, who experienced physical and sexual abuse as a child, said. "It's amazing."
It's clear that Perry has a lot of love for his son, but why is it that we rarely hear him talk about Aman Tyler? Well, it turns out that the answer is pretty simple.
Tyler Perry wants to give his son a normal life
There's a good reason as to why Tyler Perry has gone to such great lengths to keep his son, Aman Tyler, away from the public eye. In his August 2022 cover story for AARP: The Magazine, the renowned filmmaker said it's because he wants to protect the privacy of his child. "Because these people are not famous," he said of keeping his personal relationships private. "My son's not famous." He also expressed his wish to give Aman as normal and quiet a life as he can. "I want him to know what it's like to have his own name and his own life, and not have the pressure of trying to live up to whatever or whoever your father was," he said.
Perry echoed that same sentiment while appearing on "The Rickey Smiley Morning Show" in 2016 to talk about his family life. "Me and mom are here, we're just enjoying it. Loving every moment of it," he said of raising Aman. "I love waking up in the morning, him come running to me. Those hugs? It's life-changing." Explaining why there hasn't been any pictures of Aman online, Perry said it just wasn't their thing. "We're not the kind of parents. My son's not famous," he stressed. "We're trying very hard to keep him protected so that he can know who he is before he gets into the crazy bull crap of this social media world."
Tyler Perry shared his fears for his son
Appearing on the "Oprah + 100 Black Fathers" TV special, Tyler Perry shared his fears of exposing Aman Tyler to the harsh realities of the world and having to give him "the talk" on issues like discrimination and racism. The entertainment mogul — who has been vocal about his own struggles as a Black man in America — said he finds it especially heart-wrenching how black parents have to teach their kids how to navigate police encounters in order to protect themselves from harm. "It's heartbreaking to see the innocence in their eyes, and not understanding that," he said. "That's what I fear for my son, even though I know I have to have that conversation [with him]."
While he has yet to have that discussion with Aman ("I want to hold out as long as I can," he explained), Perry knows that it's inevitable. "The moment he loses that innocence is going to be a very, very sad day for me. I know it's coming, though, because he's already asking some really tough questions," he told AARP in 2022. For now, Perry can only hope that his son would grow up to be someone who stands up against injustices and fights for a better world. "What I want him to be, more than anything, is somebody who sees injustice, speaks out against it and effects change," Perry said.