Keke Palmer is giving credit where she believes it is due.
While reflecting on her upbringing and family life, the actress and television personality opened up about the important role her father played during her childhood, praising him for taking on responsibilities often associated with mothers.
Palmer shared the heartfelt detail during a conversation with “Euphoria” star Sharon Stone for Variety’s Actors on Actors.
Reflecting on her earliest years, the former child star described her father as highly disciplined and hardworking, though she said he often preferred to let her mother take the lead.
The actress also praised her father for taking on responsibilities that society has traditionally associated with women, something she believes remains uncommon among many men today.
“He did a lot of things that people would assume are mom things. My dad cooked and helped us with our laundry. If we had a problem with something tearing, he would sew it up. As I got older, I expected men to be like my dad,” Palmer said of her father, Larry.
The Actress Shares Funny Detail About Her Mother
Elsewhere in the conversation with Stone, Palmer also spoke about her mother, Sharon, who married her father in the 1980s.
She revealed that her mother loved swearing, a comment she made in response to Stone’s discussion of her own mom’s tendency to use colorful language.
Palmer further noted that her household was more matriarchal than patriarchal, echoing her earlier remarks that her father often stepped back, allowing her mother to take the lead in family affairs.
Sharon welcomed Palmer in 1993, nearly a decade after giving birth to her first child, Loreal, in 1989. She also shares twins, Lawrence and Lawrencia, with her husband, Larry, whom they welcomed in 2000.
Keke Palmer Reveals Parents’ Huge Sacrifice
During Palmer’s childhood, Sharon worked as a teacher while Larry was employed by a polyurethane company. When Palmer began finding success as a child actor, the family made significant sacrifices to support her career ambitions.
Among those sacrifices was her father giving up his pension, while the family also relocated to California so Palmer could be closer to acting opportunities and auditions as her career continued to grow.
“My dad gave up his pension. He had worked at the company he worked at for over 15 years and gave up his pension for me to have an opportunity for my dreams,” Palmer said during an appearance on the “Club Shay Shay” podcast, per Afrotech.
She added, “My mother, they gave up everything. She gave up everything so she could travel with me and do what she needed to do with me. So, how I feel about it is, what’s mine is theirs. What’s theirs is mine, and I would do it again. I would give up and sacrifice 20 more years of my life.”
Palmer’s Parents Took Steps To Protect Her Money
Though Palmer has said she has no regrets about becoming the primary breadwinner for her family at a young age, her parents were careful to ensure there was no confusion about how her earnings were managed.
As her income grew, they hired a manager to oversee her finances, ensuring they were properly handled and protected from misuse.
“They wanted me to know that they weren’t the ones controlling my money. They had heard these stories, and my mom said, ‘I don’t want money to come in between me and my child,’” Palmer told the podcast host.
Keke Palmer On How She Learned Early To Give Back
A value Palmer’s parents worked hard to instill in her as her career flourished was the importance of giving back to the community.
From a young age, they involved her in community service efforts to ensure she remained grounded, remembered what truly mattered, and understood the importance of helping others during times of need.
“So, from the beginning, we would take her to do events with the NAACP, the MLK Foundation, and the Boys and Girls Club,” Sharon told Essence in an interview. “The goal was to keep her rooted in the community, to make sure she learned that a good life is a life of service and when much is given, there is a responsibility to give back in return.”
