They say parenthood changes you, and no-one knows this better than Aussie singer Shannon Noll. After announcing the birth of his son in December, Shannon is fair dinkum when he tells New Idea how he plans to make up for his past mistakes with his fourth child.
“With the new baby, I’m going to have to change quite a bit,” confesses the 43-year- old, who catapulted to fame as a contestant on the first ever season of Australian Idol back in 2003.
“With my three kids now older, my wife Rochelle was starting to get back on the road with me when we were touring, which was great, but now she can’t so I might have to scale back a bit so I can spend time with the family.” Shannon and Rochelle welcomed baby Colton Keith Noll into the world on December 30 last year, at the wee hour of 2.52am. The couple, who have been married for 14 years, are also parents to Cody, 17, Blake, 15, and Sienna, 11.
Of having a newborn in the household again, Shannon admits a lot has changed in 17 years. “I have to pay the bills, so it’s finding that perfect balance,” he says of juggling his career and fatherhood. “This time I have to work smarter not harder, because I don’t want to miss out on seeing my boy grow up as I felt I missed out on my other kids growing up before.”
There’s no doubt the last few years have been a bumpy road for Shannon. But the former I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! star is keen to put the past behind him and focus on his family. “I’ve had a lot of people in the industry messaging me, saying, ‘Man, I feel so bad for you, for what you’re going through at the moment,’” Shannon explains. “With all the turmoil and all the crap I’m copping at the moment, I just think of all the good things going on in my career and personal life, and that’s what keeps me going.”
And with Colton now in the mix, Shannon is making fatherhood a priority even though the pregnancy came as a huge shock. “When we found out we were pregnant again, it was a bit of a surprise,” Shannon laughs. “I had a massive detox in the jungle and, when I came back, I think I was in much better shape, and we fell pregnant out of the blue. “We had tried for another baby after Sienna, but nothing happened so we just thought that was it for us.”
But proving babies really are miracles, Shannon and Rochelle are now a happy family of six. “The fourth time round I feel like a grandparent – it’s been a while,” Shannon jokes.
In fact, Shannon can’t help but gush over Rochelle, 43, whom he describes as a “great mum”. “I haven’t done it for so long, but things just fell into place, Rochelle is such a great mum and she handles everything brilliantly,” he adds. “She looks after herself, so we knew she would be fine despite being an older mum.”
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