Fans empathized with rapper Megan Thee Stallion when she lost her mother back in 2019 from a brain tumor. We have since watched her continue to make strides and have success in her career despite the loss of her biggest supporter, such as finishing her degree in health administration and most recently releasing her second album, Traumazine.
In an Apple Music interview to promote her new album, Megan, born Megan Pete, opened up about hows she’s been coping with grief and doing everything on her own now.
“You’ve got to take care of you. Because who else is going to take care of you?” she told hosts Nadeska Alexis and Ebro Darden. “At this point of my life, I really realized that my mama was really driving the car for a long time.”
“I didn’t even have to think about too many things when my mama was with me,” she added.
For those who don’t know, Megan’s mom, Holly Thomas, was her manager and supported her throughout the early years of her career. Thomas was also a rapper who went by the stage name Holly-Wood. Two weeks after her mother died, her grandmother, who was another primary caregiver for her, passed away.
Megan told the hosts that knowing she had her mother’s support kept her going and gave her the confidence that she’s sometimes missing now.
“When I would do something good, my mama could say, ‘Good job. That was good. We did that,’” the musician stated tearfully. “I feel like by now, I would have been able to get my sh-t together when I talk about my mama. But every time I talk about my mama I cannot hold it together.”
She continued, “And she was just so cool and I just trusted her so much. And her opinion just meant so much to me. And I just feel like when she would say I did a good job, it would feel like, ‘Okay, I did that. I did a good job,’ but now when I do, I’m just like, ‘Okay, what’s next?’ Because I don’t know if I’m doing that good of a job.”
She also explained that it’s hard to know who to confide in now that her confidants are gone. “When I’m going through something personal, I’m like, ‘I just got to pray,’” she said. Because I don’t even know who I can ask. Who can I ask about this situation? And who do I trust?”
“She said ‘don’t stop,’ so I just took that literally. And I just — we here today,” Megan added, recalling how Thomas encouraged her to chase her musical dreams even as her health deteriorated.
We can all agree that Megan is doing a good job and her mom and grandmother would be immensely proud of her accomplishments. Since their passing, she has won three Grammy awards, multiple BET awards, a People’s Choice award and many more.
That said, the “H-Town Hottie” is still going and keeping her loved one’s legacies alive. In memory of her late mother and father, Joseph Pete Jr. (who passed away when she was a teenager), Megan announced the launch of the Pete & Thomas Foundation in February. The foundation will focus on areas such as education, housing, health and wellness and programs offered will provide scholarships, school supplies, and resources to support students in vulnerable communities.