Kirk Franklin was a homeless teenage father before he became a gospel music icon. The “Love Theory” choir director talked about the story during a riveting interview with Shannon Sharpe on the Dec. 13 episode of “Club Shay Shay.”
Sharpe asked how Franklin’s life changed after he got his girlfriend Shawn Ewing pregnant at the age of 17. Franklin said that the entire experience was very embarrassing. “I was very, very embarrassed,” Franklin told Sharpe, “Because again, [I] was raised in church. I was embarrassed for the shame that I brought on her life. I was ashamed ’cause I was always reminded of my wrong.”
Franklin said that he couldn’t hide the pregnancy, because the church was “a framework of the community.” He said that anything that happened would get back to the church, and since the church was the community everybody knew what was happening.
Franklin said that it was a very difficult time for him because his adoptive mother, whom he called Aunt Gerty or Gertrude, kicked him out of her house. “I had to sleep on some couches,” the 53-year-old said, “’Cause Gertrude’s old school. ‘If you not gon’ marry that girl, you gotta get outta here ’cause you grown now.’” Sharpe agreed and added, “You can’t shack up.”
Franklin said he had to stay at other people’s places and even his car. He said that he had to stash his clothes in a trash bag at his church. Franklin worked in the choir, so he would wash up in the church’s bathroom and change before he had to play.
Franklin said that during this time he tried to make sure he was in his son Kerrion’s life. “He lived with me some,” Franklin said, “He lived with [his mother], he lived with his grandparents sometimes because she lived with her parents for a minute, but there was never a time that I wasn’t in his life. I was constantly in his life. I was there. I didn’t have nothing, but I was there.”
Franklin said he tried to be like the father he never had. The “My Life Is In Your Hands” singer said, “I never want him to feel what I felt.”
Fans raved about how well Sharpe interviewed Franklin about the pivotal moments in his life. They said, “Best interview to date. This interview touch my heart in so many ways because it allows me to look at my own life and my upbringing to know that God hasn’t given up on me and never will,” and “Kirk Franklin’s Interview/ Conversation with Shannon Sharpe was INCREDIBLE.”
Kirk Franklin’s Interview/ Conversation with Shannon Sharpe was INCREDIBLE #clubshayshay #kirkfranklin #shannonsharpe
— 🔥Marcus the Creator🎼 (@demarcus_fitz) December 14, 2023
While Franklin said he was in Kerrion’s life when he was a child, the two had a falling out which led to the singer’s son releasing a video of the two arguing over the phone in 2021. Sharpe asked Franklin if he wished he were a “private citizen” after his son leaked the video.
Franklin answered sternly, “All day, every day.” The songwriter said that the incident has impacted how he posts about his family on social media because people would comment cruel things about them.
