Ciara is a vision of beauty on the May cover of ESSENCE.
Inside, the Grammy-winning singer reveals what it’s like be a woman in love and living her bliss. This is the life the 30-year-old has always imagined since she was a teenager. She remembers telling her friends at Clayton High School in College Park, Georgia how she would grow up to become a world-famous singer. “I made a goal sheet,” Ciara tells writer Jeannine Amber. On that list was also the dream of selling “3 to 4 million” records and “have longevity.” Those dreams came true by the time she was 21.
Relive Ciara and Russell Wilson’s Most Magical Moments
Then came the dream of motherhood and a family. “I’d always wanted to have my own family,” she said. “And my pregnancy was planned when I was at a point in my life when I was finally ready to take on the responsibility.” Her son Future, born May 19, 2014, fulfilled the dream of being a mother.
Her very public breakup with her fiancé and Future’s father, rapper Future, could have made Ciara give up on the dream of a family. “That wasn’t necessarily part of my vision,” she recalls. “But the moment I realized I was going to be a single mother, I had to reflect and reorganize my thoughts. I decided to trust that God had a plan for me, and move forward one day at a time.”
Ciara and Baby Future’s 20 Most Awww-Worthy Moments
And wow did the plan come together gracefully. Less than a year after her breakup, Ciara went public with her relationship with Seattle Seahawks quarterback, Russell Wilson, who recently asked for her hand in marriage during a romantic trip to the Seychelles.
“I remember telling my friend the kind of guy I wanted: a God-fearing man with a very fun spirit who loves kids and would really, truly care for me. I was very specific because I do believe you can have it all.”
16 Celeb Engagement Rings That Have Us Swooning
We hear you, Ciara.
Pick up the May issue of ESSENCE—on newsstands on April 15—for more on Ciara, Russell, Future, and that swoon-worthy engagement ring.
