It is a weird thing, being a global icon like Adele. You’re essentially the world's resident heartbreak therapist, but at home, you’re just the person who needs to make sixty chicken kabobs for a school fundraiser. That’s the reality for Adele and her son, Angelo Adkins, heading through 2023.
While the rest of us were screaming the lyrics to Easy on Me in our cars, Angelo was busy turning eleven.
The 2023 Birthday Vibe: No Fancy Gifts?
In October 2023, Adele gave fans a rare peek into her life as a "normal" mom during her Las Vegas residency. Honestly, it was pretty refreshing. Despite having a net worth that could probably buy a small country, she admitted she wasn't planning on showering Angelo with crazy expensive presents for his 11th birthday.
Instead, she planned a whole week of "celebrating him."
Apparently, the kid is exactly like his mom. He takes birthdays very seriously. Adele joked with the crowd at Caesar's Palace that he’s basically 11 going on 25. He's savvy, he’s sharp, and he’s reached that age where he’s starting to ask for things that make even a multi-millionaire pause.
"I am like, 'That is very expensive. You are 11, shouldn't we be having a tea party still?'" she told the audience. It’s a funny image, right? One of the most successful singers in history telling her kid to pipe down about the price tag. But that’s the boundary she’s trying to set.
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Why 2023 Was a Turning Point for Angelo
For a long time, Angelo didn't really "get" it. He knew his mom worked, but he didn't grasp the scale of the Adele phenomenon. There’s a famous story about her taking him to see Taylor Swift in 2018. His jaw dropped at the crowd size. He actually asked if they could have a seat for Taylor to come sit with them next time they went on tour.
By 2023, that innocence has shifted.
He's at a school with a "community vibe" where Adele says she's "thriving" as a classroom mom. She gets nervous around other adults—which is wild to think about—but she loves that the kids just do not care who she is. To them, she’s just the lady who spilled turmeric all over her kitchen making those kabobs.
The "My Little Love" Legacy
We have to talk about the music. If you’ve listened to the album 30, you’ve heard Angelo’s voice. The track "My Little Love" features actual voice notes of Adele trying to explain her divorce from Simon Konecki to a then-nine-year-old Angelo.
It's brutal.
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You hear her saying she’s confused and doesn’t know what she’s doing. You hear him tell her he loves her "one million percent."
Adele has been very open about the fact that she wrote this album to explain to Angelo, when he’s in his twenties or thirties, why she "voluntarily chose to dismantle his entire life" to find her own happiness. 2023 has been about living out that "new normal."
The Co-Parenting Setup
The logistics are surprisingly drama-free.
- Location: Adele and Simon live across the street from each other in Los Angeles.
- Custody: They share joint legal and physical custody.
- Vibe: They still do family movie nights.
Adele famously said, "Over my dead body is my kid having a messy divorce in his life." So far, she’s kept that promise. Simon is still a core part of the family structure, which is probably why Angelo seems so grounded despite the spotlight.
Handling the Schoolyard "Bullies"
There was a moment where Angelo thought he was being bullied because older girls were chasing him around asking if his mom was Adele. Her advice to him was classic. She told him to just say: "Yeah, she's my mom. She wiped my ass."
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It’s that kind of bluntness that defines her parenting style.
She isn't trying to raise a "celebrity kid." She's raising a kid who happens to have a famous mom. In a 2023 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, she admitted that having Angelo actually made her respect her own mother, Penny Adkins, so much more. She realized how hard "adulting" is, especially since her mom did it with no money and no partner.
Looking Ahead
What’s next? Adele has hinted she’s "desperate" for another baby. She told fans in Vegas that she’s been keeping lists of baby names. But for now, the focus is clearly on Angelo’s transition into those tricky pre-teen years.
He’s savvy. He’s a Swiftie. And according to his mom, he’s already more sophisticated than she’ll ever be.
If you're following the journey of this family, the biggest takeaway from 2023 is the intentionality. Adele isn't just "balancing" fame and motherhood; she is aggressively protecting the "motherhood" side of the scale.
Actionable Insights for Parents:
- Prioritize presence over presents: Follow Adele's lead by focusing on "birthday weeks" and experiences rather than just high-priced gadgets.
- Normalize your career: Even if you aren't a pop star, explaining the "why" behind your work and life choices (like Adele did through her music) helps kids develop empathy.
- Maintain a united front: If you're co-parenting, living in close proximity or maintaining regular "family rituals" can drastically reduce a child's anxiety during transitions.