The actress shares son Cooper and daughter Maya with husband Brandon Frankel
Gabby Sidibe/Instagram
NEED TO KNOW
- Gabourey Sidibe opened up to PEOPLE about how she stays connected with her 21-month-old twins when she’s away for work
- “It was pretty tough to be separated from them,” Sidibe said at the premiere of Lifetime’s Mary J. Blige Presents Be Happy
- The actress and her husband, Brandon Frankel, welcomed their twins, Cooper and Maya, in April 2024
Gabourey Sidibe is juggling motherhood and her career in a cute way.
Speaking with PEOPLE for an exclusive conversation at the premiere event for Lifetime’s Mary J. Blige Presents Be Happy in New York City on Feb. 4, the 42-year-old actress discussed how she stays connected with her 21-month-old twins, Cooper and Maya, when she's away for work.
“I would steal moments on set to FaceTime with them to recite their favorite stories to them, to sing them songs, stuff like that, so that we can always maintain that connection,” Sidibe said.
The mom added, “But it was pretty tough to be separated from them.”
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Sidibe's son and daughter, whom she shares with husband Brandon Frankel, paid their mom a surprise visit on set in November for a project she’s directing.
At the time, she captioned an Instagram post of the moment: “The twins visited me on set the other day. They STILL [aren’t] allowed to watch screens tho.”
In the comments section, Sidibe's husband expressed his gratitude for the mother of his kids, writing, “Getting to watch them visit you at work and you simultaneously be a boss lady and the best mom is such an honor ❤️🥹.”
The Oscar nominee also recalled the heartwarming set visit while chatting with PEOPLE.
“My husband was like, ‘I wanna make sure that they have pics on set so that they don’t feel like you left them out,‘ and I don’t, you know,” the mom said of making time to include her family during her filming process.
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In an April interview with PEOPLE about Lifetime’s Give Me Back My Daughter, her first project since welcoming her twins in April 2024, Sidibe spoke about the importance of enjoying the time away from her kids.
“I would say take the time to — it feels stupid to say — hold space for yourself. Take the time and enjoy this peace, where there’s not a tiny human asking you for things at all times,” she said. “But really remember who you are. Really take the time and take the space to do it and re-fall in love with yourself, really. Because truly, motherhood is so consuming.”
Sidibe continued, “All I needed to do every single day was just focus on my lines, focus on my work, hit my marks, and drink water and mind my business. That was really, really, really wonderful to have that space to do.”
Mary J. Blige Presents Be Happy premieres Saturday, Feb. 7, at 8 p.m. EST on Lifetime.
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