Keke Palmer Says Son Leo 'Goes Every-Single-Where I Go': 'Trying to Maintain His Closeness to Me' (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Keke Palmer and son Leo.Photo:Keke Palmer/Instagram

Keke Palmer/Instagram

IfKeke Palmeris booked and busy, so is her son!

When asked if the toddler, whom Palmer shares with exDarius Jackson, was backstage during the hosting gig in Mountain View, California, thePasswordhost tells PEOPLE, “He was indeed.”

“He was there for everything,” she says. “He was there for the keynote. He was there for the Keke-note.”

“He was actually making noise, so we had to kind of get him off set a little bit for a second when it came to the After Party,” Palmer continues, adding that he was “tucked away in a back room” while she took the stage.

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Keke Palmer and son Leo.Keke Palmer/Instagram

The toddler is more than just a companion though, she clarifies: “He also is engaged.”

At a reception the day before the event — which showcased the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro Fold and revealed updates to Google’s AI assistant, Gemini — Palmer recalls, “We’re walking in, we’re seeing the party go on, and I just go over there and I’m like, ‘Son, why are you kinda smooth with the execs?’”

“He is literally smiling, waving at them, trying to be talkative. I’m like, ‘Son, what is going on?’ " she says. “So it was just so funny. It’s so funny to see him and how he responds to me in the workplace.”

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At another recent gig — a concert at New York City’s Hudson Yards — Leo responded with a bit of jealousy, she recalls. “The kid’s sometimes boujee with the kisses. He doesn’t always wanna show all this affection. He is in his own world,” she says. “But when he saw the fans screaming for me, soon as I got on stage, he literally kissed me.”

“I’m like, ‘Now, son. Not you kind of getting into the mix of it ‘cause you’re seeing all this hoopla,’ ” she adds with a laugh.

As her second summer as a mom nears its end, Palmer tells PEOPLE, “I’m just having fun watching him grow.”

“It pushes you, in a way, to be an even more precise version of yourself,” she continues. “And I think that that’s the process.”

Keke Palmer and son Leo.Keke Palmer /Instagram

Keke Palmer /Instagram

“The grace of a career like mine — and, obviously, his age — is just that he can be with me,” she continues. “So I’m grateful for that. I think I wanna just continue to be able to just do that and have him with me and do things together and make sure that he feels part of my life and sees what I’m doing.”

“I’m working, but you know, you’re here and we’re here together and just to serve as an example for him, that’s just important for me,” she adds.

source: people.com