Jordin Sparks on elopement, pregnancy and encouraging youth
Jordin Sparks has had a busy 2017. The singer recently announced that she secretly married model Dana Isaiah in July and is expecting a baby boy with her husband. Sparks talked to CBS News about her marriage, pregnancy and partnership with U.S. Cellular for its campaign -- The Future of Good -- that recognizes teenagers for making a positive impact in their communities and awards them with financial contributions toward their initiatives.
Sparks, who met with the teens at a Boys and Girls Club in New York, told CBS News that the project hits home for a few reasons.
"It's in the core of who I am, encouraging and inspiring the youth to go out and make a change and a difference in their communities and the world," she explained. Sparks said she loves celebrating and encouraging teens who set a good example for their peers.
The 27-year-old said one teen's project especially resonated with her. Tommy Hosmer, 17, of Bangor, Maine, raised more than $41,000 over the past six years to help the Lafayette Family Cancer Center.
Sparks said so many lives have been affected by cancer, including hers.
"My mom's best friend Wendy -- she passed away almost 10 years ago now from melanoma," said Sparks. "My great grandfather passed away from pancreatic cancer. I've definitely been affected by it."
She added, "[Hosner] was 9 years old when he started thinking about all of it. It's incredible to think about when kids feel like they can make a difference, it doesn't matter how old they are."
Sparks said she hopes her baby will take that to heart.
"I just hope that he's kind and grows up to be sympathetic to people, because you never know what they're going through," she said. "Everyone's fighting a battle people don't know about. I want him to know that it is good to give back to other people and to different communities, not necessarily for any other reasons except that it's a good thing to do."
Sparks said she has had a very smooth pregnancy, and is perhaps most surprised by the fact that she did not experience any morning sickness.
"I kept waiting for it to come, but it never came," she said. "I was expecting to be ravenously hungry and I'm actually not. I pretty much have a dull appetite. I don't really crave anything; I'm just like, 'Food, meh.'"
The mother-to-be said that she and Isaiah are overjoyed at the prospect of becoming new parents. Though she only met her husband this year, Sparks said it was love at first sight.
"Girl, I wish I could explain it to you in a way that made sense," she said, laughing. "I don't know how to explain it. I just knew. I have a whole bunch of different friends and their parents who said it was the same thing, where they just knew. I knew one couple that met and got married three weeks later and they've been married for 30 years now. I knew it could happen, but I just didn't know it would happen to me. We met and I was like, 'Oh my God. This is what it feels like.'"
Sparks added that when she met Isaiah, she felt a "shock" go through her system.
"I was like, 'Oh no, what is going on?' But in the best way," she said. "He felt the same way, too."
The newlywed said her elopement in Hawaii was "absolutely perfect."
"For me, living my life in the public for the past 10 years and everybody knows everything that happens to me when it happens to me, I thought it would be nice to have this to ourselves so we can enjoy it for a little bit," she said. Sparks said it was special to be able to announce her new status at her own pace. She also admitted that it's possible she will eventually have a larger reception with family.
For Christmas, Sparks plans to head to her family's home in Phoenix, and she said she has one thing on her wish list: new maternity clothes.