Cardi B kicked off the 2018 VMAs on a high note, making her first major public appearance since giving birth to her first child with husband Offset on July 10. Their baby girl, named Kulture Kiari Cephus, is now over a month old.
Despite previous reports, Cardi's opener tonight was not a musical performance, but it was still an exciting start to the ceremony. She stood on stage to introduce the show, holding a bundle in her arms, appearing to be carrying her baby.
"I got a little surprise for y'all, you know what I'm saying?" she teased the crowd. But when she unwrapped the blanket, it turned out she was just holding a VMA moon man trophy.
Looks like we'll have to wait a little longer for our first look at Cardi's baby girl. She did introduce Shawn Mendez for his performance, though.
Although Cardi was able to make it to the VMAs tonight, the new mom is still keeping her public appearances to a minimum. She had to cancel her tour dates opening for Bruno Mars this fall in order to continue recovering from childbirth and spend time with her new baby.
"I underestimated the whole mommy thing," the rapper wrote on Instagram in late July. "Not only am I just not ready physically, I'm not ready to leave my baby behind since the doctors explained it's not healthy for her to be on the road."
However, she will still take the stage at the Global Citizens Festival in NYC on September 29. She'll be joined by Janet Jackson, The Weeknd, Janelle Monáe, and Shawn Mendez in Central Park for the charitable music event.
Erica Gonzales is the Senior Culture Editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage on TV, movies, music, books, and more. She was previously an editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com. There is a 75 percent chance she's listening to Lorde right now.
