Nick Cannon says he had pictures of his future wife Mariah Carey on his wall when he was 12 years old

• Nick Cannon was an admirer of Mariah Carey long before they got married in 2008.

• "I was 12 years old with Mariah Carey pictures on my wall, and that becomes my wife," he said.

• Last year, Cannon said he would reconcile with Carey if their love could be "the way it was."

Nick Cannon has said he used to have pictures of his future wife Mariah Carey on his wall as a kid.

Cannon, 42, and Carey, 53, were married in 2008 and share two children together, twins Moroccan and Monroe, aged 11. They split in 2014, and their divorce was finalized in 2016.

Speaking to The Shade Room in an interview published on Sunday, Cannon, who is now a father of 12, recalled his relationship with the "We Belong Together" singer.

Asked who he considers the love of his life, he said: "Like the greatest? I mean, I always talk about that. Then it goes viral, and our fans get mad at me.

"But I was 12 years old with Mariah Carey pictures on my wall, and that becomes my wife. And the fact that she's the coolest person I ever met."

Cannon also praised Carey for helping him become the man he is today.

"I get a lot of this delightful disposition from her," he said. "She's just always happy, always doing for others. No matter what's happening in life. I'm like, 'Wow, a person can really operate like that and don't allow negative energy into they space.'

"When I found that out about how remarkable she was, that woman is not human. She's a gift from God."

This isn't the first time Cannon has gushed over his ex-wife.

Last year, the "Wild 'n Out" creator and host said he would reconcile with Carey if their love could be "the way it was."

"I'm a true romantic. I'm a true believer in love," Cannon told the "Hot Tee" podcast. "I will never have a love like I did with Mariah."

He added: "It was literally like a fairy tale with Mariah, so I would rather it just be that way, and I appreciate that fantasy because if I try to go back and it wasn't the same, I'd be like, 'Damn, I messed it up.'

"But if I had the opportunity, if it could be the way it was, I'm there."

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