‘I am not the enemy’ - Father of Spice’s children dismisses deadbeat label

Nicholas Lall, the father of Spice's two children, is asking the question, what exactly makes a man a deadbeat dad?

For the past three years, allegations of a 'deadbeat' have dogged the father of four, but he told T he STAR that this accusation is only hurled at him by Spice, with whom he shares his two youngest, his only son and a daughter.

The deejay recently went toe-to-toe with Instagram users who suggested better co-parenting between her and Lall. Amid her response was a claim that she had to seek counselling for her son because of damning screenshots Lall sends to the child.

This was the straw that broke the camel's back, and now, Lall is baring his truth.

"It breaks my heart because nothing goes like that," Lall told The STAR. "I have received so many messages from people about this that I decided to speak up. I don't want him to be bullied when he goes to his new school September morning because of this."

Lall surprised his son by turning up at his recent prep-school graduation, a reunion three years in the making.

"It was very emotional. Mi did haffi stand up strong and do everything not to cry," he said.

Lall said he was told about the graduation by his son, whom he has been in contact with as he owns a phone.

GRADUATION SURPRISE

"I found out about the graduation the day before and went straight from the airport to the school. He didn't know I was coming. It was a surprise, and it worked," he said, adding that he was especially glad to be there because his son's mother was absent.

"The 'mother of the year' was not at her son's graduation, but his grandmother, his aunt and his sister were there," he said. "She went on social media and posting pictures of my son in a red suit; my son graduated in a blue gown. When my daughter saw me, she came over to me. The few days that I was in Jamaica, I took them to visit their cousins and other relatives, and they even spent a night with me. My love for my children comes from my heart, not from my pocket."

Lall earned the wrath of his ex after posting the video of his attendance at the graduation, and she took to social media to blast him for his lack of financial support, an accusation Lall confirmed.

"When we broke up in 2016, I left the relationship with nothing," he started. "When we got together in 2006, I had my little business where I would buy crashed cars, fix them up and sell them back. After a while, we made the decision to focus on Spice's career, and I spent 10 years doing that. I was her manager, her roadie, whatever. The only thing I didn't do was put make-up on her face. It was a joke among some in the business that if one of Spice's dancers took sick, then I would have to go on-stage and dance."

He explained that he decided to invest in himself by attending college and tried to assist his kids when he was back on his feet.

"I went overseas and enrolled in school, so there was really no money for me to send," he said. "When things started getting a little brighter, I tried to make contact, if it was even to send US$100, but there was no way to reach anybody because I was cut off. Nobody was speaking to me, numbers were changed and I had no contact."

Lall said that if he could speak directly to Spice, he would tell her, "I am not the enemy, so stop treating me like one. The only thing I want is to see my youths without any animosity."