Besides the unequivocal vibrancy of the Kingdom, Cardi B also felt a deep spiritual connection with the country. Although she shares that she is Catholic, she understood Saudi Arabia’s importance in the Muslim world. “This is the country where this ancient religion comes from, followed by billions of people who visit Makkah,” she reflects. “Before I left Saudi Arabia, I took home some sand with me as it just felt so holy. My entire experience was beautiful at every level.”

If you forget the wigs, the risqué outfits and the sassy lyrics, it seems Cardi B also has a quieter side, especially in the privacy of her home when surrounded by her four children, whose ages range from eight months to nine years old. She says that she is a very cool and chill mum, but extremely strict regarding anything related to schooling and education, maybe because she was forced to drop out of college. “I don’t want my kids to grow up and be like, ‘Damn, I’m not good at this, my mom should have made me do it.’ When you are younger, you don’t want to do things, and then when you’re older, you appreciate that you did them.”

Before we wrap up our call, I wonder how Cardi B balances the life of a music superstar with that of motherhood. She explains that her children understand that she is an international recording artist and any absence from their daily lives is simply a natural consequence that professionals in other fields also face. “I try my best to have my kids around me as much as possible, but sometimes I can’t be with them. Mothers have to make sacrifices,” she reflects. “Lawyers also have to go out of state for some cases and that might take three weeks or a month. And they don’t make excuses. It’s sad, but we need to look at the bigger picture. I hope that my kids look at what I do and understand, ‘Mom was working her a** off.’ She wasn’t clubbing, she wasn’t dating, she wasn’t partying… Instead, she was making sacrifices for a better living, you know what I’m saying?” Yes, Cardi B, we truly do.

Photography and creative direction: Szilveszter Makó
Styling: Lisa Jarvis
Hair: Tokyo Stylez
Make-up: Erika La’ Pearl
Nails: Coca Michelle
Photography assistants: Gianluca Malavolta, Kévin Ramos, Louis Paquin and Charlotte Pina Bagréaux
Styling assistants: Annina Luomahaara, Naiara Gómez Lestón and Lucas Guldseth
Executive producer: Michaël Lacomblez
Producers: Siyan Chen and Louis Fonck
Line producer: Isabella Gao
Production manager: Lorianne Galliot
Production assistants: Ambre Sieurac and Nizar Dhiab
Set designer: Edith Di Monda
Set design assistants: Anne Cruden, Mathilde Maton, Polina Klovskaia and Lucia Nelli
Tailor: Valeriane Venance
Propmaster: Teo Bernardi

This article was originally published in the September 2026 issue of Vogue Arabia.