Diddy opens up about raising his family in the wake of Kim Porter's death

Sean “Diddy” Combs is opening up about the loss of his former girlfriend Kim Porter, and how he’s learned to be a better dad in the wake of her death.

The father of six appeared on the cover of Essence magazine’s May issue with his brood, where he talked up about how he’s changed since losing his soulmate nearly six months ago. Namely, how he went from being a “part-time father” to his children — including Christian, 21, and Jesse and D’Lila, both 12, whom he shares with Porter — to being much more attentive.

“My family was always first, but there are countless times when I chose work over everything else,” Combs shared with the publication. “I’m just a lot more present, and, most important, now my kids come before anything else in my life.”

He attributes this shift to the way that Porter parented the children herself, and even said that observing her as a mother played a big role in how he “jumped into mommy mode” as soon as he found out about her untimely death.

“On some level I knew she was training me for this. I knew that I had to be ready to do whatever I was supposed to do if something like this ever happened,” he said, reflecting on the moment just a few days prior when she told him to “take care of my babies.”

“There was screaming and crying when I heard the news, of course,” he continued, “but I had to ask myself, What would Kim do?”

Now, people all over are celebrating Combs and his dedication to raising his big modern family as one in honor of Porter.