Queen Latifah says she ‘still talks’ with her late mother Rita Owens: ‘I get little signs’

Queen Latifah has talked about keeping her mother Rita Owens’ memory alive, nearly three years after losing her following a long battle with autoimmune disease scleroderma. 

The 50-year-old singer-actress spoke to People on Wednesday as she shared that despite no longer being physically here, her mom and her ‘still talk,’ all the time, as she described her omnipresence. 

‘I know it’s going to sound crazy, but I get little signs,’ she shared, while gushing over her mom’s indelible impact on her life.   

 In her heart: Queen Latifah, 50, spoke to People about keeping her late mom Rita Owens’ memory alive in a new interview, saying that they ‘still talk’ regularly and that she gets ‘little signs’ from her, nearly three years after losing her to scleroderma

While filming her show The Equalizer in her home state of New Jersey, the place seemed to conjure up emotions and memories of Rita – a crucial pillar of support throughout her career. 

‘She was always an encouragement. Everything queenly about me came from my mother,’ she said, the death being very hard on her. 

Beginning her career in music at the tender age of 17, Latifah said that her mom would come to all of her performances, often accompanying her to late night gigs at night clubs. 

Her go to: A meteoric rise to success, when the burdens of stardom became too much to bear, Rita was always there: 'I would disappear and call my mother,' she said; pictured in the nineties

Her go to: A meteoric rise to success, when the burdens of stardom became too much to bear, Rita was always there: ‘I would disappear and call my mother,’ she said; pictured in the nineties 

Her cheerleader: Latifah said that her mom backed her wholeheartedly, even taking her to perform at nightclubs when she was just 17 and starting out in hip hop collective Flavor Unit; tribute September 2020

Her cheerleader: Latifah said that her mom backed her wholeheartedly, even taking her to perform at nightclubs when she was just 17 and starting out in hip hop collective Flavor Unit; tribute September 2020

Boldy forming the hip hop collective Flavor Unit before even graduating high school, the Beauty Shop actress said ‘She believed in us as youngsters,’ which was pivotal. 

‘That made a big difference, having an adult who believes in this new burgeoning kind of music that you’re doing, not just as a form of music, but as a form of you using your mind, your voice, your talent, and having some direction.’

A meteoric rise to success, when the burdens of stardom became too much to bear Rita was always there. 

‘I would disappear and call my mother. She had a calmness about her that could calm you down when you were at a 10,’ she shared. 

Original queen: 'Everything queenly about me came from my mother,' Latifah said

Original queen: ‘Everything queenly about me came from my mother,’ Latifah said

Rita – a teacher by trade – also famously appeared in her sitcom Living Single (which ran from 1993 to 1998) and The Cookout films alongside her daughter, as Latifah reflected on the impact Rita had on everyone she met.  

‘She made such a big impact, not just on my life, but on thousands of students whose lives she changed over her 25 years of teaching — kids who thought they had no future until they met Mrs. O. and she called them by their names and told them that they can be whatever they wanted to be.’

Just six months after her mom passed, Latifah emotionally recalled the loss as she shared a snap of them and wrote: ‘6 Months ago today I said bye for now to the first smile I’d ever seen. I miss you So much Mommy. I know you’re there and I can’t wait to see that smile again.’  

Now a little over a month before the third anniversary of her passing (March 21), Latifah shared that her mom’s spirit is just as strong as ever, as she said ‘Her memory is everywhere I go.’ 

Gracing her with goodness: The Beauty Shop actress said that sometimes she feels her mom live on in nature based on the company she finds around her: 'People will come into my life that I don't know where they came from, but they become very helpful'; pictured February 2019

Gracing her with goodness: The Beauty Shop actress said that sometimes she feels her mom live on in nature based on the company she finds around her: ‘People will come into my life that I don’t know where they came from, but they become very helpful’; pictured February 2019

‘She still talks to me. I know it’s going to sound crazy, but I get little signs. Lights will blink. Things will flicker.’

She also recalled that she thinks Rita’s presence lives on in the people that come into the actresses life. ‘People will come into my life that I don’t know where they came from, but they become very helpful.’  

Currently spending time near her childhood home in Newark, New Jersey she has been afforded the privilege of revisiting her moms house.   

 ‘When I’m in her house, I just look around at the beauty she curated and all of the African art on the walls. I’m like, “Mom, you really, really thought about these things in a beautiful way.”‘

Above all she noted that alive or dead, ‘She’s in my fiber.’

Back at home: Currently Latifah has been filming for her hit CBS show The Equalizer alongside show star Chris North in her hometown of New Jersey as she said visiting her mom's house reminds her that 'She's in my fiber,' always; pictured November 2020

Back at home: Currently Latifah has been filming for her hit CBS show The Equalizer alongside show star Chris North in her hometown of New Jersey as she said visiting her mom’s house reminds her that ‘She’s in my fiber,’ always; pictured November 2020