Nick Cannon isn't who you think he is. Yes, he's that hard working young dude who seems to be everywhere these days. But if you remember him from Nickelodeon or fluffy teen flicks, you really should meet the man. He has bombs to drop. Powerful impact, boom from the Cannon.

By Justin Monroe

You first did stand-up opening for your father in his ministry. At 15, after early graduation, you started performing in L.A. comedy clubs. What was it like entertaining drunken crowds twice as old as you?

Nick Cannon: You can't really boo a 15-year-old-that's just mean. But it did happen. One night I was just lazy, doing the same material from when I was 12 at church, and people started booing me. But that let me know that I had to take my craft serious.

So at what point did the debauchery start?

Nick Cannon: [Laughs] I'm 10 strong years in the game. I've been doing stand-up, traveling the world since I was 15-on stage by myself, going to hotel rooms with grown women. I have absolutely done some things that people might want to see.

So when does the sex tape leak?

Nick Cannon: I heard there was one out there already! I used to have a house in the Hollywood hills when I was 19 [and on Nickelodeon]. It was me and Kenan Thompson from Kenan and Kel. I know in my room I had the video cameras set up, and I don't know what happened to a lot of those tapes. We were throwing parties every day. I had to move out of L.A. because I was too wrapped up in that scene. It wasn't really about girls' feelings; it would just be like a contest to see how many chicks I could smash off.

So should we expect that other "innocent" dudes like Bow Wow, Omarion, and Marques Houston have orgy parties? On MTV Cribs, it looked like Marques's condom drawer was stocked with different sizes...

Nick Cannon: [Laughs] That's hysterical. For the first time, I don't know what to say. I have no comment.

Speaking of Bow Wow, he's bristled when compared musically to Will Smith, who he considers a bubblegum rapper, and said that you and Will are more alike. What do you think about that?

Nick Cannon: If you check Will's album sales to Bow Wow's album sales, I'm gonna rap like Will all day long! [Laughs] No offense to Bow, because that's the little homie, but I rap about who I am and what I am. I'm not gonna talk about how hard I am, even though I probably grew up in some of the worst situations out there. I don't really talk about that because that's not what I represent. I'm trying to have fun in my music. There's only so long you can rap about how hard you are. You've been in the entertainment industry since you were eight years old, it's kind of hard to be a thug.

Another person with your name in her mouth is your ex, Christina Milian. Are you really the dog she makes you out to be?

Nick Cannon: When you're friends with somebody and you start having intimate feelings for them, the boundaries become really weird. Are we a couple? Are we not a couple? I think she probably expected more from me than I was willing to give her, than I ever said I was going to give her. In the media we were always saying we was friends, but technically we were probably more than that, and I took advantage of the situation more than I should have.

You crossed the latex boundary.

Nick Cannon: [Laughs] Exactly.

Were you caught cheating?

Nick Cannon: I wasn't hiding nothin'. When she did ask, "Were you hanging out with women?" I was like, "Yeah." It wasn't like, "You caught me!" It was like, "I thought you knew." The whole purpose of us stepping back was to make sure we could maintain our friendship. Even when we wasn't together, we were still hanging out. I think it was all cool until all of the media stuff started getting involved.

Were you upset about her "dis song" ["Who's Gonna Ride"]?

Nick Cannon: I think it's probably her best work to date, just because she's human. Like she says, her music is therapeutic for her, and she has every right to talk about what she feels.

Lately you've been saying you "just keep a lot of friends around." Does that mean what we think it does?

Nick Cannon: Yeah, exactly. I ain't got time to date nobody. So I try to set my situations up to where it's nothing serious. If sex is involved, cool, but it's still nothing serious. And if they can't take that, I have to go elsewhere.

The tabloids have been saying you're "friends" with Brandy and Lindsay Lohan.

Nick Cannon: I'm still waiting on them to link me to Jessica Alba. I be following her around like, "Somebody, please take a picture!" [Laughs]

Do you dip in the fan pool?

Nick Cannon: You can't go at fans, man. You don't ever want to tarnish how they feel about you. [Plus] a lot of my fans tend to be teenagers. I like women around the age of 30 to 35. They know what they want.

So, according to your record, you're "gigolo and still Christian." Does that mean the power of Christ compels you to smash?

Nick Cannon: Nah. They both represent love, that's what it is. If you look up "gigolo," it's one who spreads his love. Home // CELEBRITIES // COVER STORY // Nick Cannon