Diana Ross' 5 Children: Everything to Know

Mar. 15, 2025

Photo: Steve Granitz/WireImage

Diana Ross' biggest fans are her five children.

The “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” singer welcomed her eldest daughter, Rhonda, 53, with Motown legendBerry Gordyin 1971. The same year, Diana married her first husband, music executiveRobert Ellis Silberstein, and they went on to welcome two more daughters:Tracee, 52, and Chudney, 49. Diana split from Silberstein in 1977 and went on to marry Norwegian businessman and mountaineer Arne Naess Jr. in 1986. The former couple had sons Ross, 37, andEvan, 36.

Many of Diana’s children have followed in her footsteps and pursued careers within the entertainment industry.

During a 2018 guest appearance onWatch What Happens Live, the youngest of the Ross clan, Evan, said growing up in a “big family” helped him navigate his and wifeAshlee Simpson’s own blended family. “I grew up in a family where I had a lot of different siblings,” Evan told hostAndy Cohen. “I grew upwith a big family. I think it’s a beautiful thing.”

Black-ishstar Tracee is also grateful for her family and specifically her mom, who despite the demands of her career, was a very present and dedicated mother.

“The Diana Ross that the world knows — this global, international icon who paved the way and changed what glamour looked like and who Black women were in the world, particularly in that capacity — her Diana Ross-ness doesn’t hold a candle toher mom-ness,” she said onNaomi Campbell’s YouTube seriesNo Filter with Naomi.

“I’m so close with my mom and my family,” she added.

Tracee echoed this sentiment in her 2022InStylecover story. “My mom was extremely present,” she said. “Waking us up for school, sitting for dinner with us and giving us a genuine, anchored, real family life and home life. The most important thing to my mother was not fame, it was her children.”

Here’s everything to know about Diana Ross' five children: Rhonda, Tracee, Chudney, Ross and Evan.

Rhonda Ross Kendrick, 53

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In a 2015New York Postinterview, Rhonda opened up about learning about her biological father as a teen. “The bottom line was, I looked just like [Gordy], and my sisters looked just like their father, a 6-foot-tall Jewish American man,” she told the outlet. She added that she and her sisters had viewed Gordy as an “uncle,” so the news was more comforting than shocking.

Much like her parents, Rhonda is a talented musician. The singer-songwriter’s music is “based in traditional jazz, but pulls from the entire African diaspora,” according toher website. “I primarily consider myself a storyteller and a poet. I use my music to inspire and to uplift,” she said.

Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic

Rhonda married pianist Rodney Kendrick in 1996 and the two welcomed son Raif-Henok Emmanuel Kendrick in 2009. Raif-Henok introduced his “grandmommy” Diana atthe 2019 Grammys.

In 2017, Rhonda received the gig of a lifetime: opening for her mom on tour. “I was very moved when she asked me to open for her because what it says to me is that yes, I’m her daughter and yes, there’s nepotism at play, but it’s not solely that,” Rhonda said in an interview withtheSarasota Herald-Tribune. “Because for 20 years I’ve been singing, she’s never [asked me] before. So what that says to me is she likes what I am building as my own brand and my own art and my own career. She likes it, she respects it and she feels that it’s a good companion to what she is doing and I agree.”

Rhonda is also a keynote speaker and anEmmy-nominated actress.

Tracee Ellis Ross, 52

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Diana and Silberstein welcomed their first child together, daughterTracee Ellis Ross(born Tracee Joy Silberstein), on Oct. 29, 1972.

Tracee has made a name for herself as an actress, having landed her first big gig on the CW’sGirlfriends. She played “den mother” Joan Clayton for all eight seasons from 2000 to 2008. In 2014, she began starring as Rainbow Johnson on ABC’sBlack-ish.Tracee earned five Emmy nominations for her performance as Rainbow; the sitcom’seighth and final seasonaired in 2022.

While Tracee’sBlack-ishcharacter is a wife and mother, she toldInStylethat she was “happily single” in 2018.

“It’s sort of fascinating to be 45 andsingle and childless,” the actress said. “These are very big and very personal questions that aren’t anyone’s business but that somehow, like the right to choose, become fodder for public conversation. Some of the ability to reflect on what I really want comes from pushing up against a society that shames me for not having the expected trappings.”

Tracee doubled down on her belief that “society spoon-feeds” women theidea of marriageand growing a family during a 2021 interview withMarie Claire.​​ “I used to put myself to sleep dreaming of my wedding,” she said. “And I would still love all of that, but what am I going to do, just sit around waiting? Shut up. I’ve got so many things to do.”

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One of those things islaunching her own hair care line, Pattern Beauty. The idea first came to her while working onGirlfriends. “It started out for me because I couldn’t find products and wasn’t seeing my natural beauty mirrored back to me in the world,” Tracee said onThe Tonight Showin 2021. “Then when I got onGirlfriends, I realized that I was not the only one. There were so many people who were looking for products that actually met their hair where it was and how it grows out of our head.”

In 2020,Tracee was named a Fashion Iconat the People’s Choice Awards. During her acceptance speech, she gave her mom major kudos, calling Diana “the icon herself.” She also recalled gathering the beads that fell off Diana’s dresses as a child so she could “have pieces of the magic, seeds of the fashion dream that I was cultivating for myself.”

The actressmade her singing debutin her 2020 movieThe High Note. The film also marked the first time her mom had ever heard her sing. “There’s a reason I waited 47 years to let my voice out publicly!” Tracee told PEOPLE at the time. “It was my childhood dream to sing — but terrifying when your mother is whomymother is. The idea of comparison; that’s in a child’s mind or an adult’s mind. I could be taken down and obliterated.”

Tracee recalled sitting in her car with her mom and playing her a song from the film. “And then my mother said, ‘Finally. Finally,’ " she said. “I have wanted to sing for so long. My mom teared up and we just kept looking at each other. We were both so excited. My mom has always known I could sing. There have been gentle nudges over the years, so this was a big moment.”

In July 2023, Traceeenjoyed a lunch date with Diana. The mother-daughter duo, who look strikingly similar, snapped a selfie together before the meal was over.

Chudney Ross, 49

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On Nov. 4, 1975, Diana and Silberstein welcomed daughter Chudney Ross (born Chudney Lane Silberstein).

Chudney earned an English and fine arts degree fromGeorgetown University, where she was also on therowing team. She went on to teach elementary school with AmeriCorps' Teach For America program for several years, per herLinkedIn. Like her big sisters, Chudney also dabbled in the entertainment industry — she worked as a production manager on NBC’s reality seriesFamein 2003 and as a producer onMesmerizedin 2004.

Rachel Murray/WireImage

Chudney and Faulkner welcomed their second child together, a daughter named Everlee Ernestine Ross-Faulkner, on Oct. 11, 2019.

In a 2020 interview withVeronica Beard, Chudney referred to Diana as “the most amazing role model for what motherhood should look like” and recalled the helpful advice her mom gave her early on in her career. “My mom taught us that anything was possible with hard work, determination and passion, and to never expect anything to just come to you,” Chudney said. “She also encouraged us to forge our own paths and not follow the steps of anyone else.”

Ross Arne Naess, 37

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Rossproposed to his longtime girlfriendKimberly Ryan in May 2016, just one month before they welcomed son Leif Naess on June 5, 2016.

The couple exchanged wedding vows on June 10, 2017, at Rancho Dos Pueblos in Santa Barbara, California, perHarper’s Bazaar. The bridesmaids, which included his sisters, donned off-white dresses and flower crowns, while the groomsmen were asked to accessorize their wedding day look with a hat of their choice. Ross opted for a top hat.

Diana officiated the outdoor, boho-themed wedding, and younger brother Evan performed during the couple’s first dance. Kimberly walked down the aisle in a white-and-gold gown, barefoot and seven months pregnant. Shortly after, the newlyweds welcomed son Indigo Naess on Aug. 15, 2017.

Jeff Kravitz/AMA2017/FilmMagic

Ross is very close with his brother, Evan, and is grateful his two sons share a similar brotherly bond. “Love you bro you’re my rock. Fun to see our type of friendship on repeat Brother love,” Ross captioned athrowback photoof him and Evan, as well a shot of his two young sons.

Evan Ross, 36

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Evan Ross (born Evan Olav Ross-Naess) is the youngest of the Ross siblings. Diana and Arne welcomed him on Aug. 26, 1988. He has since become a musician, actor, husband and father of three.

Evan got engaged to Ashlee Simpson in January 2014. The pairwedin a bohemian-inspired ceremony held at Diana’s Connecticut estate on Aug. 30, 2014. Diana officiated the nuptials and performed at the reception. Simpson’s sonBronx Mowgli Wentz, whom she shares with ex-husbandPete Wentz, walked her down the aisle and her big sister,Jessica Simpson, served as the maid of honor.

Evan and Simpson welcomed their second child,Ziggy Blu Ross, on Oct. 29, 2020.

Evan Ross and Diana Ross.Pascal Le Segretain/Getty

Evan got candid about being a dad of three during a 2021 episode of thePEOPLE Every Daypodcast, noting how “lucky” he felt to have had extra moments with his kids during the COVID-19 pandemic. “What abonding experiencewith all of them. With Jagger, I feel like there’s been a lot of learning experiences that I feel like I may have missed a little bit of [otherwise],” he said.

“We’re very different, butwe understand each otherand we look out for each other,” Evan told PEOPLE while promoting the show in 2018. “We know how to work with each other to get through whatever we need to get through.”

Ashlee added, “We don’t hold onto things, which is good too. I love to keep that attraction part alive and fun. But with Evan, I don’t have to try. He’s the most handsome, fun person ever. He makes me feel so great about myself.”

source: people.com