Diana Ross Still Calls Her Ex Husband the Love of Her Life

Diana Ross’s career enjoyed great longevity, extending well over six decades. During this time, many of her children have also followed in her footsteps and carved a name for themselves.

All of her children have praised her for her parenting, saying they felt like they grew up in her embrace and not in her shadows.

Ross has also expressed her pride in her children on many occasions. She often speaks about her family and has also been very open about her past relationships.

Though she was linked with many well-known names, she only tied the knot twice, both of which ended in divorce.

Still, even with that being the case, Ross has referred to her second husband, Arne Naess, as the love of her life.

When talking to Oprah, Ross shared that her marriage with Naess had taught her “love was everlasting.” She also added that she still loved him now, even though he had passed away in 2004.

Diana Ross Has Five Children

Ross has five children from several of her relationships. Her oldest child, daughter Rhonda Suzanne Silberstein, was born in August 1971.

Rhonda’s biological father is Motown CEO Berry Gordy, with whom Ross was in a relationship since 1965.

Two months into her pregnancy with Rhonda, Ross had married her first husband, music executive Robert Ellis Silberstein, on January 20, 1971.

Ross, Silberstein, and Gordy all knew of Rhonda’s true parentage but kept it a secret until she was 13. During the time, Silberstein raised Rhonda as his own.

Rhonda followed in her mother’s footsteps and has found success as a singer-songwriter, actress, and public speaker.

She has started a family of her own. She married jazz pianist Rodney Kendrick in 1996 and welcomed son Raif-Henok Emmanuel Kendrick in August 2009.

Following their marriage, Ross and Silberstein had two children together — daughter Tracee Ellis Ross (born October 1982) and Chudney Ross (born 1975).

Tracee studied theater at Brown University and is best known for playing Rainbow Johnson on Black-ish.

Unlike her two older sisters, Chudney has opted to stay away from the spotlight. She is a children’s book author and producer/production manager who has worked on films like Mesmerized (2004) and Fame (2003).

Two years after welcoming Chudney, Ross and Silberstein ended their marriage on March 9, 1977.

Ross remarried Arne Naess on October 23, 1985, becoming the stepmother to his three children — Katinka, Christoffer, and Leona Naess.

Ross and Naess also welcomed two children of their own — son Ross Arne Naess (born 1987) son Evan Olav Naess (born August 1988). 

Diana Ross with son Ross Arne Naess and grandson (Source: Instagram)

Both of her sons are actors. While Ross Arne Naess didn’t act for long, Evan has a flourishing career.

Some of Evan’s more notable works are The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (2014), Wicked City (2015), and Star (2017-2019).

After fifteen years of marriage, Ross and Naess ended their marriage in 2000. Four years later, on January 13, 2004, 66-year-old Naess fell to his death while climbing in the Groot Drakenstein mountains near Cape Town.