Jimmie Allen was “broke” when he found out he was going to be a first-time dad: “I was scared”

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ABC/Image Group LAThese days, Jimmie Allen is a successful country star and proud papa to two children, 6-year-old Aadyn and 3-month-old Naomi. But years ago, when he first found out that Aadyn’s mother was pregnant, the “Best Shot” singer admits that his life was in a much more turbulent place.

“I was broke when I had my son,” Jimmie recalls in a new Dad Talk segment of PeopleTV. “I was working three jobs — I was a server, a janitor at an elementary school, and I was collecting trash for waste management.”

When he got a phone call from Aadyn’s mom to tell him that he was going to be a father, the singer says the news took a toll.

“I’m not gonna lie, I wasn’t excited at first. I was nervous, I was scared and I was sick. I didn’t leave the house for, like, two days. I just laid on the bed,” he remembers.

The singer goes on to say that the prospect of fatherhood was especially daunting because, at the time, he was a struggling musician. He feared that having a child to provide for would hamper his dreams of making it as a performer. However, that turned out not to be the case: In fact, Jimmie’s career luck quickly took a turn after Aadyn was born.

“The crazy thing is, after I had my son, that next year, I got a publishing deal. The next year, I got a record deal,” Jimmie adds.

Jimmie’s hesitation to become a dad was short-lived. Now, he loves fatherhood, and his social media is full of adorable family photos to prove it. Dad life seems to be getting better and better for the singer: He and his fiancée, Alexis Gale, welcomed baby Naomi in March.

By Carena Liptak
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