The Lesser-Known Things About The Jackson Family

It’s no secret that the Jackson family have built an empire for themselves throughout their many years in the limelight. Sadly, things haven’t always been simple for them. From legal scandals to personal issues and everything in between, it seems the Jacksons are still trying to keep some of their deepest secrets away from the limelight.

Joe and Katherine Jackson were worried about the bad neighborhood they lived in

Joe and Katherine are the pair behind the famous Jackson children: Janet, La Toya, Rebbie, Randy, Marlon, Jermaine, Tito, Jackie, and Michael. Together, they grew to become one of the most famous families of all time, but it seems that things got off to a bumpy start for the group. That was largely thanks to the neighborhood they grew up in.

The Jacksons lived in Gary, Indiana, with the family later telling GQ Magazine that it “wasn’t the safest place to live.” Apparently, Joe constantly worried about his children getting caught up with gangs and illegal substances, so he often made his sons move bricks from one side of the yard to the other and back again. This was all before music dominated the family.

Katherine filed for divorce twice but never went through with the proceedings

Believe it or not, but things might not have been all roses behind closed doors. That’s because Katherine Jackson filed for divorce not once but twice throughout their marriage. La Toya later confessed that her mom never thought about splitting the family, but documents released by Fox News appear to paint a different story. The first came in 1973.

However, Katherine allegedly changed her mind when she spoke to elders within her church. Joe later admitted that the couple put their differences aside when they realized they loved one another. Still, the bliss didn’t last as Katherine filed for divorce again six years later, stating she was unhappy and their relationship was strained. That was until someone convinced her to change her mind again.

Joe Jackson fathered a child while he was still married to Katherine

Although we now know that Katherine filed for two divorces throughout her marriage, not everyone knows the real reason for the second split. It turns out that was all to do with Joe – and the fact he was unfaithful to his wife. In the end, Katherine and Joe lived in separate houses, with the former living in California and the latter in Las Vegas.

In 1974, Joe welcomed a new member to the family as Joh’Vonnie was born. The daughter completed Joe’s 25-year affair with Cheryle Terrell, but things weren’t simple. Joh’Vonnie later opened up about her relationship with her family in her book. Here, she stated that she always got along with her father and called him “dad.’” However, Joh’Vonnie says she wasn’t that close with her half-siblings.

The Jacksons weren’t allowed to play outside as Joe wanted them to focus on music

It seems that Joe Jackson might have been more focused on building a musical career for his family than any of his children. Sadly, the dedication to becoming stars meant the children lost out on several aspects of a typical childhood. Jermaine later told The Guardian that Joe was always cold towards the kids, never said that he loved them, and that no one could remember “him holding us or cuddling us.”

In the end, the obsession with becoming a famous musical group took over, as Joe banned his children from spending any of their free time playing outside or spending time with other children. Instead, he wanted them to grow together, so everyone had to practice music for up to five hours a day after school.

The children, especially Michael, were terrified of their father

It’s one thing to push your children to achieve their true potential, but it’s another to force them into doing something so much that they’re terrified of you. Sadly, this appears to be what happened to most of the Jackson children when it came to Joe, especially Michael. The Associated Press is one of the many publications to report on it all.

It’s said that Micahel would often get physically ill whenever he saw his father as he was so scared of Joe. Janet also admitted to the Associated Press that none of the kids were allowed to call Joe “dad.” Instead, they were made to call him “Joseph.” The behavior was enough for all of them to separate from Joe as soon as they were adults.

Joe Jackson would reportedly abuse the children if they made any mistake

It might come as little surprise that the Jackson children were afraid of Joe when people learned about what allegedly took place behind closed doors. The Guardian reports that he would often use a cord or belt to abuse the children, especially if any of them made mistakes while they were practicing.

To make matters worse, claims state that Joe would use a branch cut off a tree if there was nothing else available. It’s often been said that Michael would get the worst of it. This could have been to do with the fact that Michael allegedly became aware of the size of his house and was embarrassed at school, leading to Joe reportedly calling his son “Big Nose.”

The Jackson 5 were expected to perform no matter what

Being a child performer nowadays comes with plenty of rules about how long someone is able to work and how to balance the work-school life. Sadly, it appears they were things missing from the Jackson children’s lives through their childhood. Jermaine Jackson later wrote the book ‘You Are Not Alone: Michael’ where he opened up about what life was like behind closed doors.

Jermaine claims that they were forced to spend their weekends on the road. They would also allegedly get home at 2 am on school nights after a performance. To top it off, Jermaine wrote that Joe was once jumped by a group of men in front of his sons. Rather than cancel the show, Joe told the group they still had to perform.

Michael Jackson’s childhood led him to live out childhood fantasies throughout his adult life

There was plenty that intrigued many people across the globe about Michael Jackson’s life. One of the many on the list was how he always seemed to be living as though he was still a child, even though he was a grown man. After all, Michael was the one behind his private ranch Neverland’ in California.

Inside, the zoo and fairground rides were enough of an indication that something might have been wrong. That, teamed with Michael’s song ‘Childhood’ that speaks about how his true emotions, sheds light on the situation. He sings that “no one understands me” and how he loves “elementary things,” seemingly showing the world that Michael was trying to enjoy the childhood he never had throughout his younger years.

Working on solo music meant the Jackson 5 started to lose popularity

The Jackson 5 needed mere weeks to become one of the biggest-selling bands of all time. The group’s first album hit shelves in 1969 and saw the brothers go down as superstars. The time was filled with plenty of families wanting to reach the stars, but there was something about the Jackson 5 that quickly saw them compared to the likes of the Beatles.

Sadly, like most good things, it had to come to an end. Working on the group’s music was one thing, but all of the Jackson kids wanted to craft their own careers, meaning they also released solo music as time went on. It was branching out on their own that appeared to be the beginning of the end for the Jackson 5.

No longer having Jermaine Jackson in the group hurt album sales even more

There aren’t many times that someone has been able to change something major about their career and come out the other side. It seems the same can be said for the Jackson 5. To start, the group was signed to Motown before they left a few years later and signed to Epic Records instead. Joe later confessed that while the former sold singles, the latter sold records.

This came at an important time, as Jermaine Jackson – aka the founding member of the band – had decided to stick with Motown and walk away from the Jackson 5. Jermaine had settled with a new wife and wanted to work on his solo career, leading to a group name change to Jacksons amid the move.

There were plenty of rumors of a feud between Michael and Jermaine Jackson

Throughout the years, there have been plenty of famous sibling rivalries, especially when it comes to the world of music. It appears the same can be said for Jermaine and Michael Jackson, not that either of them ever seemed to let on that something was brewing beneath the surface. Jermaine released the song ‘Word to the Bad!’ in 1991, and it wasn’t long before fans believed it was a diss track aimed at Michael.

However, Jermaine has a different story. He claims that rather than trying to pen a diss track, he hoped that Michael would “get a grip on reality.” This reportedly came after Michael approached two producers about working on his music shortly after Jermaine had planned to work with the duo.

Jermaine allegedly always thought he should have had the fame Michael enjoyed

Being Michael’s older brother meant that Jermaine was always going to be there to look out for his siblings. However, one thing many don’t know is how Jermaine was allegedly obsessed with this brother. Rumors claim that Jermaine was always jealous of Michael’s fame and fortune, but things went further than being a little envious.

Stacy Brown grew to become a good family friend with the Jacksons and claims that Jermaine would rant about Michael almost every day, stating, “That should have been me” and how he should have been the one with all the top singles and albums. Even though things appeared to be a little strained throughout the years, Jermaine has consistently defended his brother, even since his passing.

Two Jackson brothers have spent time in police custody throughout the years

It’s no secret that Michael Jackson had his fair number of brushes with the law. However, one thing that slipped through the net is how two of his siblings also ended up behind bars throughout their lives. The first came in 1991 when Randy Jackson was arrested for domestic violence toward his wife and daughter.

Randy was ultimately sentenced to two years probation and one month in jail. Several years later, in 2015, Jermaine called the police on his then-wife, Halima Rashid. He claimed that Halima bit him, and she was arrested while they investigated. In the end, they dropped the charges against Halima as the police couldn’t determine who was the aggressor in it all and therefore couldn’t make a case.

La Toya Jackson accused her father of abuse but later redacted the claims

One of the many things that have got people talking about the Jackson family over the years is what is true and what’s not. That’s not helped by the fact that some of the family members have confused matters. La Toya Jackson is a part of one of the most prominent families of all time, yet she has remained pretty tight-lipped about life behind closed doors.

That was until she spoke out against Michael among all of his legal issues. La Toya even went as far as claiming that Joe behaved inappropriately behind closed doors when she was younger. That was until La Toya spoke to The Daily Beast in 2011, as the musician retracted both claims and said that life with her ex-husband made her make false claims.

Claims made against Michael Jackson and minors permanently affected his career

Things took a major turn for Michael Jackson in 1993 when he was accused of inappropriate behavior with a minor. It was the first time that someone had brought claims against the singer, but it was the start of the downfall that came of his career. In the end, the case was settled out of court as there was a lack of evidence to convict Michael.

However, that didn’t stop the same accusations from hitting the headlines in later years. 2005 saw Michael in the headlines for all the wrong reasons, but he was yet again acquitted of all charges due to a lack of evidence. Even though he was always found not guilty, Michael’s career never managed to bounce back from the accusations.

A source claims that La Toya Jackson also knew about Michael’s alleged behavior

Stacy Brown has been close to the Jackson family for years and has spilled several secrets from what life is like for the siblings behind closed doors. Stacy admitted he first met them all as a young fan and described the Jacksons as “the strangest family in America” during a piece for the New York Post.

Stacy continued to write about the Jacksons throughout the years, including how La Toya might have known more than she let on to the rest of the world. According to the journalist, La Toya actually believed that all of the accusations against Michael and his alleged inappropriate behavior toward minors was true. Although La Toya has never directly addressed the allegations, she has never come forward to say Stacy’s claims are untrue.

They also state that the rest of the Jackson’s supposedly knew about the supposed behavior

Things didn’t stop with La Toya allegedly knowing about Michael’s reported behavior behind closed doors. Stacy Brown continued to write about how she supposedly knew the Jackson family was willing to give anyone $1 million to keep quiet. After all, they’re one of the most famous families of all time. $1 million is just pocket change, right?

Stacy continued to add that La Toya knew her mom had written to Michael about his behavior in a series of letters. It wasn’t until the family hit hard times following one of the legal battles that things were allegedly repossessed from the home. Stacy claims that one of these items was a selection of Katherine’s letters where she called her son an offensive anti-LGBTQ slur.

Michael Jackson was found unresponsive at his home just weeks before his final farewell tour

Even though he had been in and out of the headlines for all the wrong reasons, Michael Jackson still had plenty of global fans. That’s why so many people were excited when the ‘This Is It’ tour was announced in March 2009. It was supposed to be a ten-show tour in London but quickly expanded to a whopping 50 shows.

That was until just three weeks before the farewell tour as people learned that Michael had been found unresponsive in his home. He was in Los Angeles at the time and under the care of his personal doctor, Conrad Murray. It’s said that Conrad tried to resuscitate the legend, and paramedics eventually took him to the hospital. Tragically, they announced that Michael was gone at just 50 years old.

A combination of medication and failure to alert professionals ultimately ended Michael’s life

An investigation into Michael’s passing was immediately launched as people wanted to know how he could have passed away at such a young age. It turns out that Conrad Murray had prescribed the singer a host of medication to help Michael sleep as he was struggling to rest in the build-up for the tour. At the time, Michael was allegedly hooked to an IV and given a host of other medication.

However, after a few minutes out of the room, Conrad returned and found him unresponsive, leading him to use counteractive medication. To top things off, reports claim that Conrad didn’t call paramedics for an hour. The doctor was eventually charged with accidentally taking someone’s life and sentenced to four years in prison in 2011.

The family nanny claimed the overdoses were common, and she was fired for trying to help

Several stories quickly emerged about Michael Jackson and his final days. The children’s nanny was one of the many to talk about it all, as Grace Rwaramba told UK publications that she was forced to “pump his stomach many times.” Grace continued to open up about how Michael was known for “[eating] too little and [mixing] too much.”

Sadly, it appears that the singer’s issues could have been brewing for many months behind the scenes. Grace told the world that things were sometimes so bad that she wouldn’t “let the children see him” and even told Katherine and Janet’s issues. However, Grace claims that talking to the Jacksons lost her the job as Michael believed that she had betrayed him.

Paris and Michael Jr. have always had a strained relationship with their mother

Losing a parent is usually enough to turn most children’s lives upside down. It can be even worse when you’re still young, as was the case with Micahel Jackson’s children he left behind. Paris was just 11 years old at the time, while Micahel Jr. – better known as Prince – was 13. Blanket, now called Bigi, was just seven but was born to an unknown surrogate.

Paris and Prince were welcomed into the world by Debbie Rose during her marriage with Micahel, but things didn’t work out, and the couple eventually went their separate ways. Sadly, it seems that walking away from the marriage was also enough to see Debbie become a minor part of her children’s lives, later confessing she almost completely removed herself.

Paris Jackson has tried to take her own life multiple times throughout the years

Being Michael Jackson’s only daughter meant that all eyes were on Paris, especially as she was often referred to as the singer’s favorite child. Tragically, losing her dad so suddenly and at such a young age took a significant toll on the youngster who has been dealing with the repercussions ever since. Paris has since opened up about being a teenager without her father.

She confessed to inappropriate behavior that took place when she was just 14 years old and trying to take her life just one year later. Sadly, Paris later told Rolling Stone that this wasn’t the first incident, “It was just once that it became public.” In 2019, TMZ reported Paris was in the hospital again, but she claims this wasn’t an attempt on her life.

The youngster has since blamed the amount of cyberbullying she faced for her dark times

Tragically, it’s not just losing her father that’s seen Paris try to take her own life a handful of times throughout the years. In 2013, The Sun reported that it was due to news that Paris and Prince might not have the same father. Apparently, the pair were aware that Michael might not be their biological father, but they always believed they were entirely related.

The report claims that Paris took the news badly and instantly went into a downward spiral. However, in 2016, Paris wrote on social media that many of her feelings have come from cyberbullies and the hatred she’s faced throughout her life. Although Paris was once posing photos that hinted toward her taking her life, things seem to be on track nowadays.

Jermaine Jackson lent on Whitney Houston as he grieved for his brother

It’s no secret to many that Jermaine Jackson and Whitney Houston have always been close. The pair shared a love of Michael and his music and have often been spotted together throughout the years. Perhaps that’s why so few were surprised when Jermaine was spotted leaning on Whitney when he learned about his brother’s passing?

Jermaine spoke about his friendship with Whitney in his 2011 book, ‘You Are Not Alone: Michael,’ where he confessed the singer was there for him throughout his grieving period. It seemed to shine a light on how things were between the pair behind closed doors. However, some claim that things might not have been entirely platonic between the couple, and it was all hidden from the media.

Stories now claim that Whitney and Jermaine were once in a relationship

The Sun reports that a source states Jermaine deliberately left details out of his book to make it seem as though he was nothing more than friends with the singer. They continued to add that Jermaine and Whitney dated for a year in 1984, and it only came to an end because he refused to walk away from his marriage at the time to Hazel Gordy.

To make matters even more confusing, the source believes that Whitney’s hit ‘Saving All My Love for You’ in 1985 was about Jermaine. Sadly, Whitney hasn’t had a chance to talk about the claims as the story broke after she lost her life in 2012. Jermaine has also remained tight-lipped about the entire situation.

Jermaine stole Randy Jackson’s girlfriend and later married in secret

It appears that Jermaine Jackson might have had more run-ins with his siblings than many ever realized. After all, it appears that it wasn’t just his feud and jealousy of Michael that dominated his time. The New York Post reports that Alejandra Oaziaza dated Randy for several years, and the pair eventually welcomed two children into the world.

Still, that wasn’t enough for Jermaine to reportedly swoop in while his brother Randy was on the road and winning over Alejandra. It’s said that not only did Jermaine and Alejandra fall for one another, but they secretly wed in 1995. Throughout the years, the couple welcomed three children, something that permanently affected Jermaine and Randy’s relationship. However, the couple divorced in 2004.

Tanay claims she is Tito Jackson’s illegitimate daughter

Perhaps you’ve never heard of Tanay Jackson? While she might not be a part of the original Jackson family that rose to fame all those years ago, she wants the world to know that she is allegedly the secret daughter of Tito and is a rightful part of the family. Tanay says that she is a fashion designer, model, songwriter, and singer, but that’s not all.

Radar Online reports that she has documentation that proves she is related to Tito – including a birth certificate with his name listed as her father – but Tanay says she doesn’t need to “justify her DNA.” The Jacksons? They state that Tanay is merely trying to use their family name to further her career and don’t believe the rumors.

Dee Dee, Tito’s ex-wife, lost her life shortly after they split

It seems that not everything that happens within the Jackson family is directly related to the siblings. Other times, it’s things that are out of their control that cause shockwaves through the family. That was the case for Tito Jackson and his children when they learned that Dolores – better known as Dee Dee – had lost her life.

The pair had gone their separate ways, and Dee Dee was in a new relationship with 61-year-old businessman Donald Bohana at the time. However, the Daily News reports that Donald was completely broke. Plus, the pair had only been dating for three months when Dee Dee was found to have lost her life at Donald’s house after seemingly drowning in the home’s pool.

Tito and his children campaigned to seek justice for Dee Dee

The news was enough to have devastating effects on Tito and the three sons she left behind. It wasn’t long before TJ, Taryll, Tariano, and Tito all filed a Superior Court complaint as they believed that Donald Bohana ended Dee Dee’s life over money. The four claimed Donald wanted his new girlfriend to bail him out and snapped when she refused.

Her three sons even went as far as saying that the attack lasted for hours before Dee Dee ultimately lost her life in the swimming pool. The Los Angeles Times reports that a jury believed everything the sons had to say and eventually found Donald guilty of taking someone’s life in the second degree. Tito later described Dee Dee as a “well-caring mother.”

Janet eloping with James DeBarge was a major scandal until Joe had the marriage annulled

What happens when you’re head over heels in love and want to be with someone you believe to be the one only to learn your family is less than impressed? If you’re Janet Jackson, then it seems you run away and elope with James DeBarge. The pair walked down the aisle in 1984 when Janet was just 18 years old.

However, their marriage quickly became the talk of the town as Joe was less than impressed, and people couldn’t believe that Janet had run away from her family. Sadly, the bliss wasn’t to last. It later emerged that James was addicted to illegal substances, which didn’t sit well with Joe. In the end, he had the marriage annulled, and Janet was made to walk away from the relationship.

Some people claim Janet gave birth to a secret child from her marriage

Janet Jackson has long been considered as one of the less scandalous members of the Jackson family. Still, that doesn’t mean that her life has been entirely without drama throughout the years – and it’s not only the Super Bowl wardrobe malfunction that’s got people talking. It seems that many believe that Janet was pregnant when she was married to James DeBarge.

As if that wasn’t enough, they claim that Janet welcomed a daughter named Renee, who was ultimately sent to live with Janet’s sister, Rebbie. This is all according to James’ younger brother, Young. However, People magazine states it’s not possible. After a little digging, they learned that Renee was born in 1986 or ’87, years after Janet and James’ marriage ended.

Brandon Howard is the most likely of all of Michael Jackson’s supposed secret children

Would it be the Jackson family without someone claiming to be a secret child? It appears not. While plenty of people have come forward to say the King of Pop is their dad, it seems that none of them are as credible as Brandon Howard. TMZ reports that a DNA test proved Brandon and Michael have a 99.9% match.

However, this might not be a trustworthy test as Michael’s DNA was obtained from a 30-year-old dental impression bought at an auction. Brandon’s mother, Miki Howard, claims that she went by Billie – aka Billie Jean – in the ‘80s when she met Michael. Although Brandon has distanced himself from the family, it raises questions about the line, “but the kid is not my son” in Michael’s famous hit.

Taj Jackson claims that he was abused and relied on Michael to help

Tragically, it appears there are plenty of things that are common within the Jackson family – and some of them are a lot darker than others. One seems to be inappropriate behavior, as Tito’s son Taj claims that he was the victim of an attack when he was a child. The Daily Mail reports that Taj was abused by one of his mother’s relatives but hasn’t released a name.

That’s not all. It’s also said the youngster relied on his uncle Michael to help make it through the ordeal, as well as his mom Dee Dee. The entire story only emerged in 2013 as Taj wanted to defend Michael’s name against Wade Robson, who claimed the King of Pop was behind inappropriate behavior years before.

Marlon Jackson once had a twin brother who passed away as an infant

For many years, the Jacksons had been busy working on their own careers and lives. It wasn’t until Michael Jackson lost his life in 2013 that they came back together for the first time in years. However, this was also a chance for several people to pay their respects to other lost members of the family, including Marlson’s tribute.

He took to the stage to talk about Michael, but Marlon also wanted to take a moment to talk about Brandon, his twin, who passed away just 24 hours after they were born. Apparently, Marlon and Bradon were born prematurely, and only one survived. Marlon spoke about how he wished Michael would “give our brother, my twin brother Brandon, a hug from me” now he was gone too.

Jermaine’s son might have tried to use a stun-gun on Blanket after Michael’s passing

Jermaine’s relationship with his children has been a little tumultuous throughout the years. Sadly, that might have come to a head in 2010 when the family came together. Katherine was looking after Michael’s three children now the King of Pop was gone, and it wasn’t long before Randy and Jermaine’s children with Alejandro joined the brood.

ABC News reports that officers were called to the scene due to reports of an incident taking place. Only when they arrived did they learn that Jermaine’s 13-year-old son Jaafar was using a stun-gun he purchased online. One person claims Jaafar tried to use it on paper in the bathroom, while others state he was chasing Blanket around the home before security caught them and intervened.