Jermaine Jackson | |
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 Jackson in 2017 | |
| Born | Jermaine LaJuane Jackson (1954-12-11)December 11, 1954 (age 70) Gary, Indiana, U.S. |
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| Years active | 1964–2022[1] |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 7, includingJaafar |
| Parents | |
| Family | Jackson |
| Musical career | |
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| Formerly of | |
Musical artist | |
| Website | jermainejacksonentertainment |
Jermaine LaJuane Jacksun[2] (néJackson; born December 11, 1954) is an American retired singer, songwriter, bass player, and member of theJackson family. From 1964 to 1975, Jermaine was second vocalist after his brotherMichael ofthe Jackson 5, and played bass guitar. In 1983, he rejoined the group, which had been renamed the Jacksons; he then consistently played in the group's performances and recordings until he left the group again in 2020.
While Jermaine did not usually sing the lead vocal on the Jackson Five's biggest hits, he is featured on "I'll Be There" and "I Want You Back", among others. When four of the brothers left Motown Records for Epic Records in 1976 (having to rename the family act "the Jacksons" in the process), Jermaine, who had just married Motown founderBerry Gordy's daughter Hazel, stayed atMotown. He was replaced in the Jacksons by his youngest brother,Randy. Jermaine had a solo career concurrent with his brother Michael's, including some top-30 hits, until the 1980s. He produced and recorded duets withWhitney Houston on her debut album in 1985, and was a producer for the bandSwitch. After seven years outside the group he rejoined the Jacksons, and remained until 2020 through various breakups and reunions.
Jermaine was born December 11, 1954, at St Mary's Mercy Hospital inGary, Indiana,[3][4] He is the fourth child born toJoseph andKatherine Jackson.[4] His siblings areRebbie,Jackie,Tito,La Toya,Marlon, Brandon (Marlon's twin who died shortly after birth in 1957),Michael,Randy, andJanet.[5] Jackson's father Joe had musical aspirations, playing guitar with his brother Luther in an R&B band, the Falcons, and his mother Katherine, a devoutJehovah's Witness, was a passionate pianist and singer.[4] Their large family and limited means made them refocus, with Katherine becoming a housewife, and Joe a steel mill worker at nearbyInland Steel Company inEast Chicago, Indiana, where they lived before moving toGary in 1950.[5]
While his father, Joe, worked long hours as a crane operator, Jermaine and his brothers, Tito and Jackie, secretly practiced their own songs using Joe's guitar, and they sang harmonies with their mother Katherine.[4] Jermaine became the original lead singer, and also played the bass in the Jackson Brothers, an earlier incarnation ofthe Jackson 5 until 1966, when younger brother Michael began singing lead.[6] Father Joe began rehearsing his sons under a strict regimen when he realized their potential, seeing his sons' talent as a way out of Gary.[7] Jermaine would continue to provide some leads over the years.[6] Jermaine graduated fromBirmingham High School inVan Nuys, Los Angeles, California, in 1973.[8]
Jermaine and his brothers first signed as the Jackson 5 withGordon Keith ofSteeltown Records in November 1967, and their first single "Big Boy", was released on January 31, 1968.[9] After the group recorded three more songs with the Steeltown label (on two records) they were signed withBerry Gordy ofMotown Records in 1969.[6] As the second lead singer of the Jackson 5 with his brothers Jackie and Michael, Jermaine sang notable parts of "I Want You Back", "ABC", "I'll Be There", "The Love You Save", "Dancing Machine" and many other Jackson 5 songs.[6] Jermaine performed as part of the group for six years.[4] Not feeling that they were being paid fair royalties by Motown Records for their success as well as their desire for creative control, the Jackson 5 decided to leave the label and sign withEpic Records in 1975.[10] However, Jermaine decided to stay with Motown Records, citing loyalty to the company as the reason. Others argue that Jermaine's marriage to Motown founderBerry Gordy's daughter Hazel, whom he married in 1973, was a deciding factor.[4]
Jermaine split from the Jackson Five to start a solo career at Motown, and was replaced by his brotherRandy.[4] Unbeknownst to the group, Gordy had trademarked the name Jackson Five and did not allow the group to continue using the name when they left the label.[4] Once signed with Epic, the group became known simply as the Jacksons. In 1983, Gordy asked the group to perform at theMotown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever television special.[11] After the success of the broadcast, Jermaine finally rejoined the band to record the albumVictory which featured all six brothers on the Jackson's album cover.[11] Jermaine also participated in the band'sVictory Tour.[11] He stayed with the group for their final album,2300 Jackson Street, in 1989.[4] Jermaine performed the song "If You'd Only Believe" on March 15, 1993, with his brothers Jackie, Tito and Randy, on the stage of the Grand Théâtre de Genève for the evening of the Nations.[12] He also performed this song alone, on January 14, 1990, in Atlanta, in tribute toMartin Luther King Jr., during King Week 90 '.[13] In 1997, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the Jackson 5. In 2001, he reunited with his brothers to perform for the Michael Jackson30th Anniversary Special.[14]
LikeMichael, Jermaine began a solo career while still a member of the Jackson 5, and had a hit with the 1972Shep and the Limelites cover "Daddy's Home". It sold over one million copies by March 1973, and was awarded agold disc.[15] When the Jackson 5 left Motown in 1975, Jermaine left the group and stayed at the label until 1983, when he finally rejoined his brothers for theMotown 25 television special, and their albumVictory the following year.[4] Jermaine was nominated for theGrammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for his 1980 albumLet's Get Serious.[4] He had a number ofBillboard top-30 hits throughout the 1970s and 1980s, including "Daddy's Home" (No. 9), "That's How Love Goes", "Let's Be Young Tonight", "Bass Odyssey", "Feel the Fire", "Let Me Tickle Your Fancy" (featuringDevo on backing vocals) (No. 18), "Let's Get Serious" (No. 9, also one of his only two UK hits, peaking at No. 8), "Dynamite" (No. 15), "Do What You Do" (No. 13), and "I Think It's Love" (No. 16).[4] A duet with his brother Michael, "Tell Me I'm Not Dreamin' (Too Good to Be True)", hit number one on thedance chart in 1984.[4] Michael and he also collaborated withRockwell, both providing guest vocals on his 1984 hit single, "Somebody's Watching Me".[4]
In 1985, his duet withPia Zadora, "When the Rain Begins to Fall", topped several singles charts in Europe, including Germany and France; in the United States, the duet only reached number 54 on the Billboard charts.[16] His final chart success, 1989's "Don't Take It Personal", hit number one on theR&B singles chart.[4] Some of Jermaine's finest moments as a singer can be heard in the soulful "Castles of Sand" and theEarth Wind & Fire-inspired "You Need to Be Loved".[17] Jermaine was the executive producer ofthe Jackson Family Honors concert televised from theMGM Grand on February 22, 1994.[18] On May 19, 2003, he performed "Let's Start Right Now" live on the talk showThe View, hosted byBarbara Walters.[19]
Jackson is proficient on the electric guitar and is a talented bass guitar player.[4] At an early age, he performed the parts of legendary bass playerJames Jamerson and others when the Five performed live.[4] His main instrument was aGibson EB-3.[20] Jermaine also composed and produced for other artists, such as Switch and he produced and sang duets onWhitney Houston's debut album forArista Records.[4] Jackson is featured on theSwitch track "Tahiti Hut" released in 2019, recorded during theReaching for Tomorrow sessions.
Jackson was the first housemate to enter theCelebrity Big Brother 5 house in 2007, which he placed 2nd.[4] After leavingBig Brother, Jackson did several interviews on UK television explaining why and how he took his peaceful and mediating stance in theBig Brother house. He also spoke about the Jackson Five reuniting for a performance.[21] Jackson was part of the second season of the CMT reality showGone Country.[22] On the premiere episode of season three of the ABC reality showCelebrity Wife Swap[23] on April 15, 2014, Jackson and his wife Halima swapped places withDaniel Baldwin and his on-again, off-again girlfriend Isabella Hofmann.[24]
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In April 2007, Jackson returned to the UK to take part in a one-off special of ITV'sChallenge Anneka. On the same trip, he appeared in Glasgow with British Prime MinisterGordon Brown, speaking in support ofSearchlight magazine's anti racism campaign, theDaily Mirror "Hope Not Hate Bus".[25]
On November 23, 2007, Jackson appeared onKatie & Peter: Unleashed and again talked of a reunion with his brothers on a tour the following year. In 2008, Jackson flew to Australia to be a guest judge and mentor for the top-five Michael Jackson night onAustralian Idol. In March 2008, Jackson was the guest of honor at theMuslim Writers Awards in Birmingham. In 2009, following his brother Michael's passing, Jermaine appeared on the A&E television seriesThe Jacksons: A Family Dynasty, documenting what was supposed to be a 40th-anniversary reunion between Jermaine and his brothers.[26] The series lasted one season and Jermaine, along with his three brothers, was listed as an executive producer.[26] In October 2010, Jermaine played a concert at thePlanet Hollywood hotel and casino inLas Vegas, naming it "40 Years of Jackson Music" and dedicating the concert to Michael.[27] He wrote the memoirYou Are Not Alone: Michael Through a Brother's Eyes (2011).[28]
In a 2012 interview with Luka Neskovic, forThe Huffington Post, Jackson said that his brother planned a reunion with him: "... the plan was to do some shows with the brothers, as well, after he finished his commitment with theThis Is It [concert], and we probably gonna do some songs with him on the This Is It tour".[29] In October 2012, Jackson releasedI Wish You Love, his first solo album in 21 years, consisting mostly ofjazz covers.[30] The album was arranged and produced by French opera singerDavid Serero, who recorded a duet on "Autumn Leaves" with Jermaine, and was released by David Serero Productions.[31] They both performedYou Are Not Alone: The Musical, written, directed and produced by Serero, in France in January 2013. The following year,You Are Not Alone: The Musical Live was released on video and audio.[32][33]
Jackson has been married and divorced three times, and has seven children.[4] His first marriage was to Hazel Gordy, the daughter ofMotown founderBerry Gordy.[34] The couple were married from 1973 to 1988.[35] They had three children; Jermaine La Jaune "Jay" Jackson Jr. (born 1977), Autumn Joi Jackson (born 1978) and Jaimy Jermaine Jackson (born 1987). Jackson was in a relationship with Margaret Maldonado from 1986 until 1993. They had two sons, Jeremy Maldonado Jackson (born 1986) and Jourdynn Michael Jackson (born 1989).[4] From 1995 to 2004 he was married to Alejandra Genevieve Oaziaza, former girlfriend of his brother,Randy. They had two sons,Jaafar Jeremiah Jackson (born 1996) and Jermajesty Jermaine Jackson (born 2000).[4] In 2004, Jackson married Halima Rashid in a mosque inLos Angeles.[4][36] Rashid was arrested in 2015 in Los Angeles for alleged domestic violence.[37] She filed a petition for divorce in 2016, citing irreconcilable differences.[38]
Jermaine supported his brother, Michael, duringhis 2005 trial.[39] He came to Michael's defense on CNN'sLarry King Live and appeared with him in court on many occasions.[40] Jermaine announcedhis brother's death on June 25, 2009, at a press conference atRonald Reagan UCLA Medical Center.[41] Jermaine thanked the people that attendedMichael Jackson's memorial at theStaples Center, on July 7, 2009.[42][43] Jermaine and his brothers,Tito,Jackie,Marlon andRandy Jackson served as pallbearers wearing a gold necktie, a single white glove and sunglasses.[44]
Jackson, like the rest of his family, was raised as aJehovah's Witness. In 1989, he converted toIslam after a trip toBahrain, in which he was impressed by the local children's devotion to their religion.[45]
On December 27, 2023, a lawsuit was filed inLos Angeles Superior Court by a woman who alleged Jackson sexually assaulted her after forcing himself into her home in 1988.[46] The woman, identified as Rita Barrett, also alleged Motown Records ownerBerry Gordy assisted in covering up the abuse.[47]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
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| 1982 | The Facts of Life | Himself | Episode: "Starstruck" |
| 1984 | Voyage of the Rock Aliens | Rain | |
| As the World Turns | Concert Performer | ||
| 2007 | Celebrity Big Brother | Housemate | |
| 2008 | Gone Country | Himself/contestant | 7 episodes (season 2) |
| 2013 | You Are Not Alone, the Musical | Singer | Credited as Jermaine Jacksun |
| 2014 | Celebrity Wife Swap | Himself | Episode: "Daniel Baldwin/Jermaine Jackson" |
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| Third generation | |
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