Joe Jackson (talent manager)
- For other individuals with this name, see Joe Jackson.
Joseph Walter Jackson (a.k.a Joe Jackson, born July 26 1929 is the father of the Jackson musical family, including pop music icons Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson, as well as the former manager of The Jackson 5, a group composed of his five sons.
Early life
Jackson was born in Fountain Hill, Arkansas to Crystal Lee King and Samuel Jackson.[1] Born the eldest of four, Joseph moved to Chicago to live with his mother after turning eighteen. He met future wife Katherine Scruse while there and within a couple of years the couple married. Settling in Gary, Indiana, Joseph, a former boxer, worked full-time as a crane operator at Gary's U.S. Steel company, while Katherine tended to their growing brood of children, which led to nine. In the mid-1950s, Joseph started a music career with his brother Luther playing guitar in a band called the Falcons. The group never got out of Gary and within a couple of years split up though Joseph played his guitar during sing-alongs with his wife and children.
Children
Joe and Katherine had ten children, nine of whom lived to adulthood:
- Daughter Rebbie Jackson, born May 29, 1950 (age 57)
- Son Jackie Jackson, born May 4, 1951 (age 56)
- Son Tito Jackson, born October 15, 1953 (age 54)
- Son Jermaine Jackson, born December 11, 1954 (age 53)
- Daughter La Toya Jackson, born May 29, 1956 (age 51)
- Son Marlon Jackson, born March 12, 1957 (age 50)
- Son Brandon Jackson, twin of Marlon Jackson, born March 12, 1957. Died shortly after birth.
- Son Michael Jackson, born August 29, 1958 (age 49)
- Son Randy Jackson, born October 29, 1961 (age 46)
- Daughter Janet Jackson, born May 16, 1966 (age 41)
The Jackson 5
By 1964, Joe had begun to discover that his three eldest sons, Jackie, Tito and Jermaine, had talent after they were busted for playing his guitar after a string broke. After Tito played for him and Jackie and Jermaine backed him up vocally, he helped form an early incarnation of The Jackson 5 with two neighborhood youths though eventually younger brothers Marlon and Michael joined.
Within a few years, the Jackson 5 polished their talents under Joseph's strict leadership. In 1966, the Jackson brothers turned professional and began performing in paying gigs, which paid off after the group got signed to Motown in 1969, and shortly afterwards the brothers became worldwide phenomena. Joseph's role as manager dwindled however as Motown CEO Berry Gordy began to take more charge on his act, a role that reversed back to Joseph's when he began managing the entire family for performances in Las Vegas. Joseph also helped his sons seal a deal with CBS after leaving Motown distraught that the label didn't allow the boys creative freedom in the studio.
Leaving the nest
Within a few years, however, Joseph's sons each left his management company to sign with outside managers, starting with Jermaine. In 1982, Joseph also managed the careers of his two daughters La Toya and Janet until they both also left his company for solo ventures, which afterwards saw only just Michael and Janet as the family's ultimate breadwinners.
Controversies
Joseph has often been accused by members of his family of strict parenting, especially by Michael, who has said in the past that Joseph never showed any of his children the kind of love that fathers are supposed to show their children. Michael did, however, credit his father for starting his long career, saying in a recent interview that Joseph was "a genius". Other family members share that sentiment with Jermaine and Janet saying that Joseph was able to bring his family out of their rough Gary neighborhood using his children's talents.
In other instances, Joseph has been confirmed to have committed infidelity on his wife Katherine during their long marriage at least twice. In 1974, Joseph fathered a baby with a Jackson 5 groupie, and in 1979 he was accused of having relations with a former Motown secretary. In both instances, Katherine called for a divorce but she later reversed the decision because Joseph wouldn't leave their gated mansion.
Joseph was called worse things by daughter La Toya, who wrote in her 1991 book, La Toya: Growing up in the Jackson Family, that not only was Joseph a physically abusive parent but he also sexually abused her and older sister Rebbie - charges that Rebbie denies. In spite of the rumors, however, many in the Jackson family still remain loyal to Joseph, including Michael, who says he gets along with his father now, saying "he's mellowed out a lot".
In 2003, in an interview for BBC TV, Joseph admitted to using physical punishment on his children and also voiced his disapproval of homosexuality.[2]
LaToya later recanted her story about her father and stated that her ex-husband (now deceased) Jack Gordan made her tell lies about her family for money. LaToya now resides in Las Vegas and remains close to her father, despite rumors created by those who do not know her or her father.
Current work
In late 2005, Joseph announced he would host a boot camp for aspiring hip-hop artists, both to move his career to the next stage and to change what he sees as distasteful about the genre. "Everybody is liking rap now. I'm gonna have to clean it up a little bit, all that vulgar language out there. I'm gonna have to keep that clean, with nice singing in it, and great music behind it".
Joseph currently lives in Las Vegas.
Grandchildren
Joe has 26 grandchildren:
Daughter Rebbie has 3 children:
- Stacee Brown (b. 1971)
- Yashi Brown (b. 1977)
- Austin Brown (b. November 22, 1985)
Son Jackie has 2 children:
- Sigmund Jackson, Jr. (b. June 29, 1977)
- Brandi Jackson (b. February 6, 1982)
Son Tito has 3 sons (who form the R&B group 3T):
- Toriano Adaryll Jackson "Taj" II (b. August 4, 1973)
- Taryll Adren Jackson (b. August 8, 1975)
- Tito Joseph "TJ" Jackson (b. July 16, 1978)
Son Jermaine has 8 children:
- Jermaine Lajaune "Jay" Jackson Jr. (b. January 27, 1977)
- Autumn Jackson (b. 1978)
- Dawn Jackson (b. 1985)
- Jeremy Jackson (b. 1986)
- Jaimy Jackson (b. 1987)
- Jourdyn Jackson (b. 1989)
- Jaffar Jackson (b. 1996)
- Jermajesty Jackson (b. 2000)
Daughter La Toya has no children
Son Marlon has 3 children:
- Valencia Jackson (b. 1977)
- Brittany Jackson (b. 1979)
- Marlon David Jackson Jr. (b. 1985)
Son Michael has 3 children:
- Michael Joseph Jackson Jr. (also known as Prince) (b. February 13, 1997)
- Paris Katherine Jackson (b. April 3, 1998)
- Prince Michael Jackson II (Also known as Blanket) (b. February 2002)
Son Randy has 4 children
- Genevieve Jackson (December 3, 1989)
- Stevanna Jackson (June 17, 1990)
- Steven Randall Jackson, Jr. (October 2, 1991)
- Donte Jackson (adopted) (1991)
Daughter Janet Jackson has no children.
