Jermaine Jackson

Jermaine Jackson is an American singer, bassist and songwriter best known for his work with The Jackson 5 and later The Jacksons. He was born in Gary, Indiana, as one of the eldest children in the Jackson family. Jermaine attended Birmingham High School before leaving early as the group’s music career accelerated. He learned vocals, instrumentation and recording under Motown Records’ in-house development led by Berry Gordy.

Jermaine cofounded The Jackson 5 with his brothers Jackie, Tito, Marlon and Michael Jackson, performing as a vocalist and the group’s bass player. The group became an international success in the ’70s with “ABC,” “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” and “I’ll Be There.” In 1975, when most of his brothers left Motown, Jermaine remained with the label but later rejoined his siblings in 1983 as they continued their career as The Jacksons.

As a solo artist, Jermaine has released multiple albums. His 1980 release, Let’s Get Serious, produced by Stevie Wonder, became his most commercially successful project. He also recorded albums including Come Into My Life (1973) and collaborated with Whitney Houston on duets for her debut album. He later produced music for the R&B group Switch.

Jermaine was wed to Gordy’s daughter Hazel from 1973 to 1988. The two share children Jermaine II, Autumn and Jaimy. He later had two sons with Margaret Maldonado — Jeremy and Jourdynn — whom he was in a relationship with from 1986 to 1993. In 1995, he married Alejandra Genevieve Oaziaza, with whom he shares sons Jaafar and Jermajesty. The singer eloped with Halima Rashid in 2004, and, in 2015, she filed for divorce.