As it turns out, Janet Jackson and her famous set of siblings are not the only musical geniuses in the Jackson family tree.
During an appearance on BBC’s “Radio 2 Breakfast Show,” the “Rhythm Nation” singer, 58, revealed that she’s related to not one, not two, but three extremely famous artists outside of the Jackson Five.
Tracy Chapman, Stevie Wonder, and Samuel L. Jackson are reportedly all among her cousins.
“He’s our cousin,” Janet said, speaking of Stevie Wonder. “Not a lot of people know that. He’s our cousin on my mother’s side. So is Tracy Chapman.”
After confirming that Chapman, 60, and Wonder, 74, were her cousins, Janet jokingly noted that Samuel L. Jackson, 75, “would be a cousin too — I mean, he’s not my brother.”
However, this may be news to the “Argyle” actor, who has previously denied being related to Michael Jackson. He denied the claim during a video feature for Wired magazine, where he answered the popular internet question with a resounding “nope.”
Janet, born Janet Damita Jo Jackson, famously grew up among her iconic Jackson Five brothers – which included Jermaine, 69, Tito, 70, Marlon, 67, and the late Michael – her brother, Randy, 62, and her sisters Rebbie, 74, and La Toya, 68. Janet is mom to son Eissa Al Mana, 7, whom she shares with her former husband Wissam Al Mana. Other notables in the Jackson family also include Michael’s children, actress and singer Paris, 26, Jackson Prince, 27, and Bigi, 22, and Jermaine’s 28-year-old son Jaafar, who will portray his late uncle in the upcoming biopic “Michael.”
As for Janet, the pop star is gearing up for a European tour kicking off in early September in Paris. She plans to make multiple stops in the UK as well as Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands.