No one could have predicted Alan Jackson, who worked in the mailroom of The Nashville Network (TNN), would become a household name in the country music industry three decades ago.
‘Chasin’ That Neon Rainbow,’ and ‘I’d Love You All Over Again,’ from his debut album, Here in the Real World,’ spawned an astonishing streak of number-one singles.
‘Remember When,’ and ‘Chattahoochee,’ among Alan’s other hits, all included his unique modern sound, a combination of honky-tonk and ballroom ballad.’ He sold over sixty million albums worldwide and had twenty-six No. 1 country hits on the Billboard charts.
But none of it would have been possible without Denise Jackson, his wife.
His Wife and Alan Jackson
On December 15, 1979, Alan married his wife. After his marriage, Alan, who grew up singing gospel music, performed with his band Dixie Steel at local clubs and concentrated on his songwriting.
When his wife spotted country-pop legend Glen Campbell waiting for a flight, he got the chance of a lifetime. She approached him and handed him a demo cassette from Alan, explaining that he was an aspiring country singer.
Glen gave her his music publishing company’s business card, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Alan was the first country musician to be signed to Arista Records, which has since signed performers such as Carrie Underwood. Jackson went on to become one of country music’s biggest performers, but it came at the expense of his marriage.
After Alan had been unfaithful in their marriage, the couple split up for a few months in 1997. They did not, however, divorce for good and instead sought help from a marriage counselor to work through their issues.
Denise said in her book It’s All About Him, published in 2007, that her newfound Christian faith helped them save their marriage. She told People that the bump in their relationship gave them the opportunity to establish the marriage they’d always desired.
Alan Jackson and His Daughters (Alan Jackson and His Daughters)
Alan and Denise are the proud parents of three girls.
Mattie Denise Jackson Selecman, their oldest child, was born on June 19, 1990, just months after Alan’s successful debut album Here in the Real World.
She was married to Ben Selecman, an assistant district attorney.
The pair originally met in 2015 and married in October of that year.
Ben, however, died just 11 months after their wedding after suffering a catastrophic brain injury that led to his death while on vacation in Florida. He stumbled and banged his head while assisting a woman to board a boat.
Alan and Denise welcomed their second daughter, Alexandra Jane Jackson, on August 23, 1993, three years after Mattie was born. Her husband, Sam Bradshaw, is her current husband.
Dani Grace Jackson, the youngest daughter, was born on August 28, 1997. Little is known about her, and it appears that she prefers to keep her personal life private.
