Janet Jackson says she's related to Stevie Wonder, Samuel L. Jackson and Tracy Chapman
We all knew Janet Jackson had a talented family tree, but this is on a whole new level.
The pop icon, who is currently on the European leg of her Together Again tour, visited the "BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show" on Tuesday, when host Scott Mills asked to be filled in on her star-studded extended family tree.
"Now someone told me this earlier, are you related to Stevie (Wonder)?" he asked.
"He's our cousin," Jackson, 58, replied. "Not a lot of people know that. He's our cousin on my mother's side. So is Tracy Chapman."
Janet Jackson revealed her insane family tree on the Radio 2 Breakfast show this morning
Listen back on BBC Sounds and I’m back tomorrow from 6.30am pic.twitter.com/lyOleo4qCv— Scott Mills (@scott_mills) August 13, 2024
She continued: "So is Samuel L. Jackson." But the jury is still out on that last familial connection, as Samuel L. Jackson told Wired in its Most Searched Questions series in 2017 that he was not related to the Jackson clan. It does not appear that Wonder or Chapman have ever commented or confirmed their relation to the Jacksons.
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Janet Jackson, of course, is the sister of the late Michael Jackson, who frequently collaborated with Wonder on the tracks "Just Good Friends" and "Get It." The pair also continually performed together and contributed background vocals for one another before Michael Jackson's death in 2009.
Janet Jackson has been on the road since June for the continuation of her Together Again tour, which she has been on since April 2023. The tour is currently set to wrap up in Glasgow, Scotland, on Oct. 13.
Named for her No. 1 hit from 1997, it was her first tour in four years and had a set list of nearly three dozen songs – albeit many in medley form – including hits "What Have You Done for Me Lately," "That's the Way Love Goes," "Doesn't Really Matter" and infrequently heard album tracks "Damita Jo" and "So Excited."
Contributing: Melissa Ruggieri
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Janet Jackson family tree: Singer reveals relation to Samuel L Jackson