The Jackson 5 were one of the biggest pop groups to take the world by storm in the mid-1960s.
The family band produced some of the biggest singles that are still loved by fans all over the world including ABC, Blame It On The Boogie and I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus. But on Monday (September 16), the family suffered a heartbreaking tragedy when founding member Tito passed away at the age of 70.
It is understood the late star suffered a heart attack while driving from New Mexico to Oklahoma, however an official cause of death is not known. The Jackson 5’s former manager Steve Manning confirming the sad news to ET.
READ MORE: Tito Jackson’s eerie last Instagram post saw star pay tribute to brother Michael
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As the world mourns the loss of the great musician, Daily Star has taken a deep dive inside the lives of the Jackson 5 more than 60 years after they formed.
Brotherly band
(Image: Michael Ochs Archives)
The infamous pop group was formed back in 1964 and it didn’t take long before they became a worldwide sensation. Fans couldn’t help but fall in love when their hit single, I Want You Back, stormed to the top of the charts in 1969.
Following their breakout success, the Jackson 5 franchise was born, and the world was better for it.
The American pop band is comprised of members of the male Jackson family. The band was originally formed by the three older brothers Jackie, Tito, and Jermaine with their younger siblings Michael and Marlon joining later on when they were older.
(Image: Soul Train via Getty Images)
The family band became a household name during the peak of their fame in the 1960s and 1970s. Although they were widely popular across globe, the group was only nominated for two Grammys throughout their career.
The band did not win any of their nominations during their time together. Their last record was released in 1987, after Michael and Marlon left the group. Michael announced he was leaving the band in December 1984, with Marlon departing the group just one month later.
Jackie Jackson
(Image: Getty Images)
The eldest of the five brothers Sigmund – otherwise known as Jackie Jackson – was born in 1951. The 73-year-old is one of the founding members of the band, but away from the group he also released several solo records.
His first, a self-titled album which he released in 1973 followed by a sophomore album in 1989 titled Be The One. Hollywood Life reports that in 2007, Jackie dropped a collaboration with the musician Brezz called Big City After Dark.
He also produced movie soundtracks for the films Touch and Go and The Running Man. He continues to work in the music business as a producer.
In 2012, he joined his brothers Tito, Jermaine and Marlon for a series of Las Vegas performances.
Tito Jackson
(Image: Getty Images)
Toriano Adaryll ‘Tito’ Jackson was born in 1953. According to Hollywood life, he was a gifted guitarist and his father encouraged him to join the band with his two older brothers during its conception.
Similarly to many of his other siblings, Tito went on to have a solo career. He released two records under his own name, one in 2016 called Tito Time and another five years later titled Under Your Spell.
His music mostly focused on the blues and R&B hits. He went on to marry his partner Delores ‘Dee Dee’ Martes in 1972 at the age of 18, but the couple went their separate ways in 1988.
Tragedy hit the family when Delores was found dead in a swimming pool in 1994. The death was originally rules as accidental, but businessman Donald Bohana was later charged with her murder in 2000.
Jermaine Jackson
(Image: Getty Images North America)
Jermaine La Juane Jackson, was born to mother Katherine Jackson on December 11, 1954. It’s fair to say Michael is known for his vocals in the famous family, but the 69-year-old was also a key vocalist for the band’s biggest hits.
In 1976, he chose to leave the band when his brothers signed with CBS. Jermaine chose to remain with Motown records, but he reunited with the band in 1984.
His most recent solo album was released in 2012, titled I Wish You Love. Away from the studio, Jermaine has been married and divorced three times, and is a proud dad to his seven children.
Marlon Jackson
(Image: Getty Images)
Marlon David Jackson was born on March 12, 1957 and is the sixth child of Katherine. Unlike his siblings, the 67-year-old had a brief stint as a solo artist.
The musician has only released one solo album in 1987, titled Baby Tonight. Marlon had an extremely close relationship with his late brother Michael.
According to Hollywood Life, Marlon was more interested in business ventures later on in life. He founded the Major Broadcasting Cable Network in 1999, which later became the Black Family Channel before it was sold in 2007.
It is understood that Marlon now runs Study Peace Foundation to promote peace and unity worldwide.
Michael Jackson
(Image: Getty Images)
It’s fair to say Michael was the band’s most famous member before he died at the age of 50 on June 25, 2009. He was born on August 29, 1958 and went on to have an impressive music career from the age of six years old.
He soon become one of the most famous artists in music history and cemented himself in the hall of fame. He won a total of 13 Grammys in his lifetime, including a lifetime achievement award in 2010 following his death.
Many of his hit singles, including Billie Jean, Beat It and Smooth Criminal breaking records for their duration in the top spot. Meanwhile, his 1982 album Thriller remains the best-selling album of all time with the single reaching platinum status 34 times throughout his career.
(Image: AFP/Getty Images)
But things took a turn for the worse for the singer when he became hooked on painkillers. In 2009, the singer died of a cardiac arrest after a deadly cocktail of sedatives were administered by his physician Conrad Murray.
He had overdosed on Propofol and benzodiazepines, with his personal physician later charged with involuntary manslaughter in February 2010 and found guilty. His sentence was four years behind bars, but he was released in October 2013 on parole.
Jackson’s autopsy revealed he wore a wig later in life, with the hair on his head described by police as “sparse and connected to a wig.” It is believed the star first began wearing a wig in 1984 when his hair caught fire while filming a Pepsi advert, which left him with second and third degree burns.
(Image: Getty Images)
He was dancing down a flight of stairs as fireworks went off around him, but they exploded too early – with sparks igniting the gel in the star’s hair. Weighing just 8st 10lbs at the time of his death, Jackson was found to have nothing but partially dissolved pills in his stomach after eating just one small meal per day.
His entire body was riddled with puncture marks from painkiller injections, with marks of his plastic surgery also showed he was in “terminal decline” for years, according to one source. His knees and shins were covered in mysterious bruises and cuts covered the star’s back, perhaps an indication of a recent fall.
Next to the bed where the singer died, investigators found a sealed bottle of urine, along with boxes of catheters, disposable needles and an oxygen tank.
Janet Jackson
(Image: WWD via Getty Images)
The five brothers also have a sister, Janet Jackson, who also went on to become a music sensation in her own right – despite not being a member of the band. Janet was not included in the family group because she was just an infant when they signed their record deal.
She is the youngest of Joe Jackson’s ten children, born in 1966. Her father started organising his older children into music acts two years prior.
The 58-year-old musician went on to release several number one hit singles including That’s The Way Love Goes and Together Again. The raven-haired beauty later stepped into Hollywood and starred in many beloved movies, including The Nutty Professor and Poetic Justice.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
