She married into one of music’s most documented families and then simply disappeared from the record — on purpose.
Jackie Jackson has spent almost six decades in the public eye, first as the eldest touring member of the Jackson 5 and later as one of the last living links to a family whose every wedding, birth and breakup has been tabloid fodder since the 1970s. So when he married for a third time in 2012, the near-total media blackout that followed was itself the story. His wife, Emily Besselink, gave almost no interviews, granted no formal photo sessions, and has spent over a decade keeping her own biography almost entirely off the record — a rare feat for anyone connected to the Jacksons.
That silence is precisely why searches for her name spike every few months. People want basic facts — who she is, when she married Jackie, whether they have children — and the honest answer is that verified detail about Emily Besselink specifically is thin. Most of what circulates online recycles the same handful of claims without sourcing them, which is worth knowing before treating any of it as settled.
Emily Besselink is the third wife of Jackson 5 founding member Jackie Jackson, whom she married in 2012. The couple has twin sons, Jaylen and River Jackson, born December 31, 2013. Beyond her marriage and motherhood, Emily Besselink has kept her personal background — including her age, profession and hometown — out of the public record.
What’s Actually Confirmed About the Marriage
Jackie Jackson and Emily Besselink married in 2012, in a private ceremony that drew no significant press coverage — a deliberate contrast to his two previous, more public marriages. Multiple entertainment outlets and contemporaneous fan-community reporting place the wedding in that year, though no venue, date, or officiant has ever been published.
On December 31, 2013, Emily gave birth to twin sons, Jaylen Milan Jackson and River Jackson. The birth was reported by several outlets at the time, including fan updates that referenced a baby shower the family had held the previous autumn. A handful of more recent articles list the birth year as 2014 instead; the earlier, contemporaneous reporting from December 2013/January 2014 is the more reliable anchor, and that discrepancy should be flagged rather than smoothed over.
Quick Profile
| Detail | Status |
|---|---|
| Full name | Emily Besselink |
| Known for | Third wife of Jackie Jackson |
| Married Jackie Jackson | 2012 |
| Children | Twin sons Jaylen and River Jackson (b. December 31, 2013) |
| Stepchildren | Sigmund “Siggy” Jackson Jr. and Brandi Jackson |
| Age, birthplace, profession | UNCONFIRMED — not publicly documented |
| Public presence | Minimal; no verified social media or press interviews |
Jackie Jackson’s Marriages, For Context
Understanding where Emily fits requires the fuller picture of Jackie’s marital history, since so much of what’s written about her leans on comparisons to his earlier wives.
He married his first wife, Enid Arden Spann, in November 1974 after roughly five years together. The marriage was troubled by his infidelity and reported volatility; the couple separated in 1984, briefly reconciled in 1985, and Enid filed for divorce again in January 1986, at one point obtaining a restraining order against him. Enid and Jackie had two children, Sigmund “Siggy” Esco Jackson Jr. (born 1977) and Brandi Jackson (born 1982). Enid died of a brain aneurysm in 1997.
Jackie’s second marriage, to Victoria Triggs in 2001, also ended in divorce; few public details exist about that relationship’s length or its end.
He married Emily Besselink in 2012. As of this writing, that marriage has outlasted both of his previous two.
Why the Privacy, and Why It Works
Jackie is one of the last Jackson siblings still active in public life, and nearly everything around him — from Michael Jackson’s estate to the surviving brothers’ occasional reunion performances — gets covered in detail. Emily Besselink’s choice to stay out of that machine isn’t unusual for a spouse marrying into fame later in life, but it is unusual for anyone married into this specific family, where privacy has historically been very hard to maintain.
Family friends and fan-community posts from 2013 described a baby shower held ahead of the twins’ birth, and Jackie has occasionally shared glimpses of Jaylen and River on social media over the years, including at Siggy’s 2017 wedding. Beyond those scattered, family-adjacent appearances, Emily has not built any independent public profile.
People Also Ask
Who is Emily Besselink?
Emily Besselink is the third wife of Jackie Jackson, a founding member of the Jackson 5. She married Jackie in 2012 and has largely stayed out of public life since.
When did Emily Besselink marry Jackie Jackson?
Emily Besselink and Jackie Jackson married in 2012. No public details about the ceremony’s location or size have ever been confirmed.
Does Emily Besselink have children with Jackie Jackson?
Yes. Emily Besselink and Jackie Jackson have twin sons, Jaylen and River Jackson, born December 31, 2013, according to contemporaneous reporting at the time.
Is Emily Besselink Jackie Jackson’s only wife?
No. Emily is Jackie Jackson’s third wife. He was previously married to Enid Arden Spann (1974–1986) and Victoria Triggs (2001–divorce undated).
How old is Emily Besselink?
Emily Besselink’s exact age and birth date are not publicly confirmed. Various outlets have estimated her age inconsistently, so no figure should be treated as verified.
Does Emily Besselink have a public social media presence?
No verified personal social media account for Emily Besselink is publicly documented. Most images of her circulate via Jackie Jackson’s own posts or family members’ accounts.
The Bottom Line
Emily Besselink’s story is really the story of what she has kept out of the story. Married into a family whose personal lives have been public property for fifty years, she’s managed something almost nobody else connected to the Jacksons has: a decade-plus marriage and two children raised almost entirely outside the celebrity press cycle. The gaps in her public record aren’t a mystery to be solved so much as a boundary that’s held.
Sources & Verification
- Smooth Radio — Jackie Jackson facts profile
- IMDb — “Famous Parents of Twins” feature
- The Jackson Family Wikia (Fandom) — Jaylen Jackson entry
- Contemporaneous 2014 fan-community reporting on the twins’ birth
- Multiple secondary celebrity-profile sites (facts cross-checked; unverifiable claims flagged as UNCONFIRMED above rather than repeated as fact)
Editorial note: Verified, primary-sourced information about Emily Besselink specifically is limited. Where sources conflicted (notably the twins’ birth year) or where claims could not be corroborated (her age, background, profession), that has been marked UNCONFIRMED rather than presented as settled fact.
