What Is Katherine Jackson's Net Worth?
Katherine Jackson is the matriarch of the Jackson musical family. Katherine Jackson has a net worth of $100 million. Katherine is renowned primarily as the matriarch of the Jackson family, a musical dynasty that has significantly impacted pop music. She is the mother of ten children, including music legends Michael Jackson, one of the most successful and influential entertainers of all time, and Janet Jackson, a superstar in her own right. Katherine and her late former husband, Joe Jackson, played pivotal roles in the early careers of their children, especially in the formation and success of The Jackson 5, guiding their musical direction and supporting their development. Her dedication to her family's musical endeavors helped launch them into stardom, making them household names worldwide.
Michael Jackson's Estate
According to the terms of Michael's will, he left a 40% interest in his estate to his mother. He left 40% to his three children, Paris Jackson, Prince Michael Jackson, and Blanket Jackson. The remaining 20% was set aside to benefit various children's charities. Upon Katherine's death, her 40% will go to Michael's kids, eventually giving them a total of 80% (26.7% each).
In 2018, it was reported that Katherine's health was in decline and that some of her children and grandchildren were "jockeying for position" in order to get their hands on more of her money. One source reported that Katherine was receiving a stipend of $67,000 a month from the Michael Jackson estate but that virtually all of it went to her children and grandchildren, including a reported $37,000 per month to LaToya and Rebbie Jackson, while Jermaine Jackson was said to be getting $12,000 a month. A few of her grandkids were rumored to be getting some $10,000 per month to cover rent.
At the time of Michael's death in 2009, his estate was technically in debt to the tune of $500 million. Over the ensuing years, his estate lawyers, led by John Branca and John McClaine, performed a miraculous financial comeback that has generated over $2 billion. For example, in 2016, they sold Michael's 50% share in the famed Sony/ATV music catalog, which owns most of the Beatles' biggest hits among many many other tracks, for $750 million. In February 2024, they sold a 50% stake in Michael's Mijac Music company for $600 million. That catalog owns Michael's own tracks, as well as thousands of other songs from artists like Sly and the Family Stone and Ray Charles.
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Early Life
Katherine Jackson was born Kattie B. Screws on May 4th, 1930, in Barbour County, Alabama. She contracted polio at age two, which would leave her with a noticeable limp for the rest of her life. Katherine originally wanted to pursue a career in country music, but due to racism ingrained in the country and western subculture, she found herself unable to convince anyone in the business to take a risk on a black country singer.
In 1949, she married Joe Jackson about a year after they started dating, eventually giving birth to the ten Jackson children. Shortly after getting married, the couple got an apartment in Gary, Indiana, where they also performed as a musical duo, singing together with Joe playing guitar. However, it wasn't until her children began to show musical talent while in elementary school that the Jacksons saw their first real success in the music business.
Katherine Jackson /Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images
The Jackson 5
In the early 1960s, Katherine and her husband formed The Jackson Brothers with their three eldest sons. Brothers Michael and Marlon were added in the mid-1960s, first as instrumentalists and then as vocalists. At this point, the group was renamed The Jackson 5.
It was in this incarnation that the Jackson family went from working musicians to pop culture icons, as young Michael became a breakout star thanks to his precocious vocals and stage presence with The Jackson 5.
A handful of hit singles, including "ABC" and "I'll Be There," propelled the group to stardom, and in 1971, Michael launched his solo career with his debut single, "Got to Be There," which, of course, led to his eventual superstardom.
Unfortunately, Jackson's fame as a solo artist seemed to have a seesaw effect on the rest of The Jackson 5, and the group split from their longtime label, Motown, in 1975. Later that year, they emerged as The Jacksons and continued to have moderate success alongside Michael's meteoric rise – the group's final hit single was in 1984 and wasn't really by The Jacksons at all. Instead, it was essentially a duet between Michael Jackson and Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger, and besides background vocals from Marlon and Jackie Jackson had no real input from anyone else in the group.
Personal Life
The pressure exerted by Joe Jackson on his kids in order to turn them into fine-tuned musical performers is well known to the public, while Katherine's contributions to the group were relegated more to the background. Early in the band's career, she made all their costumes, but when the group turned professional and label stylists began working with them, she stepped aside from this capacity as well. That might be why her relationship with her kids has always been much better compared to that of Joe: At one time or another, her children have dedicated albums to her, and the majority of them wrote the forward for her autobiography entitled "My Family, The Jacksons" in 1980. More recently, Katherine Jackson has been seen in the press defending her kids from public criticism – particularly Michael.
(Photo by Carlo Allegri/Getty Images)
2012 Alleged Kidnapping
In 2012, Katherine made headlines after it appeared that she had been kidnapped. Some of the Jackson children reportedly took to Twitter to accuse their aunts and uncles, Janet, Jermaine, Randy, and Rebbie Jackson, of essentially kidnapping Katherine and taking her to a spa in Tucson, Arizona, when she was supposed to have custody over Jackson's children. Katherine later appeared on ABC News to deny the reports that she had been taken against her will:
"There are rumors going around about me that I've been kidnapped and held against my will. I'm today to let everybody know that I'm fine and I'm here with my children and my children would never do a thing like that, hold me against my will. That's very stupid for people to think that…I'm devastated that while I've been away that my children, my grandchildren, have been taken away from me."
Unfortunately, the bizarre story never seemed to come to any satisfying conclusion, adding yet another strange chapter to the story of the Jackson family.
