Jackson and billionaire businessman Wissam Al Mana are refuting reports that they are planning an “exravagant wedding” – that’s because they are already married.
In fact, they’ve been husband and wife since 2012, the couple confirmed in a statement to “Entertainment Tonight.”
The pair told “E.T.” they tied the knot in a “quiet, private, and beautiful ceremony,” not the over-the-top affair that gossip sites reported would take place. The couple added in their statement that ”rumors regarding an extravagant wedding are simply not true.” There was speculation that Al Mana was planning to splash out millions on a lavish ceremony, even flying Jackson’s large family to Qatar aboard private jets.
One thing’s for sure: those rabid, overzealous Michael Jackson fans who believed falsely that Janet was broke (she’s worth about $150 million on her own, before the wedding), and was trying to manipulate her mother Katherine in order to get at her dead brother’s fortune, can surely rest now.
This marks the second time that Janet has outsmarted the media when it comes to her private life. Twenty-two years ago, in 1991, she married dancer, songwriter and director Rene Elizondo Jr., but they kept their relationship a secret until their divorce in 2000.
As far as this latest wedding is concerned, instead of engaging in wasteful spending, Jackson and Al Mana explained that they’re using their money to engage in philanthropic endeavors.
“Our wedding gifts to one another were contributions to our respective favorite children’s charities,” they said.
In the statement, Jackson and Al Mana ask that their “privacy is respected and that we are allowed this time for celebration and joy.” Closing their note, they wrote, “With love, Wissam and Janet.”
This is marriage number three for Jackson, whose union with fellow singer James DeBarge was annulled in 1985.
Since none of us were invited to the wedding, here are some of the best photos of the couple who were part of two separate royal families and are now one. First, we show photos of Janet’s first two marriages.
