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Janet Jackson has personally weighed in on the rumors that she and ex-husband James DeBarge secretly welcomed a child during their brief marriage. The two were married between 1984 and 1985, but the rumors persisted that they had a child and had it raised by other members of the Jackson family.
People obtained an advance copy of the upcoming Janet documentary, which sees the hitmaker addressing the nearly 40-year-old rumor.
“Back in the day they were saying that I had a child and I kept it secret… I could never keep a child away from James. How could I keep a child from their father? I could never do that, that’s not right,” she said, according to People.
The Grammy winner has an idea what sparked the rumors, saying she was put on birth control at the time she was recording Fame and that caused her to gain weight. Apparently, the paparazzi took it as a sign that she was expecting.
Janet also opened up about why she and James went their separate ways, saying she was unable to overlook his drug addiction. She said she would search for him on the streets and, if she found any drugs in the house, she flushed them down the toilet, adding, “We would be rolling on the floor fighting for them. And that’s not a life for anyone,” according to People.
“I cared so much for him, and I saw the good in him as well and I just wanted that to take precedence as opposed to this ugliness,” she added. “‘Cause I knew that he needed help. But I wasn’t the help that he needed.”
The two-night Janet event premieres this Friday at 8 p.m. ET on both Lifetime and A&E.
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