Is Alan Jackson Still Married to Denise Jackson? The Truth Behind a Nearly 50-Year Love Story
For those who believe country songs are only stories—think again. Sometimes, they’re real. And no love story in country music echoes more deeply than that of Alan and Denise Jackson.
It began where so many country tales are born—in a small Southern town. Nineteen-year-old Alan met sixteen-year-old Denise in Newnan, Georgia. High school sweethearts. Simple beginnings. Church weddings. No fame, no record deals—just two kids with a dream and a lifetime ahead of them.
They married in 1979. Denise believed in Alan before the world did. In fact, it was her chance encounter with Glen Campbell—on a flight, no less—that gave Alan his first industry break. She handed over his demo. Glen listened. A door opened. And the rest is country history.
But success came with storms.
By 1997, after nearly two decades of marriage and three daughters, cracks had formed. Alan admitted to infidelity. Denise walked away—briefly. But four months later, they chose to fight for love rather than surrender to silence. They renewed their vows in 1998, not as the perfect couple, but as two imperfect people learning what it truly meant to say “I do.”
Denise later bared it all in her bestselling memoir It’s All About Him, revealing the pain, the prayers, and the grace it took to rebuild their life together.
And still, life kept testing them.
From battling colon cancer to grieving the loss of their son-in-law, Ben Selecman, to Alan’s quiet struggle with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, the Jacksons have endured more than many could imagine. And yet—they remain side by side.
At the 2022 CMA Awards, Alan looked out over the crowd and said it plainly:
“I wasn’t always easy to love. But Denise was always there. She’s my rock.”
So yes—Alan Jackson is still married to Denise Jackson. Their story isn’t fairy tale perfection. It’s real. It’s raw. And it’s proof that love, when tended with faith and forgiveness, can outlast the spotlight.
