Alan Jackson and wife Denise Jackson: A Story of Enduring Love

Alan Jackson and wife Denise Jackson have been in love for four decades now, but the road hasn’t always been that easy. There were a lot of tears, mistakes, and betrayals along the way that almost brought them to their final stop. But as they say, a love that is meant to be will always find its way back home. And they did. Their love endured through all the pain, and they found themselves holding each other’s hands again onto the path of forgiveness and healing.

Here’s their story. 

First Chapter: From ‘Yes’ to ‘I Do’

Alan and Denise’s love story started way back when they were teenagers in Newnan High School in Georgia. But unlike most, theirs started with a downright rejection. According to Alan Jackson, the first time he asked Denise for a date, she turned him down. After a couple of years, he tried again and luckily finally got a yes. He got her riding in his white 1995 Thunderbird convertible for their first date and the many dates that followed that. 

And on December 15, 1979, that ‘yes’ to a first date finally turned into ‘I do’ till death do they part. 

Six years later, the couple made their big move to Nashville in pursuit of Alan’s dream of building a career in country music. When they first came into the city, the couple lived in a crowded basement apartment. During the day, Alan would work in a mailroom, and then at night, he would be out playing his music. On the other hand, Denise worked as a flight attendant. 

One fateful day, Denise spotted singer-songwriter Glen Campbell in the airport. She immediately approached him and told him about her husband, who was an aspiring country music artist. Campbell gave her his business card, and the next thing the couple knew, Alan was signing his first record deal. In 1990, Alan released his debut album ‘Here in the Real World,’ which turned out to be a great success, selling over two million copies! But that wasn’t the only good news as they also welcomed their first daughter Mattie Denise in the same year. And then three years later, another baby girl – Alexandra Jane “Ali” – arrived. Then in 1997, the couple again welcomed another daughter named Dani Grace. 

Second Chapter: The Almost Break-Up

With Alan’s career rising to fame and his fortune continuing to grow, he decided to build his family a plantation-style mansion inspired by Tara from Gone with the Wind. But while it all seemed like a fairytale on the outside, everything was collapsing down on the inside. In 1997, after 18 years of marriage, the couple shocked everyone with the news of their separation. 

In Denise’s tell-all 2007 book It’s All About Him: Finding The Love Of My Life, which she co-wrote with Elle Vaughn, she confessed that it was betrayal – Alan’s infidelities – that ultimately drove them home to their separation. 

But her worst shattering moment led to the greatest blessings in her life. After their separation, she found a renewed connection and commitment to God and her Christian life, which gave her the strength to forgive her husband. The couple went into marital counseling and reconciled a year later. 

Third Chapter: A Work In Progress

Even though they have reconciled and things got better, the couple admits that their marriage still isn’t perfect and that it’s a work in progress everyday. 

In an interview with Alan on the Boot, he said that they try to spend more time with each other, like getting out and going to dinner or just hanging out and going to the movies. Sometimes, they would build a fire on a nice evening and drink some wine. Every morning, they get up and drink coffee together and talk, and every night, they would go to bed together unless he was out of town. For him, it was the little things that helped them more than anything. 

Who is Alan Jackson’s wife, Denise Jackson?

If it wasn’t already a sign, Denise was already a Jackson before she became Alan Jackson’s. Born on January 7, 1960, in Newnan, Georgia, Denise grew up in a religious family along with her twin brother Danny. She attended Newnan High School, where she met her husband, Alan. After their wedding, the couple moved from Georgia to Nashville, Tennessee, where she worked as a flight attendant. 

Now she is an author with two published books, It’s All About Him: Finding the Love of My Life, released in 2007, and The Road Home, published a year after. 

Denise Jackson’s Photos 

Here are some photos of Denise Jackson throughout the years. 

Alan Jackson and Denise Jackson Facts You Probably Didn’t Know

Here are 10 bits of trivia about country music’s favorite couple. 

1. Alan’s first move towards Denise wasn’t actually romantic. He tried to impress her by flipping a penny down her shirt and then asked if he could retrieve it. 
2. On another occasion, he hid in the backseat of Denise’s car while it was parked outside Dairy Queen. And when she finally drove off, he popped up to surprise her. According to Denise, she remembered screaming and then immediately pulling over. When she finally got her breath back, they drove around and talked. 
3. Before landing his first ever record deal with Arista Records, Alan Jackson used to play with his band Dixie Steels. Interestingly, the band was named after a brand of nails known as the Penn-Dixie Nails, which he found in the basement of a band member’s house.
4. When they first got to Nashville, they lived in a crowded basement apartment. And they continued to stay there even after Alan got his first record hit. They only moved out when they were sure that Alan was going to make a living.
5. Alan sold his beloved white 1995 Thunderbird convertible so that they would have enough down payment for their first house. He never thought he would see it again until so many years later when it popped unexpectedly in their garage. As the story went on, Denise went and bought it back for him as a surprise gift for Christmas. 
6. Alan wrote “It’s All About Him” for his wife’s book back in 2007. According to Denise, the song came to him during one of his morning walks. He sat down on their porch and wrote it there. She ended up collaborating with him a bit, and he graciously credited her as co-writer of the song. 
7. They moved out of their massive home to live a simpler life.
8. Alan Jackson’s 2003 hit “Remember When” from his Greatest Hits Volume II album was inspired by the couple’s separation back in 1997. 
9. In 2010, Denise was diagnosed with colorectal cancer, but she was able to overcome it through chemotherapy. She has been cancer-free ever since. 
10. Aside from being a supportive wife, Denise Jackson also helped her husband perfect his signature look, telling him that he wasn’t dark enough to sport such a dark hat, so he opted for white. 

Alan Jackson and wife Denise Jackson are happily living their life and will soon be celebrating 42 years of marriage. All the best for this lovely couple!