Janet Jackson has recently shared that her 3-year-old son, Eissa, is definitely showing signs of carrying on the family tradition. While visiting The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, she said, "He's incredibly musical. First it was the violin — all this he chose — he loves classical music. First day of school he took the violin to school. Third day of school he says, 'Mama, I want to take a cello to school.' I said, 'Baby, you don't have a cello.' He said, 'Turn my violin into a cello. Please, mama."
Whoa! That's pretty amazing. But given the musical nature of Janet's family, it's kind of not a surprise.
She said that her assistant taped a straw to the violin, turning it into a cello. "He loved it, he was posing with it. He took it to school."
That's not all that the musical toddler has received. Questlove, bandleader of the Tonight Show band, gave Eissa a drum kit that Janet says he loves. Jimmy pointed out that he hadn't sent Eissa anything so he'd get the boy a harmonica, but Janet said he already has one. Dang!
Like many parents, Janet loves to talk about Eissa. Last year she gave a similar interview in which she said, "He loves the drums, violin, guitar, piano. He plays. He really enjoys it. He makes up melodies, he carries a tune, he has really good pitch, really good pitch."
Eissa's dad is Wissam Al Mana. Janet and Wissam divorced in 2017, separating a week after Eissa's birth on January 3. Janet also signed a prenup with Wissam, and it was rumored that she could get up to $200 million out of their divorce settlement. However, many sources close to the couple insisted that money had nothing to do with their split.
In fact, a relative told Page Six, "It looks like a money grab but it’s not about money. She’s never in a relationship too long. Her longest was [musician] René [Elizondo] and that was for [nearly] 10 years [1991-2000]. Marriage doesn’t agree with her. She doesn’t agree with marriage."
Fair enough! But her brother, Randy, said that there was more going on: "It was quite an abusive situation. It came on later in the relationship, verbal abuse and being [made to feel like] a prisoner in her own home. No pregnant woman needs to go through being called a [expletive] every day. There were things like that. That’s what she went through."
There were also reports that Janet's ex-husband wanted her to live a more modest life. A source told Page Six, "She thought he had become too controlling during the pregnancy and she had already allowed him to dictate her appearance and even the way she performed at concerts."
And it sounds like Janet's parents weren't always allowed to see their grandson because Wissam thought they were "bad for the baby." In April 2017, Wissam moved out of the home that the three of them shared.
Since their split, the two have been attempting to co-parent their son together, but it hasn't always been easy. Two years ago, Janet had police go to Wissam's house when she was concerned about his behavior around Eissa.
However, 3-year-old Eissa definitely sounds like he's thriving these days. His family is sure to be able to support him fully if he decides that music is where his passion lies. For now, it sounds like he's having an awful lot of fun playing with sounds and discovering what he can create on his own.
Janet has shared that she doesn't have a nanny, and she wants to be a working mom and take care of her son herself, but there are challenges. "It is hard being a working mother. I don’t have a nanny. I do it all myself. If my mother did it with nine children, there’s no reason I can’t."
She has been quick to point out that obviously if she's working, he's covered. "Of course, when I’m working, someone watches him." Otherwise, she says, it's just the two of them.
"It’s not easy at times, but my life has changed. Obviously my baby comes first."
Janet also said that after she bought Eissa a violin, he truly fell in love. "I bought him a real violin and he got so excited. He sleeps with it. He eats breakfast, lunch and dinner with it," she said. "I show him little kids playing violin on the iPad, then he was finding them himself, all these child prodigies. He creates melodies."
