Jaafar Jackson's Biopic Role Reopens Decades-Long Feud Between His Dad, Jeramine, And Uncle, Michael

The Jacksons have always been more than a musical dynasty; they are a family built not only on brilliance and fame, but also on decades of pressure, betrayal, and a storm of emotions few outsiders ever truly understood. Decades before Michael Jackson became the legendary King of Pop, he and his siblings shared a loving, creative bond. Still, his bond with his elder brother, Jeramine, was equal parts creative and complex, shaped by a simmering rivalry. 

Nearly two decades after the pop icon’s passing, fans are revisiting the lesser-known stories of the Jackson family as Jermaine’s son, Jaafar Jackson, prepares to step into his uncle’s shoes in Antoine Fuqua’s controversial biopic, Michael. While anticipation is high, many are wondering how the 29-year-old will portray the man who became both his father’s greatest inspiration and deepest source of resentment.

As the world eagerly awaits Michael Jackson’s biopic, here’s a closer look at his decades-long feud with Jeramine, the brother who equally resented and admired him.

Before the fame

The Jacksons have long been one of the most talented musical families in the entertainment business. Growing up in a cramped home in Gary, Indiana, the Jackson siblings performed constantly, with Michael and Jermaine singing side by side in The Jackson 5, the family group formed by the eldest brothers, Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and their rising young star, Michael.

The siblings got their big break in 1969, when Berry Gordy signed them to Motown Records. Jermaine was already a well-known artist by then. Jermaine performed with The Jackson 5 from 1964 to 1975 before leaving to pursue a solo career. In 1983, he reunited with the band, which had by then rebranded itself as The Jacksons. However, as the years rolled by, he and the others in the family were overshadowed by the unstoppable prodigy, Michael.

As they say, every coin has two sides: with Michael’s rising fame came fractures, and with success came an uncomfortable silence. The Pop legend’s meteoric rise ushered in a rivalry that no amount of polish could gloss over.

Jermaine Jackson: the talented sibling overshadowed by his brother’s fame

Before Michael and The Jackson 5 landed their Motown deal, Jermaine was already a star. He had a promising career ahead, with numerous hits, accolades, and a renowned musical lineage through his marriage to Hazel Gordy, daughter of historic music entrepreneur Berry Gordy Jr. Despite everything, it never matched the scale of his younger brother’s global empire. 

While Michael and Jeramine Jackson seemed to share a largely cordial bond during their years in The Jackson 5, their relationship dynamic shifted dramatically in the 1980s. According to ABC News, the two had almost zero contact for nearly a decade after the Jacksons’ 1984 Victory Tour.

Over the years, the simmering tensions between the two brothers culminated in a full-blown feud. By 1991, Michael and Jermaine’s feud had become a much-talked-about topic. However, things gradually cooled down between the two in the years leading up to Michael’s death in 2009.

Jermaine’s infamous diss track on Michael Jackson’s skin colour, after the latter ‘sabotaged’ his comeback

By the late '80s, the public had become well aware of the feud between Jermaine and Michael Jackson. At that time, Michael was dominating pop music with his record-breaking solo albums, including Bad, Off the Wall, and Thriller, earning the title ‘King of Pop’. Every single album he made became a smash hit — and his global fandom reached new heights. However, Michael’s soaring fame made things harder for Jermaine, whose own relevance had begun to fade significantly.

Then came an unexpected betrayal. Jermaine was preparing his fourth solo album on Arista Records, optimistic about a career renaissance, when Michael allegedly intervened. Arista head Clive Davis wrote in his book Soundtrack of My Life how Michael purposely tried to ‘sabotage’ his brother’s musical career when Davis signed Jermaine into his projects. In the late 1980s, when Davis brought Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds and L.A. Reid on board to produce Jermaine’s fourth Arista album, Michael reportedly reached his limits. 

In his book, Clive Davis recalled how the pop king pulled Babyface onto his own projects, thus diverting the very producers Jermaine had been counting on. With that, the bond was shattered, and Jermaine was in shock after such a betrayal from his close brother. Clive wrote:

“Jermaine couldn’t believe that Michael, his close brother, would hijack his producers’ material this way… [he was] crying, indeed sobbing at times, so deeply hurt that his brother would do this to him.”

Not long after, Jermaine fired back at Michael with the infamous diss track, Word to the Badd!!. The track, a petty blow on Michael’s deepest insecurities, notably his skin colour, became one of the most brutal family-directed tracks. The bootleg version dug even deeper into Michael’s insecurities, making the brothers’ rift impossible to deny. Despite Jermaine repeatedly insisting it wasn’t a diss track, the world heard the pain loud and clear.  Slamming the pop star for his white skin, the lyrics said:

“Once you were made, You changed your shade; Was your color wrong?; Could not turn back; It’s a known fact; You were too far gone.”

A complicated brotherly love that never died down

To say that Jermaine and Michael shared a complicated relationship would be an understatement. Despite everything, Jermaine loved and cared for his brother deeply, even at his worst. The connection between the brothers never truly severed- Jermaine would often defend the Thriller singer against the harshest criticism. 

From 1993 to 2003, Jermaine stood firm in his defence against the shocking allegations that shook global pop culture. He shed light on certain controversial aspects of his little brother's life in his 2011 book, You Are Not Alone: Michael: Through a Brother's Eyes, which only goes to show how deeply he cared for the late pop star. 

When Michael passed away from an overdose on June 25, 2009, Jermaine was shattered. He famously said he wished it had been him instead. He believed, and still believes, there was foul play involved. He has since guarded Michael’s legacy with a passion few family members can match.

Jermaine’s son, Jaafar Jackson, steps into his uncle’s shoes in his biopic debut

Jermaine and Michael’s relationship was layered, turbulent, loving, competitive, and uniquely Jackson. And now, his son, Jaafar, is taking on the impossible, portraying ‘Michael Jackson’ in the first-ever authorised biopic of the pop icon’s life. While the pressure is enormous and controversy unavoidable, fans are equally intrigued to see how the polarising biopic turns out. 

The Jackson family, especially Jermaine, has rallied behind Jaafar, seeing this project as a way to continue his late brother’s legacy. In a 2020 interview, Jaafar said the only time he ever saw his uncle perform was at the 30th anniversary concert, and it changed his life. 

For Jaafar, stepping into Michael’s world isn’t just a role, but an emotional inheritance shaped by brilliance, conflict, and the complicated bond between the two brothers who defined the Jackson legacy.

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