Michael Jackson and His Siblings Were Only Allowed to Call Their Dad by His First Name

After a highly anticipated wait, the biographical movie Michael has hit theaters. Although Michael Jackson is no longer with us, it’s clear that his legacy lives on. Standing as the greatest entertainer of all-time, Michael has left a lasting imprint on the music industry, inspiring top artists today and future entertainers.

So, it’s no secret that his story keeps being told time and time again.

Since Michael is the hot topic, new fans are excited to learn all they can about the late hitmaker. And while it’s clear that Michael came from humble beginnings, many people are dissecting the dynamic of Michael’s relationship with his late father, Joe Jackson. It’s clear that abuse was a factor during his childhood, but there were a few rules Michael and his siblings abided by that some people would deem as strange.

In the 2003 documentary Living with Michael Bashir, via People, Michael shared that his father was very adamant that Michael and his siblings not call him “Dad” or “Daddy.”

“He didn’t want us to call him ‘Daddy,’ and I wanted to call him ‘Daddy’ so bad,” Michael shared. “He said, ‘I’m not Daddy, I’m Joseph to you.’”

Interestingly, Michael’s sister, Janet Jackson, shared that once she tried to call their father “Dad,” she was immediately corrected.

“I called him Joseph,” Janet said. “One time I tried to call him dad, and he said, ‘No, I’m Joseph. You call me Joseph. I’m Joseph to you.’ He tells you one time, you don’t do it again. So I always called him Joseph.’”

At the time, Joseph made his stance clear about being called by his first name, stating that it sounded “funny” to him.

“You had all those kids running around calling ‘Dad, dad, dad,’ — it sounds kind of funny to me,” Joe said. “I didn’t really care about what they called me, just as long as they listened to what I had to tell them to make their lives successful.”

It’s uncommon for children not to have a close relationship with at least one parent. However, in the case of the Jacksons, the public long believed that, due to Joe’s temperament, it was hard for his children to build a close relationship with him.

That said, both Janet and Michael were open about the appreciation they have for Joe in helping them sustain their careers.

“He has his issues, his things, and the way that he was brought up,” Janet said. “He’s set in his ways. I think he did the best that he could. I think he did a wonderful job with us, the outcome. But the way he went about it, I don’t know if I agree with that. But we turned out OK.”

As for Michael, he shared that he considered his father a “genius” and that he hopes God blesses him in an interview with Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, per TODAY.