For years, much of the world knew nothing about Paris Jackson except for the fact that
she's Michael Jackson's only daughter. As a child, Jackson's entire identity was
fiercely guarded from the public, with early photos showing her in costumes and wrapped
in scarves that covered her face. Now aged 20, Jackson has become more outspoken,
expressing herself through her spunky attitude and sense of fashion, and uses her fame to
make a difference. Here's everything we know about the budding
star.
Paris Jackson has appeared on the Fox musical series, Star created by Lee Daniels. She also
works as a model for IMG models, the firm that represents the Hadid sisters and Gisele
Bündchen. This is all in spite of the fact that she received a sizeable inheritance from
her late father’s estate.
Michael Jackson was famously accused of molesting
several children who visited his Neverland Ranch. Though he was acquitted in 2005, he
never shook the reputation. However, Paris maintains her father’s innocence. “Nobody
experienced him being a father to them. And if they did, the entire perception of him
would be completely and forever changed.” she said.
In an Instagram post, Paris shared her views on the benefits of being naked, saying “being
naked is part of what makes us human. for me it helps me feel more connected to mama
Gaia. i’m usually naked when i garden.”
Paris works for the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation and works to advocate for those
suffering from the disease and to raise funding for AIDS research. She has criticized Donald
Trump for slashing the budgets of AIDS researchers. She said, he has “the compassion and empathy
of a dead flashlight battery.”
Elizabeth Taylor and Michael Jackson were famously very good friends, so it is not so
surprising to learn the late actress was actually Paris’s godmother. Paris feels a strong
connection to Taylor and said that “She was passionate, she was outspoken.”
At age 15, Paris tried to commit suicide by ingesting 20 Motrin tablets and slashing her
wrists. She added that this was not her first attempt to take her own life. She said, “It
was just self-hatred, low self-esteem, thinking that I couldn’t do anything right, not thinking
I was worthy of living anymore.”
Since she was a teenager, Paris has been acquiring
tattoos at an extremely fast pace. She has nine devoted to her late father. “He’s
brought me nothing but joy,” she said, “so why not have constant reminders of joy?”
She also has tattoos that commemorate, Prince, David Bowie, and John Lennon.
Paris said that she was sure someone wanted her father dead. She believed that Dr. Conrad
Murray, who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for the singer’s death, got him hooked on
propofol. She said “[Michael] would drop hints about people being out to get him.”
Paris Jackson said in an interview that when she was 14 she was sexually assaulted by a
much older man, who was a complete stranger to her. “It was not a good experience at
all, and it was really hard for me, and, at the time, I didn’t tell anybody,” she
said.
Paris used to be romantically linked to Michael Snoddy, a Los Angeles based drummer who played
in the Street Drum Corps. Originally he sported a Confederate flag tattoo with the letters
“CFH” for “Cowboys From Hell,” a famous Pantera song. According to Jackson’s Instagram,
he covered the tattoo because “He didn’t like the racism that was affiliated with it.”
Paris’ love for her father is never understated, as she said “I live life with the mentality
of ‘OK, I lost the only thing that has ever been important to me.’ So going forward,
anything bad that happens can’t be nearly as bad as what happened before. So I can handle
it.”
There is a degree of speculation as to whether Paris Jackson is Michael’s biological daughter,
however she firmly believes that she is. Jackson said “He will always be my father. He never
wasn’t, and he never will not be. People that knew him really well say they see him
in me, that it’s almost scary.”
She has never been afraid to show off her body hair. She posted an Instagram photo of
her unshaved legs and showed up to the 2017 MTV VMA’s sporting hairy armpits. She also
once tweeted “don’t be insecure about your acne or stretch marks. you know what
else has spots? pizza. and everyone loves pizza.”
Debbie Rowe was married to Michael Jackson in 1996 and divorced him in 1999. After Michael’s
death, Paris found her mom online, and years later the two finally met. They have had a
rocky relationship, but after Debbie was diagnosed with breast cancer, the two became close once
more.
Culkin was always a good friend of Michael’s, which at the time was highly controversial
(Macauley Culkin was a child actor, after all). Like Michael’s children, Culkin maintained
Michael’s innocence during his molestation trials. They were so close, Michael asked
him to be Paris’ godfather.
Paris and her godfather both have matching tattoos. The tattoos look like spoons but
it is unconfirmed as to what they really are. The pair revealed their tattoos in an Instagram
story in July 2017.
Paris attended a therapeutic school after her suicide attempt at 15. She said in an
interview that going to the school was great for her. She also said “I was crazy. I was
actually crazy. I was going through a lot of, like, teen angst. And I was also dealing
with my depression and my anxiety without any help.”
When Michael Jackson and Debbie Rowe divorced,
Debbie granted sole custody of the children to Michael. This, unfortunately, led to a
rocky relationship with both Paris and her brother, but the two reconciled over time
and have what Paris describes as “an adult relationship.”
She may have been born in California, but Paris was conceived in the city of lights,
which became her namesake. Her middle names are Michael and Katherine, after her father
and grandmother.
Jackson’s childhood was famously fraught with stress and abuse. He didn’t want the
same for his own children. He made them wear masks in public so that their faces would
not be recognizable. That way they could have normal childhoods.
The TV documentary titled Living with Michael Jackson first aired in 2003. The program consisted
of a long interview between Jackson and Martin Bashir, and featured appearances by all three
of his children. However, their faces were never shown on camera.
The movie was titled Man in the Mirror: The Michael Jackson Story, and Paris was played
by the actress Brooklynn Proulx. The movie also starred Flex Alexander as Michael Jackson
and April Telek as Debbie Rowe.
The service took place in the Staples Center, and it was the first time that the Jackson
children revealed their faces to the world. Speaking of her father, Paris said at the
service “Ever since I was born, Daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine.
And I just want to say I love him… so much.”
Paris Jackson appeared on the magazine’s list when she was only 14 years old. She told
the magazine: “My grandmother doesn’t like it when I wear makeup. I can understand
why. Foundations aren’t always good for your skin.”
Paris Jackson’s Instagram account shows
that she is highly in touch with nature. She believes in reincarnation, tarot, and spiritualism.
She is also very in touch with the Earth and animals. These beliefs seem to have brought
her some peace from what must have been an interesting and sometimes stressful childhood.