Janet Jackson, 55, got emotional while talking about her sweet son Eissa Al Mana, 5, in her new A&E and Lifetime documentary series Janet. “The biggest change in my life is my son Eissa. He’s my heart, he’s my life,” she said in part 4 of the series, which aired on Jan. 29. “I don’t have as much rehearsal time because I have a son. A beautiful boy!…He’s my heart, he’s my life…I love being a mother, I love my new job,” she also said.
The legendary singer has kept her only son fairly out of the spotlight since his birth. While she has infrequently shared rare photos to social media, in addition to being photographed with Eissa a handful of times — it has been years since fans have seen the adorable little boy. Janet’s mother Katherine Jackson, now 92, also got emotional as she admitted she didn’t think Janet would ever have children. “Seeing Janet as a mother warms my heart …Eissa is the sweetest little thing,” she said of her grandson.
Janet gave birth to her only child with her ex-husband, Quatari businessman, Wissam Al Mana, in 2017 at the age of 50. The news came five years after the couple married in 2012. The “Go Deep” singer announced her pregnancy in a photoshoot showing off her baby bump to PEOPLE magazine, as well as via a video shared to social media. “We thank God for our blessing,” she said to the publication at the time.
The news also forced her to halt her Unbreakable world tour in support of her album, released in 2016. “Please understand that it’s important that I do this now. I have to rest up, doctor’s orders,” Janet said in a message. Little Eissa was born on Jan. 3, 2017.
Just several months after giving birth, however, Janet announced she separated from Wissam, now 47. “I just want to keep it real for you guys for a second – yes I separated from my husband,” she said to her fans via Instagram. “The rest is in God’s hands.” Notably, Wissam was Janet’s third husband after James DeBarge, 58, who she married at just 18 in 1984, and René Elizondo, 59, who she was wed to from 1991 – 2000.
In 2018, Janet opened up about Eissa changed her world for the better. “My son has shown me that love, no matter how deeply you believe you have experienced that emotion, can always go deeper. Love is limitless,” she said to Billboard magazine. “And for someone like me, raised in show business where self-concern is always a priority, how fortunate I am now to be concerned, first and foremost, with the welfare of someone else. Day after day and night after night, holding my baby in my arms, I am at peace. I am blessed. I feel bliss. In those moments, all is right with the world.”