Do you have a secret sister? I believe I do have a sister out there. Did you ever see Janet where you thought she was pregnant? Yes. When the marriage was analled um that Janet was pregnant and James believed that as well. You believe that there’s a child. I think we all um believe that uh Jan, you know, James and Janet had a child.

The whispers are back and they’re louder than ever. Allegations that Janet Jackson secretly had a child with James Debarge during their whirlwind 1984 to85 marriage just won’t die no matter how many years pass. Now James himself is fanning the flames with cryptic teases about an upcoming documentary. He’s calling their marriage the right love at the wrong time and dropping hints about a secret daughter, saying this film will disclose a lot of things so he can end it all at once.

 That’s a loaded statement if I’ve ever heard one. It’s basically him doubling down again, claiming a hidden baby exists. And here’s the kicker. James hasn’t just casually mentioned this over the years. He’s been emotional, even teary, insisting on this child’s existence. And he’s not alone. Multiple members of the Debarge family have publicly backed his story.

 Why would they stick their necks out unless there was at least some truth hiding in the shadows? Let’s rewind a bit. Janet eloped with James at just 18 years old in 1984. According to those close to her, marrying James was her escape plan from her father, Joe Jackson, a man notorious for being a controlling force in the family. And you know Joe, he was furious.

 The minute he found out, he went into full damage control mode, allegedly doing everything in his power to shut that marriage down before it could even breathe. The marriage crumbled fast and not without chaos. James was battling heavy substance issues, leaving Janet in a constant caretaker role when she was barely out of high school.

Sure, he feels betrayed. I’m sure he feels sad. I’m I’m sure he feels disappointed. I’m sure he feels like he was robbed of that relationship with his daughter. But at the same time, I know my dad loves Janet till this day, and he doesn’t want to hurt him. She was the one getting late night calls to come pick him up or heading out to track him down when he disappeared.

 Janet even said she’d find pills scattered around the house, scoop them up, and try to flush them, only for the two to end up fighting over them right there on the floor. And let’s not forget this was an 18-year-old girl living through all this madness. But just when you think the Janet and James saga couldn’t spiral any further, here come the whispers that have haunted them for decades.

 Rumors that they secretly had a baby during that brief explosive marriage. Yes, the talk has been out there forever. Claims that Janet gave birth in secret and either let a relative raised the child or had the baby adopted completely in the shadows. And who kept stirring that pot? James Dearge himself.

 He’s gone on record multiple times over the years insisting that he and Janet did have a daughter and that she was deliberately kept from him. In one jaw-dropping interview, he even said a grown woman had reached out claiming to be his child and he believed her. Fast forward to 2025. James is still standing firm, telling interviewers that the rumors are real and promising his upcoming film will finally spill every last drop of the truth.

Saying that I had a child and I kept it secret. How could I keep a child from their father? I could never do that. That’s not right. Reflecting on their short-lived union, he revealed that their first spark came through his brother Bobby Debarge, who just happened to be dating Janet’s sister, Latoya, at the time.

 And from that point, the drama was set in motion. James claims their story began way earlier than most people realize. He says they were first introduced over the phone when he was just 13 or 14, and Janet was only 11 or 12, back when she was already shining as a young star on Good Times.

 According to him, they built a tight connection over those years, even without meeting face to face until about 5 years later when Sparks flew instantly. From there, James says they fell for each other hard and fast, so fast that they ran off and eloped. But when asked why it all fell apart, James summed it up in one line.

 Right lovers, wrong time. Both were young, constantly on the road, and barely in the same place long enough to figure things out. First, they were saying my niece Brandy was my daughter and that I gave it to Jackie to raise. And then because Ry’s daughter looks so much like me, then they started saying it was Savannah. He admits his substance use was only starting back then and wasn’t yet the monster it would become, but says outside interference was brutal, with Janet’s father, Joe Jackson, openly disapproving and her record company

allegedly piling on the pressure. Then there’s the part that keeps this story living rentree in pop culture, the secret baby rumors. James didn’t outright confirm or deny it, but teased that his upcoming movie and documentary might finally address it. And here’s the thing, he’s not the only one stirring the pot.

 Over the years, other members of the Debarge family have claimed they were told, or at least strongly suspected, that a baby existed, only for it to be buried under the influence of Janet’s powerful inner circle. Even James own daughter, Christinia Debarge, has dropped bombshell comments, saying she truly believes she has a secret sister out there somewhere.

 If that’s true, this family tree might be hiding more than anyone’s ready to admit. Christia Debarge hasn’t been shy about her feelings. She’s flat out said she wants to meet the sister she believes is out there. She’s not only stood behind the decades old rumor, but also suggested that Janet’s powerful family may have been the driving force behind giving the baby away.

 And with the kind of influence the Jacksons had in the 80s, Christina hinted it’s entirely possible the truth was buried deep to protect Janet’s skyrocketing career. Then there’s James’s sister, Bunny Debbarge, who dropped one of the boldest claims yet, saying she personally saw Janet pregnant. According to Bunny, Janet suddenly disappeared from the spotlight.

 And when she reappeared, the bump was gone, but no baby was ever seen. And it doesn’t stop there. James’ brother, Daryl, also went on a radio show and said without hesitation that the child existed. Even James’ own mother believed it. She took things to another level by agreeing to a DNA test with a woman named Tiffany White, who came forward claiming to be Janet and James’ secret daughter.

 That first test, it ruled James out as Tiffany’s father. But James didn’t flinch. He stayed adamant that somewhere there’s a child that’s his. He’s even said no false lead is going to stop his search. Meanwhile, Janet has kept her stance crystal clear. She’s never wavered in denying the story. In her 2022 documentary, she addressed the whispers headon, calling them both painful and untrue.

 In her own words, they were saying that I had a child and I kept it secret. But if you listen to the debar side, they’re still not buying it. Janet’s version of events paints a totally different picture. She says the whole mess started back in 1984 on the set of the TV show Fame when people began whispering that she looked pregnant.

 In reality, she had just started taking birth control pills, the kind loaded with higher doses of estrogen and progesterine back then, and those were known to cause weight gain and water retention. According to Janet, that’s all it was. But the rumors caught fire fast. From there, she says the gossip snowballed into one wild story after another.

 Suddenly, people were claiming she had a secret baby girl that she handed over to her sister Reby to raise as her own. Then came the whispers that her brother Jackie’s adopted child, Brandy, brought into the family in 1982 was actually Janet’s child in disguise. And if that wasn’t messy enough, another theory popped up that Ry’s daughter Stana was hers, too.

 All because of a supposed resemblance. But Janet insists it was all baseless and says she was dealing with real problems during her short-lived marriage to James Dearge. Chief among them, his drug addiction. She even shared a jaw-dropping detail about their wedding night that sounded more like a scene from a heartbreak movie than a honeymoon.

“When we got married and came back to the hotel,” she recalled, he said, “Okay, I’ll be right back.” Janet says she sat there alone in a Grand Rapids, Michigan hotel room, just 18 years old, waiting for her new husband to return. Hours passed, three to be exact, and James, he never came back that night. That’s not a life for anyone,” Janet said, reflecting on her marriage to James.

 “I saw the good in him, and I wanted to focus on that instead of the ugliness. I knew he needed help, but I wasn’t the help he needed.” Still, despite her denials, eagle-eyed followers have pointed out something interesting. Janet never explicitly said the words, “I did not have a baby.” Instead, she’s only said that it wouldn’t be right to keep a child from James.

 To this day, James and multiple members of the Debarge family maintain their belief that the child existed and was hidden from them. Some even say Janet’s denials have always sounded rehearsed, perfectly clean, carefully calculated. And you have to remember, she was just 18 when she married James, and she came from one of the most imageobsessed, tightly controlled families in the industry.

 So, the big question hangs in the air. If she had been pregnant, would her handlers have rushed to bury it? Could a secret pregnancy have been locked away under NDAs, silenced by internal family pressure, or even threats of career destruction? And here’s where it gets even juicier. People who claim they were around at the time, along with longtime fans of both Janet and the Debarge family, swear they remember seeing photos of Janet looking five or 6 months pregnant.

 Yet, no baby was ever announced. One story that refuses to fade involves the American Music Awards, where Janet appeared on stage with her brothers. Witnesses say she had a clear belly bump. And in a quick, almost too perfect move, Tito reportedly shifted his jacket over his arm to block her midsection from the cameras. But according to those who saw it live, you could still see the bump.

 One woman even claimed her aunt worked at the convolescent hospital where the Jackson family’s grandmother stayed back in the 80s and said Janet walked in looking visibly pregnant. According to her, there was no mistaking it. But whether Janet later lost the baby or was hiding the baby, she couldn’t say. What she did say was crystal clear.

 Janet was for sure pregnant. Now, here we are in 2025 with James once again standing firm, saying he does have a child out there. And the public is split. Some are brushing it off, but more and more are starting to say maybe he’s been telling the truth all along. So maybe the real question isn’t if there was a baby. Maybe it’s why Janet has fought so hard to convince the world there wasn’t.

 If this child exists, wouldn’t she miss them? Wouldn’t she want to know them? Maybe, just maybe, those answers are coming because James says his documentary will be dropping soon and it’s going to clear everything up once and for all. What do you think? Was there really a secret baby or is this one of the biggest celebrity myths of all time? Drop your thoughts in the comments.

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