Tito Jackson, a founding member of the Jackson 5 who became a teen heartthrob in the 1970s along with his brothers Jackie, Jermaine, Randy, Marlon and Michael and sang hits such as “ABC” and “I’ll Be There,” has died, his family announced. He was 70 years old.
His death was announced early Monday in a statement from his three sons – Taj, Taryll and TJ – on an Instagram account of their music group 3T. The statement did not say when, where or how he died.
“Some of you may know him as Tito Jackson of the legendary Jackson 5, others may know him as ‘Coach Tito’ or still others as ‘Poppa T,'” the statement said. “Nevertheless, he will be terribly missed.”
The Jackson 5, briefly one of the most popular boy bands in the USA, were responsible for launching the solo career of Michael Jackson, who earned the title “King of Pop” and became one of the most admired musicians of all time. The singer, songwriter and dancer died in 2009 at the age of 50.
The story of the Jackson 5, from their humble beginnings in Gary, Indiana, to their varying degrees of success, is well documented and was the subject of a five-hour miniseries in 1992 called The Jacksons: An American Dream.
Mr. Jackson was born Toriano Adaryll Jackson in Gary to Joe and Katherine Jackson. He is best remembered as the group’s guitarist, a skill he learned from watching his father play. The elder Mr. Jackson died in 2018.
In an interview with Vlad TV in 2019, Tito Jackson said that as a child he regularly played his father’s guitar behind his back.
“One day the string broke and I didn’t know what to do,” he said. “He came home, saw that the string was broken and was very upset about it.”
After punishing him, Mr. Jackson said, his father challenged him to show what he knew. His father gave him the guitar with instructions to learn every song on the radio.
The family soon formed the Jackson Brothers, a group that included young Michael, who got a spot after impressing the family at a talent show with a performance of “Climb Every Mountain.” The band’s name was later changed to the Jackson 5 after someone suggested it following a performance at a wedding.
The Jackson 5 were household names in the 1970s, appearing regularly on television, sometimes alongside Cher or Diana Ross. Their music – on more than a dozen albums – provided the soundtrack for a young generation and aroused a fan base perhaps now reserved only for elite pop stars like Taylor Swift and Beyoncé.
“I remember the very first time we flew to the UK and there were about 10,000 screaming fans greeting us at the airport,” Mr Jackson told Sister Circle TV in 2019. “I got lost in the airport and 1,000 fans were running after me and pulling me everywhere. It was crazy.”
Three of the Jackson 5’s biggest songs, “ABC,” “I Want You Back,” and “I’ll Be There,” were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. The group was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1997 along with the Bee Gees.
Mr. Jackson continued to work in the music business over the years, releasing a solo album, “Tito Time,” in 2016 and touring with some of his brothers. The group, now called The Jacksons, was scheduled to perform in Atlantic City, N.J., in October and Cincinnati in November.
“We’ve always said it’s the fans that make the artist,” Mr Jackson told Sister Circle TV. “We go to work, we make music and we do all these other things, but it’s actually the fans that love it and buy it.”
