La Toya Jackson Net Worth

La Toya Jackson, an American singer, songwriter, actress, author, and television personality, has an estimated net worth of $1 million. A prominent member of the famous Jackson family, La Toya carved her own path in the entertainment world—one that was as turbulent as it was bold. She is the older sister to Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson, and despite being born into music royalty, La Toya’s life has been defined by struggle, independence, and resilience.

La Toya Jackson Net Worth: $1 Million
Date of Birth: May 29, 1956
Place of Birth: Gary, Indiana
Nationality: American

Table of Contents

Early Life

Born La Toya Yvonne Jackson on May 29, 1956, in Gary, Indiana, she was the fifth of ten children in the Jackson household. Raised as a Jehovah’s Witness after her mother Katherine’s conversion in 1965, La Toya grew up under strict parental control. Though she initially considered a career in law, she was pulled into the family’s entertainment empire by her father, Joe Jackson.

La Toya got her start appearing on CBS’s “The Jacksons” in 1976–1977 and even briefly formed a girl group with her sisters Janet and Rebbie before going solo due to creative differences.

La Toya Jackson Career

La Toya released her self-titled debut album in 1980, which made it to #26 on the Billboard Top R&B Albums chart. Throughout the 1980s, she followed with albums like “Heart Don’t Lie”, “Imagination”, and “La Toya”. Her 1984 track “Heart Don’t Lie” remains her most commercially successful song.

In 1985, she took part in the “We Are the World” charity single alongside major global artists, including her siblings. In the 1990s, she ventured into more controversial territory—posing for Playboy, performing at Moulin Rouge, and releasing the albums “Bad Girl” and “No Relations”. While she reportedly earned $5 million from her Moulin Rouge contract, she later filed for bankruptcy to avoid paying breach-of-contract damages.

Despite career setbacks under the abusive control of then-husband Jack Gordon, La Toya bounced back with singles like “Just Wanna Dance” and “Free the World”, which both charted on the Billboard Dance chart in the early 2000s.

She also embraced reality TV, appearing in “Celebrity Big Brother”, “Celebrity Apprentice”, “Worst Cooks in America”, and her own show, “Life with La Toya,” on Oprah Winfrey’s network. In 2019, she competed on “The Masked Singer.”

Personal Life

In 1989, La Toya married Jack Gordon, who was hired by her father to manage her career. La Toya later revealed that the marriage was forced and that Gordon physically and emotionally abused her for years. He allegedly controlled her finances, forced her to alienate her family, and even threatened the lives of her siblings, including Michael Jackson.

La Toya ultimately escaped with the help of her brother Randy Jackson in the late 1990s and filed for divorce. She later won a restraining order and a court-ordered settlement of $350,000, which she says was never paid. After her escape, she reconnected with her family and resumed a more private lifestyle, though she briefly became engaged to her business partner, Jeffré Phillips, in 2013 before calling it off in 2015.

La Toya Jackson Awards

La Toya Jackson may not have reached the same level of global stardom as her siblings, but her contributions haven’t gone unrecognized. She won a Grammy Award in 1986 for her behind-the-scenes work on Jimmy Cliff’s reggae album “Cliff Hanger” and earned songwriting credit for “Reggae Nights,” which also received a Grammy nomination. She was also honored by Congress for participating in the “Beat It” anti-violence campaign.

In 1991, she received a footprint ceremony on Rotterdam’s Walk of Fame, and in a fun nod to her pop culture status, Millions of Milkshakes named a signature shake after her.

Real Estate

Despite flashes of wealth, La Toya’s financial story has included significant downturns. In 1996, she purchased a condo in Las Vegas for $260,000, but due to mounting debt and legal troubles, the property was eventually foreclosed in 1999 with debts exceeding $745,000.