One of Alan Jackson’s Most Famous Songs Is a Tribute to His Daughters | "I Wrote This for All of You"

Legendary country musician Alan Jackson is a renowned artist with over 30 chart-topping songs on country radio including 1991's "I'd Love You All Over Again," 1993's "Chattahoochee," and 1996's "Little Bitty."  The CMA Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award recipient and Country Music Hall of Famer is also a proud girl dad.

The Grammy Award winner welcomed his firstborn, Mattie Denise, on July 19, 1990, and his second offspring, Alexandra Jane, on August 23, 1993. His youngest daughter, Dani Grace Jackson, was born on August 28, 1997. Jackson is married to his high school sweetheart and wife of over 40 years, Denise Jackson.

In a special gesture to his girls, the 64-year-old dedicated his song "You'll Always Be My Baby" to Mattie, Alexandra, and Dani last year. 

Jackson dropped the heartwarming lyric video—where he sang “But you'll always be my baby / No matter where you are / You'll always be my baby / Forever in my heart"—as a beautiful tribute to his daughters in 2021. The video features snapshots of his daughters growing up throughout the years. "I wrote the song for Mattie's wedding the summer of 2017, but it was so hard to do. I told 'em, 'I wrote this for all of you,'" he explained in a statement shared with Taste of Country.

The singer has been through a lot in his life. He revealed his Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease—a degenerative nerve condition—diagnosis last year and admitted it was a "relief" to go public with his health condition 10 years after being diagnosed.

Speaking to TODAY's Jenna Bush Hager, Jackson shared that the illness was slowly affecting his ability to walk and perform on stage. "It's not going to kill me. It's not deadly," he said. "But it's related (to) muscular dystrophy and Parkinson's disease."

He added: "I've been reluctant to talk about this publicly and to my fans, but it's been a while, and it's starting to affect my performance on stage a little bit where I don't feel comfortable. I just wanted the fans and the public to know if they've come to see me in the last few years or if they come to see me in the future if I play anymore, what's going on. I don't want them to think I'm drunk on stage because I'm having problems with mobility and balance. I have this neuropathy, a neurological disease I inherited from my daddy."

Jackson's family has been a huge source of strength during his health troubles and they couldn't be prouder of the legacy he will leave behind.  "He'll have so many songs for our grandchildren and our great-grandchildren to hear and know who he was," said his wife, Denise. "To know what was important to him. To get a little touch of our lives together through his music."

References:

https://www.today.com/health/country-star-alan-jackson-announces-cmt-diagnosis-today-t232178

https://tasteofcountry.com/alan-jackson-youll-always-be-my-baby-lyric-video/

Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Rick Diamond