AJ McLean Was Married To His Wife Rochelle For 11 Years Before Their Split
Quit playing games with our hearts!
AJ and Rochelle McLean made headlines recently when they announced they were officially separating. "Marriage is hard, but worth it. We have mutually decided to separate temporarily to work on ourselves, and on our marriage with the hope of building a stronger future," the couple said in a joint statement first reported by TMZ. "The plan is to come back together and continue to nurture our love for one another and our family," the husband and wife added before requesting respect and privacy. "Separation is hard enough without the commentary, please be kind and remember there are children involved." Perhaps, however, the split wasn't so mutual after all. It's rumored that Rochelle actually asked for the separation. "There were some trust issues. Close friends don't see them getting back together, though AJ really thinks they will," an insider recently told People.
As one can imagine, the news has come as a shock to many as the couple has been married for more than 11 years _ certainly no small feat for a pair in the spotlight. Here's a look at the couple's 11-year marriage and how it all began.
Rochelle Mclean was less than impressed when she first met AJ McLean
A famous boy bander walks into a steak joint... and meets his future wife.
The story goes that AJ McLean met his future wife, Rochelle McLean (née Rochelle DeAnna Karidis), at Saddle Ranch Chophouse, a restaurant where she worked. But as it turns out, she was less than impressed by Aj and more by his Backstreet Boys star power. "She claimed she didn't know who I was, but I call bull s***," he recalled to People. Luckily, after AJ's second attempt at asking her out, the pair went on their first date and bonded over a mutual phobia of blowing their own nose. "It was in that moment I just got smacked in the face with these butterflies," he gushed.
On December 18, 2011, the second most popular Backstreet Boy married that waitress during a lavish ceremony in Beverly Hills. And while AJ initially told People that the couple wanted to wait three years before expanding their family, in April 2012, the couple announced they were expecting. "I just wanted to say thank you guys for all your love and support. We recently got married — I was the most recent Backstreet Boy to take the plunge," AJ began in a bombshell YouTube video. "Because we love you all so much, we wanted to share with you all, for the first time, something very special. We're having a baby!" he revealed. And that's when the real fun began.
AJ and Rochelle McLean's marriage was filled with ups and downs
Children change everything — just ask AJ McLean. "It's definitely been a whirlwind, but I think I've done a lot more growing up in the past six years than I ever have in my whole life," he told ET in 2019. By then, he and Rochelle McLean had welcomed not one but two daughters. "Becoming a father changes everything. For some people, they go the other way — grow up first, then have kids. But I dove in head-first and I love being a dad," he gushed.
But even with two beautiful children, things weren't all rainbows and sunshine in the McLean household. AJ has always been very open and forthcoming about his past struggles with alcohol use and the toll it has taken on the couple's marriage. "[Rochelle] was at her wit's end with me," he recalled to People in 2020. "She had thrown out leaving and taking the girls, but my ego always told me, 'She's not going anywhere.' If I were her, I would have left, but she's always been able to see through the B.S. to who I really am."
Alexa, play "As Long as You Love Me" by the Backstreet Boys.
If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).