11 Facts About Alan Jackson’s Daughter, Mattie Jackson

11 Facts About Alan Jackson’s Daughter, Mattie Jackson | Classic Country Music | Legendary Stories and Songs Videos

Alan Jackson / Facebook

Alan Jackson, the legendary country music singer-songwriter, has not only left an indelible mark on the music industry but has also built a beautiful family along the way. Jackson is a proud father to three daughters: Mattie, Alexandra, and Dani.

 

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A post shared by Alan Jackson (@officialalanjackson)

Mattie, the eldest, has been in the news recently, which has everyone asking, “Who is Mattie Jackson?”

Well, we are here to introduce you to her. Here are 11 facts about Alan Jackson’s daughter, Mattie Jackson Smith. We will start with the basics, and then really get into the details.

1. She is Alan Jackson and wife Denise’s eldest daughter.

Alan and Denise have been married since 1979 and have three beautiful daughters. They all look so much alike, so it’s hard to tell them apart sometimes! But Mattie is the only brunette in her family so she stands out. In this photo, from the left, Alexandra (Ali), Alan’s wife Denise, Alan, Dani, and Mattie all stand together smiling. Mattie was born June 19, 1990, followed by Ali on August 23, 1993, and Dani on August 28, 1997.

2. She Is An Aunt

On December 15, Alan announced that his daughter, Ali, and her husband, Sam Bradshaw, had welcomed their first child, a son named Jackson Alvie Bradshaw. Proud Grandpa Alan called him “Jack” in his social media post announcing the baby’s birth.

 

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A post shared by Alan Jackson (@officialalanjackson)

If Denise and Alan became grandparents, that means their other daughters, Mattie and Dani became aunts! Shortly after Baby Jack’s birth, Mattie shared a sweet photo of her and her nephew.

Mattie Jackson Smith / Instagram
Mattie Jackson Smith / Instagram

How cute are they?!

3. She Used To Be A Sommelier and Owned A Wine Bar

If you follow Mattie on Instagram (and if you’re not, you should!), you will notice that she does live a good glass of wine or a cocktail.

Mattie Jackson Smith / Instagram

According to her biography on her website, she is a Certified Sommelier. A sommelier is a trained and knowledgeable wine professional who specializes in all aspects of wine service. They are responsible for curating and managing wine lists, assisting customers in selecting wines that pair well with their meals, and providing expertise on wine regions, grape varieties, and wine production methods.

She writes, “For most of my twenties I worked in hospitality, falling in love with food and wine and culture. I even became a Certified Sommelier and opened my own wine bar in Nashville by age 26.”

According to her personal Facebook page, she previously was the sommelier and owner of the SALT & VINE Bottle Shop. She previously interned at Joseph Phelps Vineyards in Napa, California before owning her own wine bar. She closed her wine bar in June 2018 to pursue two other passions. 

4. She Started A Clothing Brand

“Clothing brand” is a surface level description of her brand, NaSHEville. Mattie co-founded the brand NaSHEville alongside fellow Nashville native Brooke Tometich. NaSHEville is described as an apparel company  “that celebrates sisterhood & gives back to orphans, widows & trafficked women.”

 

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A post shared by NaSHEville™️ (@nasheville)

Check out their website here.

5. Mattie Hosts Her Own Podcast

On January 11th, Mattie announced that she will be hosting her very own podcast, titled In Joy Life with Mattie Jackson. 

Mattie Jackson Smith / Instagram

She previously hosted the podcast She’s In The City with her NaSHEville co-founder Brooke Tometich, which ran from February 2019 until May 11, 2022.

She has had guests like Shawn Johnson East, Andrew East, Annie F. Downs, Laura Osnes, Alan Jackson, Naomi Raine, and Melissa Joan Hart.

6. Mattie Jackson’s first husband was Ben Selecman

Mattie and Ben Selecman had the love story people only dream about. They were married on October 7, 2017 at the Jackson Family Estate in Franklin, Tennessee.

Mattie Jackson Smith / Instagram

Just as they were getting ready to celebrate their first wedding anniversary, Ben passed away after suffering a brain injury. Mattie revealed he died just three weeks before they were to celebrate their first anniversary on October 7, 2018.

Mattie Jackson Smith / Instagram

See her full post here.

Mattie has publicly grieved, and a lot of her speaking engagements and podcast appearances are about her grief, and her relationship with God after suffering such tragedy.

7. Mattie wrote a book called “Lemons on Friday”

In her “About” section on her website, Mattie reveals that after she earned a Creative Writing degree at the University of Tennessee, she “longed to be a writer.” Her goal was to “someday tell meaningful stories that changed people’s lives.”

But at 22 years old, her father told her, “You’ve got a gift, sugar, but you haven’t lived life yet; go live it and find something you want to write about.”

By the time she was 28 years old, Mattie had lived a couple different lives. Sadly, nearly a year after she married her husband, she became a widow. After his death, she dove into writing. Those writings became a book, titled Lemons On Friday: Trusting God Through My Greatest Heartbreak.

Check out the book’s description on Barnes & Noble’s website:

“In Lemons on Friday, Mattie Jackson Selecman invites you to walk with her during the first years of grief following Ben’s tragic death as she grapples with her loss and leans on a steadfast God.

Mattie wrestles with questions that we’ve all faced in the midst of grief and loss, including:

  • How did I get here?
  • Will this always hurt?
  • Who am I now?
  • Where can I find the strength to keep going?

Lemons on Friday will give you the encouragement you need to see life and love in a brand new light, no matter what you’re facing.”

Proud papa Alan celebrated the book’s release on November 16, 2021.

According to a post by Alan in April 2022, Mattie had sold over 200,000 copies of her book.

8. She Collaborated On A Song With Her Dad

In conjunction with her book release, Mattie also released a song with her famous father, titled “Racing In The Dark.”

In a press release about the song, Jackson said, “I’m really surprised how well she was able to handle all that. I know I couldn’t have done what she’s done. One day she came to me with this piece of paper and said, ‘I wrote this song…the lyrics,’ and asked me to put it to music. So, I wrote the melody for it, and it turned out to be a very sweet song.”

While promoting her book, and the song, Mattie stopped by the TODAY Show and spoke with Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager. Mattie said, “[The song] was such an accident on my part, I’m certainly not a musician, but the lyrics just came to me one day coming up on the two-year anniversary of Ben’s death and Dad, obviously with the talent he has. I said ‘you know, could you put a melody with this?’ Thinking all the while if this is awful, is he going to tell me? But he did, and he invited me into the whole production process, and it was just such a beautiful surprise. It’s such a gift for me.”

Take a listen to “Racing In The Dark” below.

9. She Is A Dog Mom

During their marriage, Mattie and Ben got a dog and named her Ryman, after the legendary Ryman Auditorium. Sadly, Ben passed away before they could even enjoy their first Christmas as dog parents.

Mattie Jackson Smith / Instagram

Ryman is now 5 years old, and living the best life with Mattie.

Mattie Jackson Smith / Instagram

10. 3.5 Years After Ben’s Passing, She Announced She Was Dating Someone

On April 14, 2022, Mattie revealed on Instagram that she had been dating a man named Connor Smith for the past six months. She met him because he is the brother-in-law of one of her best friends.

“I have believed, prayed, and claimed for 3 and a half years now that God would give me the chance to love someone with my whole heart again,” she wrote. “Other dear widow friends assured me that my heart could heal and expand to love two people equally, though differently. And I hoped so desperately that would really be true.”

Mattie continued, “This man is more of an answer to prayer (mine and countless others!) than I sometimes think he even realizes.”

Mattie Jackson Smith / Instagram

On September 4, 2022, Mattie announced that she and Connor had gotten engaged while celebrating his 30th birthday!

Mattie Jackson Smith / Instagram

“Well… came down for a beach week to celebrate my sweet man’s 30th birthday. Didn’t know we’d end up celebrating choosing the rest of our lives together!” she wrote.

See her full post here.

11. Connor and Mattie were married on May 12, 2023

Connor and Mattie wed at the luxury resort The Breakers Palm Beach in Florida. It was a gorgeous event that was filmed by Krystyn Hogan, who shard footage on her social media pages.

 

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A post shared by Kristyn Hogan (@kristynhogan)

Alan welcomed Connor to the family in a sweet post, writing,

Denise and I are so happy to officially welcome Connor into our family! Wishing @MattieJackson & Connor Smith a lifetime of happiness… Livin’ on Love!”

Mattie shared a cute photo from the special day on her Instagram page.

Mattie Jackson Smith / Instagram

Congrats to the newlyweds! They celebrated their marriage by honeymooning in Saint Lucia!

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