MILAN, ITALY - FEBRUARY 25: Wissam al Mana and Janet Jackson attend the Giorgio Armani fashion show during Milan Fashion Week Womenswear Fall/Winter 2013/14 on February 25, 2013 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Vittorio Zunino Celotto/Getty Images)
(ABC NEWS) -- Janet Jackson and billionaire businessman Wissam Al Mana are officially married. In fact, they've been husband and wife since last year, the singer confirmed in a statement posted on her website.
The singer said the couple tied the knot in a "quiet, private, and beautiful ceremony," not the over-the-top affair that gossip sites reported would take place. Jackson added that "rumors regarding an extravagant wedding are simply not true." There was speculation that Al Mana was planning to splash out millions on a lavish ceremony, even flying Jackson's large family to Qatar aboard private jets.
Instead, Jackson explained that they're using their money to do good for others.
"Our wedding gifts to one another were contributions to our respective favorite children's charities," she said.
Jackson and Al Mana ask that their "privacy is respected and that we are allowed this time for celebration and joy." Closing their note, they wrote, "With love, Wissam and Janet."
This is marriage number three for Jackson, whose union with fellow singer James DeBarge was annulled in 1985. In 1991, she married dancer, songwriter and director Rene Elizondo Jr., but they kept their relationship a secret until their divorce in 2000.
NBC News