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Backstreet Boys singer AJ McLean and his wife Rochelle DeAnna Karidis announced on Instagram that they had decided to bring an end to their marriage. The official announcement came on New Year's Day and revealed that the duo had hoped for reconciliation after their separation which was announced nine months ago but finally decided to go their separate ways.
The couple, who got married in 2011 announced their separation back in March of last year, after 12 years of marriage. According to the statement, they had been separated for a year. AJ McLean and Rochelle have two young daughters together.
AJ McLean and Rochelle DeAnna Karidis call it quits after 12 years of marriage
Backstreet Boys singer AJ McLean and his hairstylist wife Rochelle DeAnna Karidis announced in March 2023 that they were going through a temporary separation but the hope of reconciliation remained as they claimed that they would eventually come back together. The joint statement, said, as quoted by People magazine:
"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 duo further added:
"The plan is to come back together and continue to nurture our love for one another and our family. We ask for respect and privacy at this time. Separation is hard enough without the commentary, please be kind and remember there are children involved."
However, the hope for coming "back together" was evidently lost when the couple announced that they had decided to end their marriage on New Year's Day, 2024. Both, AJ McLean and Rochelle posted the same statement on both their Instagram handles, where it was confirmed that they had been separated for over a year. AJ captioned his post, "😭", while Rochelle wrote, "🖤".
The statement read:
"As you all know we have been separated for over a year now. While we have hoped for reconciliation we have decided to officially end our marriage. It is with deep love and respect that we have made this decision."
They further stated:
"Our focus now is moving forward in the healthiest way possible with friendship and co-parenting our girls at the forefront of this next chapter. "We appreciate your kindness, respect, and privacy at this time. Thank you, Alexander and Rochelle McLean."
AJ McLean first met Rochelle in 2000 and later when she was waitressing at Saddle Ranch in 2008. The now-45-year-old McLean was initially unsuccessful in procuring a date with Rochelle but eventually succeeded in the second attempt, a year later.
Romance blossomed and McLean proposed in 2010, which led to the duo getting married in December 2011 at the Beverly Hills Hotel, in Los Angeles. According to Us Weekly, the ceremony was even gothic-themed. Right after a year of marriage, the couple welcomed their first daughter, Elliott, and five years later, in 2017, welcomed their second daughter, Lyric.
Elliott, who was earlier named Ava, is now 11-years-old, while Lyric is now 6-years-old. As mentioned in the couple's joint statement, the duo were going to co-parent their daughters as they maintained a healthy friendship. No custody agreements were revealed, at the time of writing, however, both parents seem like they are on good terms with each other.
