John Mellencamp’s 5 Children: Everything to Know

John Mellencamp became a father for the first time at the age of 19.

Shortly after graduating from high school, the “Jack and Diane” singer married his pregnant girlfriend, Priscilla Esterline. Six months after the couple eloped, she gave birth to a daughter, Michelle. The couple divorced in 1981, and Mellencamp married Victoria Granucci – with whom he later had daughters Teddi and Justice during their eight-year marriage. He also shares two sons, Hud and Speck, with third wife Elaine Irwin.

“I never cared about my image — just my family, my kids,” the musician told PEOPLE in 2017.

While talking to Men’s health Seven years ago, Mellencamp said, “I wasn’t very close to my own father; I mostly tried to stay away from him. But now that I have a wife and kids, family time is a priority. I want my sons to remember these good times we share together .”

Instagram Justice Mellencamp

From reality TV to artistic endeavors, here’s everything you need to know about John Mellencamp’s five children.

Michelle Mellencamp, 52

Michelle Mellencamp’s Instagram

Mellencamp’s first daughter (and only child with ex-wife Priscilla Esterline), Michelle Suzanne Mellencamp, was born on December 4, 1970.

Like her famous father, Michelle started a family at a young age. In 1989, she gave birth to her eldest daughter, Elexis. She was 18 at the time, making Mellencamp a grandfather at 37. “I’ve been a grandfather so long that it’s as normal to me as being a man,” he told PEOPLE in 2000, adding, “I swear in front of the kids and playing in a rock band is probably not very grandfatherly.”

Michelle has mostly stayed out of the limelight, but is now a mother of four: her son Colin was born in 1994, followed by two more daughters, Hannah in 1996 and Grace in 1998.

Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave, 42

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Mellencamp married his second wife, actress Victoria Granucci, in 1981, and the couple had two daughters together. Their first daughter, Teddi Jo Mellencamp, was born on July 1, 1981. She later moved to Hilton Head, South Carolina, where she spent most of her childhood.

At 17, Teddi moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting before becoming a fitness and wellness coach. However, she is best known for her role in The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. She joined the cast in 2017 and spent three seasons on the show before confirming her exit in 2020.

Her departure comes amid backlash over her weight loss program, All In by Teddi, with many claiming it encourages disordered eating habits and extreme calorie restriction. In the statement for Today, Teddi denied the claims, saying, “Nowhere in our suggested meal plan does it mention a specific number of calories.”

Teddi is a mother of four and founded All In after losing 80 pounds after the birth of her son. After marrying her husband Edwin Arroyave in 2011, she became a stepmother to Isabella, his daughter from a previous marriage. The couple then welcomed their first child together in October 2012, a daughter named Slate. Two years later, in August 2014, their son Cruz was born. Their third child, daughter Dove, arrived on February 25, 2020.

According to Tedda, Mellencamp has a special bond with his children. “They call him Peepaw,” she said. “He has so much fun with them.”

In 2021, Teddi interviewed her father for Extra to celebrate his 70th birthday. “The fact that I’m even sitting here talking to my daughter is a real success story in itself.” He went on to say, “I’m most proud of you kids. I’m proud of you kids because you could have turned out very differently.”

Judge Mellencamp, 37

Instagram Justice Mellencamp

Justice Mellencamp was born in Indiana in August 1985 to Mellencamp and Granucci. After her parents divorced in 1989, she moved to Hilton Head, South Carolina, where she lived with her mother and older sister Teddi.

Growing up, Justice often traveled with her father. In an interview with Local life, she said he always wanted to take his children with him when he toured. “He felt that seeing the world was a very important aspect of life.”

In 2014, Justice married her high school sweetheart Michael Moore at her father’s home in South Carolina. “He opened his home to our closest friends, which was a great gift.” She then said that at her wedding, Mellencamp had Miriam Sturm, the violinist in his band, play a song for her. “It was so beautiful,” she said. “And we had a father/daughter dance right there. Totally unplanned. That was sweet.”

Today, Justice is a professional hairdresser. She and her husband also have three children together. The couple had a son, Trent, in 2005 while still in college. Their daughter, Dylan Carter, was born in 2016, followed by another daughter, Woods, in 2021.

Hud Mellencamp, 29

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Mellencamp welcomed his first son, Hud Mellencamp, with his third wife, Elaine Irwin, on April 27, 1994.

Like his siblings, Hud was born in Indiana, where he grew up with his parents and younger brother. He also spent a lot of time traveling with his father.

In an interview with PEOPLE, Mellencamp shared that after he and Irwin got married, she wanted to provide a more family atmosphere while he was on tour. “Since then, there has been no one – no girls, no girls – backstage at my shows. Her advice was good,” he said, adding that he brought his sons with him on the trip.

Yet despite giving them a taste of the rock star life, he wanted his children to appreciate their lifestyle. “I try to make my kids realize how lucky they are and that they shouldn’t take any of this for granted.”

Hud attended Duke University, where he played football. The 28-year-old now works as an executive recruiter.

Speck Mellencamp, 28

John Mellencamp Instagram

Mellencamp and Irwin welcomed their second son, Speck Wildhorse Mellencamp, on April 23, 1995.

According to USA Today, when Speck was 20, was reportedly sentenced to four days in jail after he and his brother pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges. He was arrested again in 2017 for public drunkenness after getting into a physical altercation with Huda and was sentenced to probation.

Mellencamp seemingly referenced Speck’s arrests during an interview with AARP 2017 “Here’s what I told my son Speck, who is always fighting everyone and himself. I said, ‘I know you think of yourself as a dangerous young man, but I’m a dangerous old man.’ ”

Since then, Speck has turned to a career in art. He went to the Rhode Island School of Design and is now the executive director of the Southern Indiana Center for the Arts. “I drew a lot as a child,” he said in an interview with Indianapolis Monthly. “Dad and I collaborated on a few paintings.”

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