Kenny Rogers‘ twin sons, Justin and Jordan, open up in a new interview, sharing their memories of their famous father — including the advice he gave them about bullying.
“I used to be bullied a lot. I’d come home crying and my dad would say, ‘Just keep being yourself. You’re very funny,’” Jordan tells People. “Every day I still live up to that.”
Rogers was a father to the twins late in life with his fifth wife, Wanda. They were 16 years old when he died at the age of 81 in 2020. Now 19 and recently graduated from high school, they still maintain some of the traditions they had with their father, including “Super Saturdays.” The weekly ritual, which was boys-only, entailed breakfast at McDonald’s, visiting the car wash and then Chuck E. Cheese.
“I remember all the fun memories we used to have at Chuck E. Cheese,” Jordan recalls fondly. “We still go to that location, and we sit at the exact same table that we used to.”
“I miss everything about him,” Justin adds. “He was a really fun dad.”
The twins have inherited Rogers’ love of music, too. Justin took guitar lessons “because I wanted to be like my dad,” he states, while Jordan plays the drums. They cite “Coward of the County,” “The Gambler” and “Love Will Turn You Around” as their favorite songs from their father’s catalog.
“I see so much of him in their mannerisms, how they stand with their hands in their pockets or behind their backs when they’re listening to something,” their mother, Wanda, tells People. “I always tell them, ‘That was your dad’s look.’ The older they get, the more they want to know about him. I hear them tell people, ‘My dad used to stand like that.’ It’s so sweet.”
PICTURES: See Inside Kenny Rogers’ Staggering California Estate
Kenny Rogers developed a taste for fine living early in his success. His ultra-lavish mansion in Bel Air, Calif., an estate called Lionsgate, was opulent even by celebrity standards. The 11-bedroom, 17-bathroom home totals 23,988 square feet of space, and it sits on 1.63 acres of some of the most expensive real estate in California.
The lavish interior includes a master suite that encompasses more than 3,000 square feet, three separate living rooms, seven fireplaces, a billiards room, a formal study, a private 12-seat theater with leather seats, a climate-controlled wine room that opens onto a saltwater pool, three steam showers and a large dry sauna. The property also features an outdoor glass elevator that leads to a large ballroom party space with an attached guest suite and a professional-sized gym.
PICTURES: See Inside Kenny Rogers’ Jaw-Dropping Atlanta Mansion
Kenny Rogers’ 6-bedroom, 6-bathroom, 6,9991-square-foot mansion in the high-dollar area of Buckhead in Atlanta was absolutely spectacular. Highlights include a striking two-story entryway and sweeping staircase leading to very formal living and dining rooms. There is also a large eat-in kitchen with booth seating, and the great room features a 20-foot ceiling.
Other amenities include a massive upstairs master suite that includes its own fireplace, separate sitting room, luxurious bathroom and a massive walk-in closet. The luxurious home also features guest suites, a screening room, a full-sized bar, a game room and more. Ornate arched doors, oversized windows throughout and stunning trims, light fixtures and ceilings add to the luxurious feel of the stately home, which Rogers listed for $4,495,000 in 2019.