AJ McLean has announced that he is temporarily separating from his wife of 12 years

AJ McLean has temporarily separated from his wife of over a decade, Rochelle DeAnna.

The pair have been ‘goals’ for many since they started dating in 2006, with the Backstreet Boys member proposing to Rochelle on her birthday in 2010. Almost two years later, they walked down the aisle at the Beverly Hills Hotel with McLean’s bandmates. .

The last milestone of the two’s relationship was in December 2022, when Rochelle commemorated their 11th wedding anniversary with a throwback photo of them alongside the lyrics to Guns N’ Roses’ ‘November Rain’.

AJ and Rochelle McLean temporarily put the brakes on their union

The past 12 months have been full of changes for AJ, who has been sharing her fitness and sobriety journeys with her fans. She was especially celebrated when she showed off her transformation with a side-by-side photo last September.

However, the atmosphere was slightly different when the news of his separation from his wife aired recently. The singer announced the split in a statement, explaining that the break was necessary to “work on themselves” to get better results from their marriage.

The “As Long as You Love Me” hitmaker noted that he and Rochelle planned to “get back together and continue to cherish our love for each other and our family.” Grayling E.Tthe statement included a request for “present respect and privacy” from outsiders before concluding read:

“Parting is hard enough without the commentary, please be kind and remember there are children involved.”

AJ and Rochelle’s love for each other and their family was reflected in the Instagram post the latter shared for their daughter Elliott’s tenth birthday last November.

The explosion reported that the mother uploaded a unique shot of the celebrant – whose name was changed from Ava ahead of D-Day – with her hair in a bun. Smiling, Elliott posed with one hand on her waist, accentuating her Brittney Spears-inspired t-shirt, and the other in a peace sign. The caption of the post read:

“MY DAUGHTER is 10 years old today! 🎉🎂🎁 Today I will smother him with love, hugs and kisses! She is so proud of the little lady she is becoming♥️ I am forever grateful that the creator chose me to be her mommy 🙏🏻 I love you baby girl 🥰.”

The post received more than 10,000 likes and hundreds of comments from well-wishers congratulating the celebrant on the “big 10!” One fan admitted to being confused with the tot’s name and stated that he was still called by his former name.

Even the teen’s parents suffered a moment of shock and confusion when their daughter first shared her intention to change her name. “When my daughter asked to change her name to Elliott, I didn’t know at first if it was a transgender thing, which it isn’t, but it’s a personal decision,” AJ revealed in a September 2022 interview.

He added that while his daughter will “always be Ava” to him, he would support his decision “a million percent” – a sentiment shared by his wife. Rochelle addressed the change when she confirmed that “Elliott’s name change wasn’t a gender thing” but needed “something unique that no one else had.”

The “Days of Our Lives” guest star talks about his alcohol addiction

According to a recent report from The Blast, AJ had no problem talking candidly about his struggles with alcoholism with Cheryl Burke. That’s why the duo came together The “Dancing With the Stars” alum’s talk show, which she commented on via her Instagram Story:

“This is going to be a great episode. It was filmed when I had really short hair, so it’s been quite a few years now.”

Due to the ‘age’ of the footage, the 38-year-old had to explain that her views, especially on God, had changed exponentially and she now really believed in ‘God’. He then expressed his excitement that AJ will be on his show and asked fans to look out for “a little teaser of what’s to come tomorrow.”

True to his word, Burke shared a four-second video that showed him talking to the Florida native about canceling a tour, which he confirmed by saying, “yeah, when I went to rehab.”

In the third story, the “Larger Than Life” singer revealed that his alcoholism “affected everyone” in his life, prompting him to make a much-needed lifestyle change.