Teddy Mellencamp he will always be grateful to his father, John Mellencampdespite their well-documented ups and downs.
John adopted daughters Teddi and Justice from his ex-wife Victoria Granucci in 1981 and 1985, respectively. The singer also has a daughter Michelle ex Priscilla Esterlineand sons Hud and Speck and former wife Elaine Irwin.
In May 2024, Teddi shared that her relationship with her father was difficult growing up, but is now in a better place.
“I think he’s always tried his best,” she said of her father’s parenting in an episode of the “Sibling Revelry with Kate Hudson and Oliver Hudson” podcast. “Do I think we’re in a better situation now than when I was a kid?” Yes, but also because I didn’t really understand the importance of a good relationship with my parents when I was a child.
John has continued to support Teddi throughout her life, including her battle with cancer. Teddy shared in February 2025 that he had stage 4 melanoma that had metastasized to his lungs and brain.
“Dad. Thank you that yes you believe in me and you know I can do it,” Teddi wrote on Instagram Story in March 2025. “She cried with joy that I support me.”
Keep scrolling to see what Teddi and John have shared about their daughter-daughter relationship over the years:
John Mellencamp Tunes In To ‘RHOBH’ To Support Teddi Mellencamp
Teddi Mellencamp, John Mellencamp and Justice Mellencamp
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for JMAfter Teddi Mellencamp announced she was leaving Real Housewives of Beverly HillsJohn Mellencamp said in November 2020 that he was “very happy and excited” that he was leaving the show. John noted that he “tried to be supportive” and watched the show — but he “doesn’t watch anymore.”
“I think it’s great and I think the other women on the show are great,” she told Teddi on her “Teddi Tea Pod” episode. “But I don’t like people to know where I am, I don’t like people to know what I’m doing, I like to be private and that’s why I just stay by myself and don’t go anywhere.”
He is ‘Very Proud’ of His Children
In October 2021, Teddi Mellencamp interviewed her father More on his 70th birthday. During the episode, he couldn’t help but be proud of his interview with Teddi.
Over the years, stars including Jennette McCurdy and Macaulay Culkin have discussed hitting rock bottom with their parents. Jennette opened up about the abuse she suffered from her mother, Debra McCurdy, in her memoir, I Am Glad My Mom Died. “Yes, there are times when I think that my mother was going to apologize or something […]
“The fact that I always talk to my daughter is a success story in itself,” he explained. “I’m proud of you kids, I’m proud of you kids because you were so different.”
John Mellencamp ‘Proud’ of Teddi Mellencamp on ‘Celebrity Big Brother’
John Mellencamp took to social media to congratulate Teddi Mellencamp Big Celebrity appearance.
“Teddi’s TV show tonight,” she wrote on Instagram in February 2022, alongside a photo of herself with Teddi and her daughters Slate and Dove, who she shared with her. Edwin Arroyave. (They also share a son, Cruz.) “I don’t know what he’s doing, but I’m proud of him and I hope he achieves his goals.”
Teddy Mellencamp Opens Up About Not Talking To John Mellencamp For ‘Two Years’
In May 2024, Teddi Mellencamp shared in an episode of “Sibling Revelry with Kate Hudson and Oliver Hudson” that she and John Mellencamp had a rocky relationship growing up after her parents’ divorce. Instead of “flying to Indiana” to visit his father every other weekend, Teddi chose to stay home and hang out with friends.
“I probably really hurt him by doing that,” he explained. “I mean, there was one point – we joke about this conversation because it’s probably too offensive – but I was mad at him about something,” he recalled. And he said, ‘You know what? F you, Teddi. I have other children,’ and we didn’t talk for a few years.
Teddy Mellencamp Weeps For Dad’s ‘Support’ Amid Cancer Battle
Teddi Mellencamp took to her Instagram story to admit that she was crying “with joy” that her father was supporting her during her battle with cancer.
Erika Jayne suggests an unlikely fairytale setup between John Mellencamp and his newlywed Real Housewives of Beverly Hills co-star Dorit Kemsley. “John should meet Dorit [should happen],” Erika, 53, told John’s daughter, Teddi Mellencamp, on the Thursday, May 1, episode of iHeartRadio’s “Diamonds in the Rough” podcast. Teddi, who starred in […]
“Thank you for saying yes, you believe in me and you know I can do it,” he added.
John Mellencamp Makes Teddi Mellencamp Laugh Through Cancer Treatment
In April 2025, Teddi Mellencamp said her father tried to call her 11 times in a row and when he finally answered, he had a question.
“At the end, I answer, it’s like, ‘I’m in the bathtub. Let me live a little,’ ” Teddi recalled on his iHeartRadio “Diamonds in the Rough” podcast. “He goes, ‘I want to make sure you’re going to be in our club’s family museum.’
Teddi said she replied that she had children and did not know where they would go to the temple.
“He’s like, ‘Well, there’s going to be a top five and then we’re going to have little plots around it, and that’s where everybody’s going to be buried,'” he continued. He says, ‘You’re making your will right now, so you can put it out there.’
Teddi Mellencamp and her sister Justice Mellencamp approved of their father John Mellencamp’s relationship with Meg Ryan. “We were obviously having a lot of fun,” Justice, 40, revealed on the Sunday, April 20, episode of iHeartRadio’s podcast “Two T’s in a Pod.” “We were like, ‘What? How?’ He was the most beautiful of them all. I mean, right off the bat. Well, in comparison […]
Later that month, Teddi clarified that his comments were made to make fun of him.
“Dad knows I need, like, humor in this,” he explained to the broadcaster Erika Jayne on their “Diamond in the Rough” podcast. “His next speech or his next thing was like, okay, now we actually have to talk seriously, like we need to talk about your will and like your living trust and love, to do the things that we need to do, you know. …
John Mellencamp’s Wish to Be Closer to Teddi Mellencamp
As Teddi Mellencamp recovers from her battle with stage 4 cancer in January 2026, John Mellencamp expressed his wish that his daughter could stay by his side.
“I tried to talk to him to come home,” then on NBC Today the show. “I said, ‘Go back to Indiana, bring the kids and just come back and live in Indiana,’ but it’s not happening.”
Although Teddi’s scans in October 2025 showed “no cancer to be found,” John said he hasn’t stopped checking on his daughter.
“You can’t say you don’t have cancer with the type of cancer he’s had for three years,” he explained.
Teddi Mellencamp Honored by John Mellencamp Icon
Teddi Mellencamp has earned the right to present John Mellencamp with the Icon Award at the iHeart Music Awards in March 2026. Before the event, Teddi told exclusively. Us Weekly what this opportunity meant to him.
“I mean, the Icon Award, I’m so happy for my dad,” she shared. “I know about him, he probably won’t be on the red carpet, but when he called me and asked if I would introduce him, it was an honor for me because he was an unbelievable father. He has been there for me a lot these past few months. I am happy to do this for him.
Reflecting on what she learned from John last year, Teddi added, “Whatever he’s going to do, he’s going to work hard for. Whether it’s taking care of his daughter, writing a new song. I mean, the fact that he’s going to tour and finally play all of his hits? This is the first time he’s done that. So I’m really excited about this.” [Dancing Words Tour — The Greatest Hits].”
Teddi later became emotional as he presented the award to his father on stage.
“Many of his songs [hold] a place in the hearts of millions,” he said, “But for me, ‘The Longest Days’ was the song that meant the most. He sings, ‘But nothing lasts forever / Your best efforts don’t always pay off sometimes / When you’re sick and not getting better / That’s when life is short, even on the longest days.’
The broadcaster continued, “Because it was a little over a year ago when I got sick, my life was cut short, even when the days in the hospital seemed to go on forever. Sometimes you get sick and you don’t get better. He wasn’t going to let that song define my life. He stood up, took control, fought for me and changed my life, saved my life.”
