John Mellencamp recalls ex-wife barring ‘girls’ from backstage, has complied since 1991: ‘Her advice was good’
John Mellencamp isn’t too keen on allowing folks backstage at his shows. As the "Hurts So Good" singer explains it, "girls" and what he calls "hangers-on" have been barred from entering the backstage area of his shows since 1991 – when his then-wife Elaine Irwin put her foot down. "Elaine came out on tour with me [early on] and looked at what was going on," Mellencamp, 70, told People magazine of his former supermodel wife, from whom he split in 2010 after 18 years of marriage.