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Thriller (Michael Jackson album)

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"Thriller (album)" redirects here. For albums of the same name, see Thriller.

Thriller

Studio album by Michael Jackson

Released
November 30, 1982
Recorded
April 14 – November 8, 1982; Westlake Recording Studios (West Hollywood, California)
Genre
Post-disco·
 pop·
 R&B·
 rock·
 funk
 
Length
42:19
Label
Epic
Producer
Michael Jackson·
 Quincy Jones
 
Michael Jackson chronology

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
 (1982) Thriller
 (1982) Farewell My Summer Love
 (1984)


Singles from Thriller
1."The Girl Is Mine"
 Released: October 18, 1982
2."Billie Jean"
 Released: January 3, 1983
3."Beat It"
 Released: February 14, 1983
4."Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"
 Released: May 8, 1983
5."Human Nature"
 Released: July 3, 1983
6."P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)"
 Released: September 19, 1983
7."Thriller"
 Released: November 12, 1983

Thriller is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was released on November 30, 1982, by Epic Records as the follow-up to Jackson's critically and commercially successful 1979 album Off the Wall. Thriller explores similar genres to those of Off the Wall, including pop, R&B, rock, post-disco, funk, and adult contemporary music.[1][2][3]
Recording sessions took place between April and November 1982 at Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles, California, with a production budget of $750,000, assisted by producer Quincy Jones. Of the nine tracks on the album, four of them were written by Jackson himself. Seven singles were released from the album, all of which reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Three of the singles had music videos released. "Baby Be Mine" and "The Lady in My Life" were the only tracks that were not released as singles. In just over a year, Thriller became—and currently remains—the best-selling album of all time, with sales estimated by various sources as being between 51 and 65 million copies worldwide.[4][5][6]T In the United States, it also tied with the Eagles' Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975) as the best-selling album at 29 millions shipped.[7] The album won a record-breaking eight Grammy Awards in 1984, including for Album of the Year.
Thriller enabled Jackson to break down racial barriers in pop music via his appearances on MTV and meeting with President of the United States Ronald Reagan at the White House. The album was one of the first to use music videos as successful promotional tools—the videos for "Thriller", "Billie Jean", and "Beat It" all received regular rotation on MTV. In 2001, a special edition issue of the album was released, which contains additional audio interviews, a demo recording and the song "Someone in the Dark", which was a Grammy-winning track from the E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial storybook.[8] In 2008, the album was reissued again as Thriller 25, containing re-mixes that feature contemporary artists, a previously unreleased song, and a DVD.
Thriller was ranked number 20 on Rolling Stone magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list in 2003,[9] and was listed by the National Association of Recording Merchandisers at number three in its Definitive 200 Albums of All Time. The Thriller album was included in the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry of culturally significant recordings, and the Thriller video was included in the National Film Preservation Board's National Film Registry of "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant films". In 2012, Slant Magazine listed the album at #1 on its list of "Best Albums of the 1980s".[10]

Contents
  [hide] 1 Background
2 Recording
3 Composition
4 Release and reception
5 Influence and legacy 5.1 Music industry
5.2 Music videos and racial equality
5.3 Contemporary appeal
6 Reissues and catalog sales
7 Track listing
8 Personnel
9 Charts 9.1 Year-end charts
9.2 Decade-end charts
10 Certifications
11 See also
12 Notes
13 References
14 External links

Background[edit source]
Jackson's previous album Off the Wall (1979) received strong critical acclaim[11][12] and was also a commercial success, eventually selling over 20 million copies worldwide.[13] The years between Off the Wall and Thriller were a transitional period for the singer, a time of increasing independence.[14] The period saw the singer become deeply unhappy; Jackson explained, "Even at home, I'm lonely. I sit in my room sometimes and cry. It's so hard to make friends ... I sometimes walk around the neighborhood at night, just hoping to find someone to talk to. But I just end up coming home." [15] When Jackson turned 21 in August 1979, he hired John Branca as his manager.[16]
Jackson confided in Branca that he wanted to be the biggest star in show business and "the wealthiest". The singer was upset about what he perceived to be the under-performance of Off the Wall, stating, "It was totally unfair that it didn't get Record of the Year and it can never happen again."[17] He also felt undervalued by the music industry; in 1980 when Jackson asked the publicist of Rolling Stone if they would be interested in doing a cover story on him, the publicist declined, to which Jackson responded, "I've been told over and over that black people on the cover of magazines doesn't sell copies ... Just wait. Someday those magazines are going to be begging me for an interview. Maybe I'll give them one, and maybe I won't."[17]
Recording[edit source]



Quincy Jones continued his collaboration with Jackson by producing Thriller
Jackson reunited with Off the Wall producer Quincy Jones to record his sixth studio album. The pair worked together on 30 songs, nine of which were eventually included.[18] Thriller was recorded at Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles, California, with a production budget of $750,000. The recording for Thriller commenced on April 14, 1982 at 12:00 noon with Jackson and Paul McCartney recording "The Girl Is Mine", and the album was completed with the final day of mixing on November 8, 1982.[19] Several members of the band Toto were also involved in the album's recording and production.[18] Jackson wrote four songs for the record: "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'", "The Girl Is Mine", "Beat It", and "Billie Jean".[20] Unlike many artists, Jackson did not write these songs on paper. Instead, he would dictate into a sound recorder; when recording he would sing from memory.[21][22]
The relationship between Jackson and Jones became strained during the album's recording. Jackson spent much of his time rehearsing dance steps alone.[22] When the album's nine songs were completed, both Jones and Jackson were unhappy with the result and remixed every song, spending a week on each.[22]
Jackson was inspired to create an album where "every song was a killer," and developed Thriller with that in mind.[23][24] Jones and songwriter Rod Temperton gave detailed accounts of what occurred for the 2001 reissue of the album. Jones discussed "Billie Jean" and why it was so personal to Jackson, who struggled to deal with a number of obsessed fans. Jones wanted the long introduction on the song to be shortened; however, Jackson insisted that it remain because it made him want to dance.[20] The ongoing backlash against disco made it necessary to move in a different musical direction from the disco-heavy Off the Wall.[24] Jones and Jackson were determined to make a rock song that would appeal to all tastes and spent weeks looking for a suitable guitarist for the song "Beat It". Eventually, they found Eddie Van Halen of the rock band Van Halen.[20][22]
When Rod Temperton wrote the song "Thriller", he originally wanted to call it "Starlight" or "Midnight Man", but settled on "Thriller" because he felt the name had merchandising potential.[22] Always wanting a notable person to recite the closing lyrics, Jones brought in actor Vincent Price who was an acquaintance of Jones' wife, who completed his part in just two takes. Temperton wrote the spoken portion in a taxi on the way to the recording studio. Jones and Temperton said that some recordings were left off the final cut because they did not have the "edginess" of other album tracks.[20]
Songs recorded by Jackson for consideration included "Carousel" (written by Michael Sembello), "Nite Line" (written by Glen Ballard), "Trouble" (aka "She's Trouble", written by Terry Britten, Bill Livsey and Sue Shifrin), and "Hot Street" (written by Rod Temperton, and aka "Slapstick"). Jackson also cut a version of "Starlight". Demos of all these songs exist and have leaked onto the internet. "Carousel" and "Hot Street" were completed, but left off the final version of the album. A short clip of "Carousel" appeared as a bonus track on the 2001 reissue of the album.
Composition[edit source]



"Thriller"




Excerpt of the album's title track, and one of Jackson's signature pieces, "Thriller", released as a single in 1984. Jackson uses cinematic sound effects, horror film motifs and vocal trickery to convey a sense of danger.[25]
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"Human Nature"




"Human Nature", a top ten hit single in the US. It is the most notable ballad on the album, praised for its moody, introspective lyrics and sound.
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"Billie Jean"




"Billie Jean", a number one hit single in many countries. The song was written and co-produced by Jackson. The track mixed uptempo funk and disco with the somber themes of paranoia and obsession.[26]
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Thriller is a post-disco album.[27] According to Steve Huey of Allmusic, it refined the strengths of Jackson's previous album Off the Wall; the dance and rock tracks were more aggressive, while the pop tunes and ballads were softer and more soulful.[28] The album includes the ballads "The Lady in My Life", "Human Nature", and "The Girl Is Mine"; the funk pieces "Billie Jean" and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"; and the disco set "Baby Be Mine" and "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)"[1][26][28][29] and has a similar sound to the material on Off the Wall. "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" is accompanied by a bass and percussion background and the song's centerpiece, a climaxing African-inspired chant (often misidentified as Swahili, but actually syllables based on Duala),[30] gave the song an international flavor.[31] "The Girl Is Mine" tells of two friends' fight over a woman, arguing over who loves her more and concludes with a spoken rap.[22][31] The album's songs have a tempo ranging from 80 beats per minute on The Girl is Mine, to 138 on Beat It.[32]
Despite the light pop flavor of these two records, Thriller, more so than Off the Wall, displayed foreshadowings of the contradictory thematic elements that would come to characterize Jackson's subsequent works.[33] With Thriller, Jackson would begin his association with the subliminal motif of paranoia and darker themes, including supernatural imagery in the album's title track.[26] This is evident on the songs "Billie Jean", "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and "Thriller".[1] In "Billie Jean", Jackson sings about an obsessive fan who alleges he has fathered a child of hers; in "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" he argues against gossips and the media.[26][28] In the former song, Jones had Jackson sing vocal overdubs through a six-foot-long cardboard tube, and brought in jazz saxophonist Tom Scott to play a rare instrument, the lyricon, a wind-controlled analog synthesizer. Bassist Louis Johnson ran through his part on a Yamaha bass guitar. The song opens with a long bass-and-drums introduction.[34] In the song "Thriller", sound effects such as creaking door, thunder, feet walking on wooden planks, winds and howling dogs can be heard.[22]
The anti-gang-violence "Beat It" became a homage to West Side Story, and was Jackson's first successful rock cross-over piece.[28][35] Jackson later said of "Beat It", "the point is no one has to be the tough guy, you can walk away from a fight and still be a man. You don't have to die to prove you're a man".[31] "Human Nature", co-written by Steve Porcaro of the band Toto,[36] is moody and introspective, as conveyed in lyrics such as, "Looking out, across the morning, the City's heart begins to beat, reaching out, I touch her shoulder, I'm dreaming of the street".[31]
By the late 1970s, Jackson's abilities as a vocalist were well regarded; Allmusic described him as a "blindingly gifted vocalist".[11] Rolling Stone compared his vocals to the "breathless, dreamy stutter" of Stevie Wonder. Their analysis was also that "Jackson's feathery-timbred tenor is extraordinarily beautiful. It slides smoothly into a startling falsetto that's used very daringly".[12] With the release of Thriller, Jackson could sing low—down to a basso low C—but he preferred to sing higher because pop tenors have more range to create style.[37] Rolling Stone was of the opinion that Jackson was now singing in a "fully adult voice" that was "tinged by sadness".[38] "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)", credited to James Ingram and Quincy Jones, and "The Lady in My Life" by Rod Temperton, both gave the album a stronger R&B direction; the latter song was described as "the closest Jackson has come to crooning a sexy, soulful ballad after his Motown years" by Taraborrelli.[31] The singer had already adopted a "vocal hiccup" which he continued to implement in Thriller. The purpose of the hiccup—somewhat like a gulping for air or gasping—is to help promote a certain emotion; be it excitement, sadness or fear.[39]
Release and reception[edit source]

Professional ratings
Contemporary reviews
Review scores

Source
Rating
Billboard Favorable[40]
Robert Christgau A[41]
The New York Times Favorable[42]
Rolling Stone 4/5 stars[26]
Thriller was released on November 30, 1982, and sold one million copies worldwide per week at its peak.[37] Seven singles were released from the album, including "The Girl Is Mine"—which was seen as a poor choice for the lead release and led some to believe that the album would be a disappointment, and to suggestions that Jackson was bowing to a white audience.[31] "The Girl Is Mine" was followed by the hit single "Billie Jean", which made Thriller a chart-topper.[43][44] Success continued with the single "Beat It", which featured guitarists Eddie Van Halen and Steve Lukather.[45] The album's title track was released as a single and also became a hit internationally.[31]
Thriller was well received by most critics. Christopher Connelly in a January 1983 review in Rolling Stone described it as "a zesty LP" with a "harrowing, dark message".[26] Comparing the songs on the album with the life challenges that the 24-year old Jackson had faced since Off the Wall, Connelly remarks that he has "dropped the boyish falsetto" and is facing his "challenges head-on" with "a feisty determination" and "a full, adult voice".[26] John Rockwell in a December 1982 review in The New York Times also commented on Jackson's age, comparing his youth with his experience as an entertainer, feeling that perhaps he is a "sometimes too practiced ... performer", and that at times Quincy Jones may "depersonalize his individuality" with his "slightly anonymous production", and that Jackson may be hiding his true emotions behind "layers of impenetrable, gauzy veils".[42] The bulk of Rockwell's review concentrated on how he felt that the album was helping breach "the destructive barriers that spring up regularly between white and black music", especially as "white publications and radio stations that normally avoid black music seem willing to pretend he isn't black after all".[42] He feels that Thriller is "a wonderful pop record, the latest statement by one of the great singers in popular music today", and that there are "hits here, too, lots of them".[42]
In his consumer guide for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau gave the album an A– rating and commented that "this is virtually a hits-plus-filler job, but at such a high level it's almost classic anyway".[41] He later revised it to an A,[41] and commented in retrospect, "what we couldn't know is how brilliantly every hit but 'P.Y.T.' would thrive on mass exposure and public pleasure."[46] A year after the album's release, Time summed up the three main singles from the album, saying, "The pulse of America and much of the rest of the world moves irregularly, beating in time to the tough strut of "Billie Jean", the asphalt aria of "Beat It", the supremely cool chills of "Thriller".[37]
The album won Jackson a record-breaking eight Grammy Awards in 1984, including Album of the Year. The eighth Grammy went to Bruce Swedien.[47][48] That same year, Jackson won eight American Music Awards, the Special Award of Merit and three MTV Video Music Awards.[49] Thriller was recognized as the world's best-selling album on February 7, 1984, when it was inducted into the Guinness Book of World Records.[50] It is one of only three albums to remain in the top ten of the Billboard 200 for a full year, and spent 37 weeks at number one out of the 80 consecutive weeks it was in the top ten.[citation needed] It is one of four albums to be the best-seller of two years (1983–1984) in the US.[51] The album was also the first of three to have seven Billboard Hot 100 top ten singles.[citation needed]
On August 21, 2009 Thriller was certified 29× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, for shipments of at least 29 million copies in the US.[52][53] The album topped the charts in many countries, sold 4.2 million copies in the UK,[54] 2.5 million in Japan,[55] and was certified 15× Platinum in Australia.[56] Still popular today, Thriller sells an estimated 130,000 copies in the US per year; it reached number two in the US Catalog charts in February 2003 and number 39 in the UK in March 2007.[49] Outside the US, the album has sold over 20 million copies.[57]
Influence and legacy[edit source]
Music industry[edit source]



Thriller platinum record on display at the Hard Rock Café, Hollywood in Universal City, California.
Blender described Jackson as the "late twentieth century pre-eminent pop icon", while The New York Times gave the opinion that he was a "musical phenomenon", and that "in the world of pop music, there is Michael Jackson and there is everybody else".[34][58] Jackson changed the way the industry functioned: both as an artistic persona, and as a financial, profitable entity. His attorney John Branca observed that Jackson achieved the highest royalty rate in the music industry to that point: approximately $2 for each album sold. As a result, Jackson earned record-breaking profits from compact disc sales, and from the sale of copies of the documentary, The Making of Michael Jackson's Thriller, produced by Jackson and John Landis. Funded by MTV, the film sold over 350,000 copies in its first few months. In a market then driven by singles, Thriller raised the significance of albums, yet its multiple hit singles changed perceived notions as to the number of successful singles that could be taken from an individual album.[59] The era saw the arrival of novelties like the Michael Jackson doll, that appeared in stores in May 1984 at a price of $12.[37] Thriller retains a position in American culture; biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli explains, "At some point, Thriller stopped selling like a leisure item—like a magazine, a toy, tickets to a hit movie—and started selling like a household staple".[60]
At the time of the album's release, a press statement from Gil Friesen, the then President of A&M Records, read that, "The whole industry has a stake in this success".[37] Time magazine speculated that "the fallout from Thriller has given the [music] business its best years since the heady days of 1978, when it had an estimated total domestic revenue of $4.1 billion".[37] Time summed up Thriller's impact as a "restoration of confidence" for an industry bordering on "the ruins of punk and the chic regions of synthesizer pop". The publication described Jackson's influence at that point as, "Star of records, radio, rock video. A one-man rescue team for the music business. A songwriter who sets the beat for a decade. A dancer with the fanciest feet on the street. A singer who cuts across all boundaries of taste and style and color too".[37]
When Thriller and "Billie Jean" were searching to reach their market demographic, MTV and cable TV had a smaller market share than the much larger reach of broadcast television stations in the U.S. A national broadcast TV audience on ABC, NBC, and CBS affiliate stations, as well as major independent TV stations, was desired by CBS/Epic Records to promote Thriller. The national broadcast TV premiere of the Thriller album's first video, "Billie Jean", was during the week of Halloween in October 1984 and was the idea of Video Concert Hall executive producers Charles Henderson and Jerry Crowe.[61][62] Video Concert Hall, the first nationwide music video TV network, taped the one-hour special in Hollywood and Atlanta, where the TV studios of Video Concert Hall were located.[63][64][65][66] The Thriller TV special was hosted by Thriller video co-star Vincent Price, distributed by Henderson-Crowe Syndications, Inc., and aired in the top 20 TV markets and much of the U.S., including TV stations WNEW (New York), WFLD (Chicago), KTTV (Los Angeles), WPLG (Miami), WQTV (Boston), and WXIA (Atlanta), for a total of 150 TV stations.[61][62]
Music videos and racial equality[edit source]



Thriller's music videos—including the Paul McCartney duet "The Girl Is Mine"—are credited with helping promote racial equality in the United States
Before the success of Thriller, many felt Jackson had struggled to get MTV airing because he was black.[67] In an effort to attain air time for Jackson, CBS Records President Walter Yetnikoff pressured MTV and declared, "I'm not going to give you any more videos and I'm going to go public and fucking tell them about the fact you don't want to play music by a black guy."[34]
His position persuaded MTV to begin airing "Billie Jean" and later "Beat It", which led to a long partnership and later helped other black music artists to gain mainstream recognition.[68] MTV denies claims of racism in their broadcasting.[69] The popularity of his videos, such as "Beat It" and "Billie Jean", helped to place the young channel "on the map", and MTV's focus shifted in favor of pop and R&B.[68][70] Jackson transformed the medium of music video into an art form and promotional tool through the use of complex story lines, dance routines, special effects and cameo appearances by well known personalities.[28] When the 14-minute-long Thriller video aired, MTV ran it twice an hour to meet demand.[71] The short film marked an increase in scale for music videos and has been routinely named the best music video ever.[72] The popularity of the video sent the album back to number one in the album chart, but Jackson's label did not support the release of the third music video from the album. They were already pleased with its success, so Jackson convinced MTV to fund the project.[22][71] Author, music critic and journalist Nelson George wrote in 2004, "It's difficult to hear the songs from Thriller and disengage them from the videos. For most of us the images define the songs. In fact it could be argued that Michael is the first artist of the MTV age to have an entire album so intimately connected in the public imagination with its imagery".[25] Short films like Thriller largely remained unique to Jackson, while the group dance sequence in "Beat It" has been frequently imitated.[20] The choreography in Thriller has become a part of global pop culture, replicated everywhere from Bollywood to prisons in the Philippines.[73][74]
For a black artist in the 1980s to that point, Jackson's success was unprecedented. According to The Washington Post, Thriller paved the way for other African-American artists such as Prince.[75] "The Girl Is Mine" was credited for getting interracial love on the radio.[76] Time noted, "Jackson is the biggest thing since The Beatles. He is the hottest single phenomenon since Elvis Presley. He just may be the most popular black singer ever".[37]
Contemporary appeal[edit source]

Professional ratings
Retrospective reviews
Review scores

Source
Rating
Allmusic 5/5 stars[1]
Entertainment Weekly favorable[77]
Q 5/5 stars[78]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide 5/5 stars[79]
Slant Magazine 5/5 stars[29]
Stylus Magazine favorable[80]
Yahoo! Music favorable[81]
Today, the album is still viewed in a positive light by critics some three decades later. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic gave the album the maximum five stars and wrote that the record had something to interest everyone. He believed it showcased harder funk and hard rock while remaining "undeniably fun". He went on to compliment "Billie Jean" and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and said, "The record's two best songs: 'Billie Jean, ...and the delirious 'Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'', the freshest funk on the album [but] the most claustrophobic, scariest track Jackson ever recorded." Erlewine gave the opinion that it was an improvement on the artist's previous album, although Allmusic was critical of the title track, describing it as "ridiculous" and as having the effect of "arriving in the middle of the record and sucking out its momentum".[1] Slant Magazine gave the album five stars and, like the Allmusic review and the original Rolling Stone review, paid compliment to the lyrics of "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'".[29] Giving it five stars in The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004), Rolling Stone journalist Jon Pareles commented that Jackson "doubled his ambitions and multiplied his audience" with the album and wrote of its legacy, "Thriller had extramusical help in becoming the best-selling noncompilation album of all time: Jackson's dancing feet and dazzling stage presence, amplified by the newfound promotional reach of music video and the Reagan era's embrace of glossy celebrity. But especially in the album's seven hit singles (out of nine songs), the music stands on its own."[79]
Culture critic Nelson George wrote that Jackson "has educated R. Kelly, Usher, Justin Timberlake and countless others with Thriller as a textbook".[82] As a sign of the album's longevity, in 2003 Thriller was ranked at number 20 on the Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, and was listed by the National Association of Recording Merchandisers at number three of the Definitive 200 Albums of All Time.[83][84] In 2008, 25 years after its release, the record was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and, a few weeks later, was among 25 recordings preserved by the Library of Congress to the National Recording Registry as "culturally significant".[85][86] In 2009, music critics for MTV Base and VH1 both listed Thriller as the best album released since 1981.[87] Thriller, along with other critic favorites were then polled by the public. 40,000 people found Thriller to be the Best Album of all time by MTV Generation, gaining a third of all votes.[87][88]
Reissues and catalog sales[edit source]
Thriller was reissued on October 16, 2001, in an expanded set titled Thriller: Special Edition. The original tracks were remastered, and the album included a new booklet and bonus material, including the songs "Someone in the Dark", "Carousel", and Jackson's original "Billie Jean" demo, as well as audio interviews with Jones and Temperton discussing the recording of the album.[20][89] Sony also hired sound engineer and mixer Mick Guzauski[90][91] to work with Jackson on creating 5.1-channel surround sound mixes of Thriller, as well as all his other albums, for release on the then-new Super Audio CD format. Despite numerous retries, the artist never approved any of the mixes.[92] Consequently, Thriller was issued on SACD only in a stereo version.[93]
In February 2008, Epic Records released Thriller 25; Jackson served as executive producer.[53] Thriller 25 appeared on CD, USB and vinyl with seven bonus tracks, a new song called "For All Time", a snippet of Vincent Price's voice-over, and five remixes featuring American artists Fergie, will.i.am, Kanye West, and Akon.[53][94][95] It also included a DVD featuring three music videos, the Motown 25 "Billie Jean" performance, and a booklet with a message from Jackson.[53] The ballad "For All Time" supposedly dates from 1982, but is often credited as being from Dangerous sessions.[96] Two singles were released from the reissue: "The Girl Is Mine 2008" and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' 2008".
Thriller 25 was a commercial success and did particularly well as a reissue. It peaked at number one in eight countries and Europe. It peaked at number two in the US, number three in the UK and reached the top 10 in over 30 national charts. It was certified Gold in 11 countries including the UK, received a 2× Gold certification in France and received platinum certification in Poland.[97][98][99] In the United States, Thriller 25 was the second best-selling album of its release week, selling one hundred and sixty six thousand copies, just fourteen thousand short of reaching the number one position. It was ineligible for the Billboard 200 chart as a re-release but entered the Pop Catalog Charts at number one (where it stayed for ten non-consecutive weeks),[100] with the best sales on that chart since December 1996.[101][102][103] With the arrival of Halloween that November, Thriller 25 spent an eleventh non-consecutive week atop the US catalog chart. This brought US sales of the album to 688,000 copies, making it the best selling catalog album of 2008.[104] This was Jackson's best launch since Invincible in 2001, selling three million copies worldwide in 12 weeks.[105]
After Jackson's death in June 2009, Thriller set additional records. It sold more than 100,000 copies, placing it at number two on the Top Pop Catalog Albums chart. Songs from Thriller also helped Jackson become the first artist to sell more than one million song downloads in a week.[106] According to Nielsen Soundscan, Thriller was the 14th best selling album of 2009 in the United States with 1.27 million copies sold.[107]
Track listing[edit source]

No.
Title
Writer(s)
Producer(s)
Length

1. "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"   Michael Jackson
Quincy Jones·
 Jackson (co.)
  6:03
2. "Baby Be Mine"   Rod Temperton Jones 4:20
3. "The Girl Is Mine" (with Paul McCartney) Jackson
Jones·
 Jackson (co.)
  3:42
4. "Thriller"   Temperton Jones 5:57
5. "Beat It"   Jackson
Jones·
 Jackson (co.)
  4:18
6. "Billie Jean"   Jackson
Jones·
 Jackson (co.)
  4:54
7. "Human Nature"  
Steve Porcaro·
 John Bettis
  Jones 4:06
8. "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)"  
James Ingram·
 Jones
  Jones 3:59
9. "The Lady in My Life"   Temperton Jones 5:00
Total length:
 42:19 

[show]2001 special edition bonus tracks






   
 
·
·
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
·
 
   
Personnel[edit source]
Brian Banks – keyboards, synthesizers, programming
Michael Boddicker – keyboards, synthesizers
N'dugu Chancler – drums
Paulinho da Costa – percussion
David Foster – keyboards, synthesizers
Gary Grant – trumpet and flügelhorn
Eddie Van Halen – guitar solo on "Beat It"
Jerry Hey – trumpet and flügelhorn
Michael Jackson – co-producer, lead and background vocals, drum case beater, bathroom stomp board, vocal, drum, horn and string arrangement
Paul Jackson – guitar
Louis Johnson – bass guitar
Quincy Jones – producer
Steve Lukather – guitar, bass guitar
Anthony Marinelli – synthesizer programming
 Paul McCartney – vocals on "The Girl Is Mine"
David Paich – keyboards, synthesizers, programming
Dean Parks – guitar
Greg Phillinganes – keyboards, synthesizers, programming
Jeff Porcaro – drums, horn and string arrangements
Steve Porcaro – keyboards, synthesizers, programming
Vincent Price – voice-over and drums on "Thriller"
Bill Reichenbach – trombone
Bruce Swedien – recording engineer, mixer
Chris Shepard   - vibraslap on "Beat It"
Rod Temperton – keyboards, synthesizers
David Williams – guitar
Larry Williams – saxophone and flute
Bill Wolfer – keyboards, synthesizers
La Toya Jackson – background vocals on "PYT"
Janet Jackson – background vocals on "PYT"
Greg Smith - synthesizers

Charts[edit source]
Thriller was one of the best-selling albums in many countries during 1983 to 1984, topping the charts in United States,[108] United Kingdom, Germany,[109] Japan,[110] France,[111] Canada,[112] Australia,[113] Sweden,[114] New Zealand,[115] and the Netherlands.[116]

Year-end charts[edit source]

Chart (1983)
Position
Australian Albums Chart[113] 1
Austrian Albums Chart[117] 1
Canadian Albums Chart[118] 1
French Albums Chart[119] 1
Italian Albums Chart[120] 1
Japanese Albums Chart[121] 6
UK Albums Chart[122] 1
U.S. Billboard Year-end[123] 1
West German Albums Chart[124] 2
Chart (1984)
Position
Australian Albums Chart[113] 2
Austrian Albums Chart[125] 3
Canadian Albums Chart[126] 4
Japanese Albums Chart[127] 1
Swiss Albums Chart[128] 1
UK Albums Chart[122] 6
U.S. Billboard Year-end[129] 1
Chart (2009)
Position
German Albums Chart[130] 40
Russian International Albums Chart[citation needed] 39
Chart (2010)
Position
US Billboard 200[131] 137
Chart (2012)
Position
US Billboard 200[132] 88
Chart (2013)
Position
US Billboard 200[133] 52

Decade-end charts[edit source]

Chart (1980–89)
Position
Australian Albums Chart[113] 3
Austrian Albums Chart[134] 1
Japanese Albums Chart[135] 2
UK Albums Chart[122] 3

Certifications[edit source]

Region
Certification
Sales/shipments

Argentina (CAPIF)[136]
Diamond 500,000x
Australia (ARIA)[137]
16× Platinum 1,150,000[138]
Austria (IFPI Austria)[139]
8× Platinum 400,000x
Brazil (ABPD)
 3,800,000[140]
Canada (Music Canada)[141]
2× Diamond 2,400,000[142]
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[143]
Platinum 119,061[143]
France (SNEP)[144]
Diamond 2,366,700[144]
Germany (BVMI)[145]
3× Platinum 1,500,000^
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong)[146]
Platinum 20,000*
Italy (FIMI)[147]
Platinum 100,000*
Japan (RIAJ)[148]
Gold 2,500,000[149]
Mexico (AMPROFON)[150]
2× Platinum+Diamond+Gold 1,600,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[151]
8× Platinum 1,400,000[152]
New Zealand (RIANZ)[153]
12× Platinum 180,000^
Portugal (AFP)[154]
Platinum 40,000x
Sweden (GLF)[155]
4× Platinum 400,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[156]
6× Platinum 300,000x
United Kingdom (BPI)[157]
11× Platinum 4,248,000[158]
United States (RIAA)[159]
29× Platinum 29,000,000^
Summaries

Europe (IFPI)[160]
Platinum 1,000,000*

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone


See also[edit source]
Book icon Book: Thriller (album)


Portal icon Michael Jackson portal
List of best-selling albums
List of best-selling albums in Australia
List of best-selling albums in France
List of best-selling albums in Germany
List of best-selling albums in Japan
List of best-selling albums in the United Kingdom
List of best-selling albums in the United States
Notes[edit source]

TAlthough sales estimates for Thriller have been as high as 110 million copies,[161] these sales figures are unreliable.[162][163][164][165]
References[edit source]
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158.^ "Adele overtakes Michael Jackson in all-time biggest selling albums chart". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2012-02-28.
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160.^ "IFPI Platinum Europe Awards – 2009". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
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163.^ Carl Bialik (2009). "Spun: The Off-the-Wall Accounting of Record Sales". The Wall Street Journal (Dow Jones & Company (News Corporation)). Retrieved January 10, 2013.
164.^ Carl Bialik (July 14, 2009). "How many albums did Michael Jackson Sell?". The Wall Street Journal (Dow Jones & Company (News Corporation)). Retrieved January 10, 2013.
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BibliographyGeorge, Nelson (2004). Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection booklet. Sony BMG.
Taraborrelli, J. Randy (2004). The Magic and the Madness. Terra Alta, WV: Headline. ISBN 0-330-42005-4.
External links[edit source]
Thriller (Adobe Flash) at Radio3Net (streamed copy where licensed)

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Thriller (song)

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For other songs of the same name, see Thriller.

"Thriller"

Single by Michael Jackson

from the album Thriller

B-side
"Things I Do for You" (live) (UK) / "Can't Get Outta the Rain"
Released
November 12, 1983
Format
7", 12", CD single
Recorded
1982
Genre
Funk, disco[1]
Length
5:57 (Album Version)
 5:12 (Radio Edit w/Rap)
 4:37 (Special Edit)
 4:09 (Remixed Short Version)
 3:32 (Immortal version)
Label
Epic
Writer(s)
Rod Temperton
Producer
Quincy Jones
Michael Jackson singles chronology

"Say Say Say"
 (1983) "Thriller"
 (1983) "Tell Me I'm Not Dreamin' (Too Good to Be True)"
 (1984)


Thriller track listing

"The Girl Is Mine"
 (3) "Thriller"
 (4) "Beat It"
 (5)

HIStory Begins track listing

"Man in the Mirror"
 (8) "Thriller"
 (9) "Beat It"
 (10)

This Is It track listing

"I Just Can't Stop Loving You"
 (8) "Thriller"
 (9) "Beat It"
 (10)


"Thriller" is a song recorded by American recording artist Michael Jackson, composed by Rod Temperton, and produced by Quincy Jones. It is the seventh and final single from his sixth studio album of the same name. It was released on November 12, 1983 in most countries and January 23, 1984 in the United States by Epic Records. The song has appeared on multiple greatest hits compilation albums from Jackson, including HIStory (1995), Number Ones (2003), The Essential Michael Jackson (2005), and Michael Jackson's This Is It (2009) and it was remixed to the Immortal album in 2011. The song, which has a voice-over from actor Vincent Price had originally been titled "Starlight".
The song's instruments include a bassline and synthesizer. In the song, sound effects such as a creaking door, thunder, feet walking on wooden planks, winds and howling dogs can be heard, and the lyrics contain frightening themes and elements. "Thriller" received positive reviews from critics, though the song was outshone by its music video. "Thriller" became Jackson's seventh top-ten single on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart from the album, while reaching the top of the charts in France and Belgium and the top ten in other countries.
"Thriller" was adapted into a highly successful music video, known independently as Michael Jackson's Thriller. At fourteen minutes the video is substantially longer than the song, which ties together a narrative featuring Jackson and actress Ola Ray in a setting heavily inspired by horror films of the 1950s. In the video's most iconic scene, Jackson leads other actors costumed as zombies in a choreographed dance routine. Though it garnered some criticism for its occult theme and violent imagery, the video was immediately popular and received high critical acclaim, being nominated for six MTV Video Music Awards in 1984 and winning three. In 2009 it was added to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, the first music video ever selected.
"Thriller" has been covered by multiple recording artists since its release in 1984, including Henry Mancini (with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra), Ian Brown, Ten Masked Men and Imogen Heap.

Contents
  [hide] 1 Background
2 Recording
3 Composition
4 Critical reception
5 Chart performance
6 Music video 6.1 Concept
6.2 Reception
7 Live performances
8 Cover versions
9 Appearances in other media
10 Personnel
11 Charts and certifications 11.1 Charts
11.2 Sales and certifications
12 Track listing
13 See also
14 References
15 External links

Background[edit source]
"Thriller" was written by Rod Temperton, and produced by Quincy Jones. "Thriller" was originally titled "Starlight",[2][3] contrary to other reports of the title "Starlight Love".[4] While the song was titled "Starlight", the song's hook lyrics were "Starlight! Starlight sun...", but after the song was changed to "Thriller" the hook was rewritten to "Thriller! In the night...".[5] Temperton commented,

Originally, when I did my Thriller demo, I called it Starlight. Quincy said to me, 'You managed to come up with a title for the last album, see what you can do for this album.' I said, 'Oh great,' so I went back to the hotel, wrote two or three hundred titles, and came up with the title 'Midnight Man'. The next morning, I woke up, and I just said this word... Something in my head just said, this is the title. You could visualise it on the top of the Billboard charts. You could see the merchandising for this one word, how it jumped off the page as 'Thriller'.[3]
While Temperton was writing "Thriller" he stated that he'd "always envisioned" a "talking section at the end" on the song, but did not really know what "to do with it", until deciding "to have somebody, a famous voice, in the horror genre, to do this vocal."[3] Jones' then-wife, Peggy Lipton, who knew Vincent Price, suggested Price for the vocal part, which Price agreed to do.[3]
Recording[edit source]





 Extract from voiceover session from the 1982 album Thriller by Michael Jackson


 Quincy Jones co-produced "Thriller".
"Thriller", along with other songs from Thriller, was recorded by Jackson over the course of eight weeks,[6] in 1982. Jackson recorded the song at Westlake Recording Studios on Santa Monica Boulevard in Los Angeles, California.[3] Bruce Swedien, the song's engineer, said of the song being recorded,

When we started 'Thriller', the first day at Westlake, we were all there and Quincy [Jones, the producer] walked in followed by me and Michael and Rod Temperton and some of the other people. Quincy turned to us and he said, 'OK guys, we're here to save the recording industry.' Now that's a pretty big responsibility – but he meant it. And that's why those albums, and especially 'Thriller', sound so incredible. The basic thing is, everybody who was involved gave 150 percent … Quincy's like a director of a movie and I'm like a director of photography, and it's Quincy's job to cast [it]. Quincy can find the people and he gives us the inspiration to do what we do.[3]
Swedien and Jones stated that Vincent Price recorded his introduction and voice-over rap for the song in two takes; Jones, acknowledging that doing a voice-over for a song is "difficult", praised Price and described his recording takes as being "fabulous".[3] Swedien said of Jackson recording the song, that, "I tried all sorts of things with Michael – for instance, he would sing the main vocal part and we'd double it one time and then I'd ask him to step away from the mic and do it a third time and that really changed the acoustics in the room so it gave Michael's vocals a unique character … We recorded some of those background vocals in the shower stall at Westlake."[3]
Composition[edit source]
"Thriller" is considered a funk and disco song.[1] Set in the key of C♯ Modern Dorian,[citation needed] its instrumentation consists of synthesizer, guitar, trumpet, flugelhorn, saxophone, flute and trombone. The song has a moderate tempo of 118 beats per minute.[7] The lyrics and sound effects on "Thriller" pertain to frightful elements and themes.[8] Throughout the song, sound effects such as a creaking door, thunder, feet walking on wooden planks, winds and howling dogs can be heard. Bruce Cannon, a sound effects editor for "Thriller", said that, "Things like the lightning may have come from old Hollywood movies – we'll never know which movies – but the best sound-effects editors do go out in the desert and find a coyote, so I have a feeling that was a real howl."[3] The backing track, especially the bassline, has certain similarities to the 1981 number-one R&B hit "Give It to Me Baby" by Rick James.[9]
Critical reception[edit source]
"Thriller" received positive reviews from contemporary music critics. Ashley Lasimone, of AOL's Spinner.com noted that "Thriller" "became a signature for Jackson" and described "the groove of its bassline, paired with Michael's killer vocals and sleek moves" as having had "produced a frighteningly great single."[10] Jon Pareles, of The New York Times, noted that Thrillers tracks, "Billie Jean", "Beat It", "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and "the movie in the song 'Thriller'", were the songs, unlike the "fluff" "P.Y.T.", that were "the hits that made Thriller a world-beater; along with Mr. Jackson's stage and video presence, listeners must have identified with his willingness to admit terror."[11]
Ann Powers, of the Los Angeles Times, described "Thriller" as being a song that was "adequately groovy" with a "funked-out beat" with lyrics that are "seemingly lifted from some little kid's 'scary storybook'".[12] After Jackson's death, AOL's Radio Blog released a list, titled "10 Best Michael Jackson Songs", which placed "Thriller" at number one.[4] In 2009 Melissa Cabrera, of AOL Radio Blogs, listed "Thriller" as being the fourth best song on their "Top 100 '80s Songs" list.[13] Eliot Glazer, AOL's Radio Blogs, placed "Thriller" at number one on a list titled "Top 1984 Songs".[5] "Thriller" was also listed at number two on the "10 Best Halloween Songs" and "10 Best Party Songs" lists by AOLs Radio Blog.[14][15]
Chart performance[edit source]
Prior to "Thriller"'s official airplay release, it charted and peaked at number one on Billboard's Dance Music/Club Play Singles Chart in 1983.[16] Released on January 23, 1984, "Thriller" became Jackson's seventh and last Billboard Hot 100 top-ten single from his Thriller album. In "Thriller"'s second week of release, Billboard issue date February 11, 1984, the song charted at number 20 on the Hot 100.[17] The song entered the top ten the following week at number seven.[17] One week later, it reached number four, what would become its peak position.[18] The song was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on December 4, 1989, for sales of over one million physical units in the U.S. (the requirement for gold and platinum singles was lowered after 1989).[19][20][20] It has also a further 3,160,000 copies in digital downloads by October 2012 in the US.[21]
For the issue date February 25, 1984, "Thriller" charted at number 19 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart.[22] The following week, the song placed at number five.[22] On March 10, 1984, it charted at number 3, where it peaked.[23] "Thriller" peaked at number 24 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary Chart.[16] "Thriller" debuted on the UK Singles Chart on November 19, 1983 at number 24, and the following week charted at number ten, where it peaked; the song appeared on the chart for 25 weeks.[24] Beginning on February 5, 1984, "Thriller" peaked on the French Singles Chart at number one and topped the chart for four consecutive weeks.[25] "Thriller" also topped the Belgian VRT Top 30 Chart for two weeks in January 1984.[26]
Following Jackson's death, his music experienced a surge in popularity.[27] In the week of Jackson's death, "Thriller" was Thriller's and Jackson's best-selling track in the US, with sales of 167,000 copies on the Billboard Hot Digital Singles Chart.[27] On July 11, 2009, "Thriller" charted on the Billboard Hot Digital Singles Chart at number two (its peak), and the song remained in the charts' top ten for three consecutive weeks.[28] In the United Kingdom, the song charted at number 23 the week of Jackson's death.[29] The following week, the song reached its peak at number 12 on the UK Single Chart.[24] On July 12, 2009, "Thriller" peaked at number two on the Italian Singles Chart[30] and was later certified gold by the Federation of the Italian Music Industry.[31] "Thriller" reached at number three on the Australian ARIA Chart and Swiss Singles Chart and topped the Spanish Singles Charts for one week.[32] The song also placed within the top ten on the German Singles Chart, Norwegian Singles Chart and Irish Singles Chart, at number nine, number seven and number eight respectively.[32] "Thriller" also landed at number 25 on the Danish Singles Chart.[33] In the third week of July "Thriller" peaked at number 11 in Finland.[34]
Music video[edit source]
Main article: Michael Jackson's Thriller
The music video, directed by John Landis, was filmed in various locations in New York and Los Angeles. Contrary to reports of $800,000[35] to $1 million dollar production budgets, Landis stated that the music video was made for $500,000.[36] Jackson said of making the music video, in an interview that aired on December 11, 1999, for MTV's 100 Greatest Videos Ever Made:

My idea was to make this short film with conversation ... I like having a beginning and a middle and an ending, which would follow a story. I'm very much involved in complete making and creating of the piece. It has to be, you know, my soul. Usually, you know, it's an interpretation of the music. [...] It was a delicate thing to work on because I remember my original approach was, 'How do you make zombies and monsters dance without it being comical?' So I said, 'We have to do just the right kind of movement so it doesn't become something that you laugh at.' But it just has to take it to another level. So I got in a room with [choreographer] Michael Peters, and he and I together kind of imagined how these zombies move by making faces in the mirror. I used to come to rehearsal sometimes with monster makeup on, and I loved doing that. So he and I collaborated and we both choreographed the piece and I thought it should start like that kind of thing and go into this jazzy kind of step, you know. Kind of gruesome things like that, not too much ballet or whatever.[37]
The music video of the song also included on the video albums: Video Greatest Hits - HIStory, HIStory on Film, Volume II, Number Ones, on the bonus DVD of Thriller 25 and Michael Jackson's Vision.
Following the release of the music video, a 45-minute documentary was released that provided candid glimpses behind the scenes of the music video's production.[36] Entitled Making Michael Jackson's Thriller, it, like the music video, was shown heavily on MTV for a time[36] and was the top-selling home-video release of all time at one point, with over nine million copies sold.[38] MTV paid $250,000 for the exclusive rights to show the documentary; Showtime paid $300,000 for pay-cable rights; and Vestron Video reportedly paid $500,000 to market the cassette, in a profit participation agreement.[36][39]
Concept[edit source]
Set in the 1950s, the video opens with a person named Michael. Michael and his unnamed date (Ola Ray) run out of gas near a dark wooded area. They walk off into the forest, and Michael asks her if she would be his "Girl"/(Girlfriend),[40] she accepts and he gives her a ring. He warns her, however, that he is "different". A full moon appears, and Michael begins convulsing in agony, transforming into a werecat.[35] His date runs away in terror, but the werecat catches up to her, knocking her down and begins lunging at her with his claws. The scene then cuts to a modern-day movie theater where Michael and his date, along with a repulsed audience, are actually watching the scene unfold in a movie called Thriller.
Michael's date leaves the theater as Michael hands his popcorn to a stranger, catches up to her, and assures her that "It's only a movie". Some debate follows as to whether or not she was scared by the movie: she denies it, but Michael disagrees. They then walk down a foggy road as Michael teases her by singing the verses of "Thriller". They pass a nearby graveyard, in which zombies begin to rise out of their caskets as Vincent Price performs his soliloquy. The zombies corner Michael and his date threateningly, and suddenly, Michael becomes a zombie himself. The zombies then break into an elaborate song and dance number,[35] followed by the main chorus of "Thriller" (during which Michael was reverted to human form), frightening his date to the point where she runs for cover.
Michael (who was somehow turned back into a zombie) and his fellow corpses then back the frightened girl into the corner of a nearby abandoned house. Michael then reaches for his date's throat as she lets out a bloodcurdling scream, only to awake and realize it was all a dream. Michael then offers to take her home, and she happily obliges. As they walk out of the house, Michael eerily looks at the camera, thus revealing his yellow werecat eyes, as Price offers one last haunting laugh.[35]
Reception[edit source]
Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly commented on the music video, "Every aspect of the 14-minute horror musical, directed with creepy-comical zest by John Landis, is beyond iconic, from Michael's red leather ensemble to the immortal (no pun) herky-jerky zombie dance and bwah-ha-ha Vincent Price narration."[41] Though the video was met with widespread praise, it was also criticized for its content. In 1984, the National Coalition on Television Violence (NCTV) classified more than half of 200 MTV music videos surveyed as "too violent". Both "Thriller" and Jackson's duet with Paul McCartney, "Say, Say, Say" made the list.[2]
The Los Angeles Times quoted Dr. Thomas Radecki, chairman of the NCTV, as saying, "It's not hard to imagine young viewers after seeing 'Thriller' saying, 'Gee, if Michael Jackson can terrorize his girlfriend, why can't I do it too?'[2] The music video was nominated for six awards at the 1984 MTV Video Music Awards, winning three out of six of the nominations.[42] "Thriller" won Viewers Choice, Best Overall Performance and Best Choreography—but lost Best Concept Video, Best Male Video and Video of the Year.[42]
The music video was listed as the "Greatest Video" on VH1's "VH1: 100 Greatest Videos" in 2001.[43] MTV listed the music video as being the "Greatest Music Video Ever Made" on their list, "MTV: 100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made" in 1999.[44] In July 2011, the music video was named one of "The 30 All-TIME Best Music Videos" by TIME magazine.[45]
Live performances[edit source]
Jackson performed "Thriller" on all three of his solo world concert tours. From the Dangerous Tour onwards, half the song was always performed by a masked backup dancer as Jackson prepared for his next song as part of a stage illusion. Despite Jackson performing multiple songs from his Thriller album, "Thriller" was not included on The Jacksons set list during their Victory Tour in 1984, as he wasn't satisfied with the way the song sounded live.
Jackson performed "Thriller" during his first world tour as a solo artist, the Bad world tour, lasting sixteen months, from 1987 to 1989, for a total of 123 shows.[46] During the Bad tour, in both legs, the jacket had flashing lights in the middle of the song and at the end. An impersonator was only used for the introduction of the song; a masked dancer emerges from the costume tent at the side of the stage, and goes back in hiding while Jackson himself, also masked at first, swings down from a rope on the other side of the stage before taking off his mask.
"Thriller" was also performed during Jackson's second world tour, the Dangerous Tour, where stage illusions were used to transition between "Thriller" and "Billie Jean". In the middle of "Thriller", Jackson secretly switched places with a masked backup dancer who finishes the song appearing as Jackson prepares for Billie Jean. When the song ends, Jackson appears fully dressed on the upper floor as "Billie Jean" begins.
Jackson performed "Thriller"[47] for all of his 82 shows during his third, and final, world tour, the HIStory World Tour. Once again, a masked dancer posing as Jackson was used as a stage illusion, this time to the transition between "Thriller" and "Beat It". As with the Dangerous tour, Jackson switches with the background dancer in the middle of the song. At the end of Thriller, the masked dancer is taken by the zombie dancers into a coffin where it appears he is impaled with spikes and burned. Jackson would appear at the side of the stage in a cherry-picker, starting off "Beat It".
Jackson had planned to perform "Thriller" during his 50-show concert series, which would have been his fourth concert tour, entitled This Is It from 2009 to 2010.[48][49] For Jackson's performance of the song, he had planned for the stage that he was to perform on to be set up with a background that looked like a "graveyard" (which was a brief setting in the music video) with 3-D effects.[49][50][51] According to a setlist that was released in March 2009, "Thriller" was to close out the 16-song show,[52] although the film Michael Jackson's This Is It, which documents the concert series, lists 18 songs and "Man in the Mirror" as the closing song for the planned shows.[53][54][55]
Live versions of the song are available on the DVDs Live at Wembley July 16, 1988 and Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour.
Cover versions[edit source]
1980sIn 1989, American composer Henry Mancini and The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra recorded an orchestra version of the song.[56]
2000sIn 2000, British death metal band Ten Masked Men covered the song on their album Return of the Ten Masked Men.[56]
In 2001, American-born Australian singer Joe Dolce covered the song on a compilation album, Andrew Denton's Musical Challenge.[56]
In 2003, Scottish rock band Aereogramme recorded "Thriller" for their Livers & Lungs EP.[56]
In 2003, German a cappella group Maybebop covered the song for their album Heiße Luft.[57]
In 2004, English electronic music group The Prodigy sampled "Thriller" on their The Way It Is.[58]
In 2007, Ian Brown covered "Thriller".[59] Amos Barshad and Nick Catucci, of NYMag.com, commented that "before you dismiss" the song, if you "give it a listen", Brown’s "louche, drugged-out reinvention is actually pretty great."[59][60]
In 2008, German group Wise Guys recorded an a cappella version of the song as "Schiller" for their tenth album Frei!. The stage choreography based on Michael Jackson's music video and member Ferenc also recites a part of Friedrich Schiller's Die Bürgschaft.[61][62]
In 2008, "Thriller" was also covered by Ben Gibbard, lead singer of Death Cab for Cutie and The Postal Service.[63]
In 2008, industrial metal band Gothminister covered Jackson's song for their album Happiness in Darkness.[56]
In October 2009, Imogen Heap covered "Thriller" for BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge.[64]
2010sIn 2011, Patrick Stump covered the song in an a cappella mash-up tribute along with several other Michael Jackson songs over pre-recorded backing vocals.[65]
Appearances in other media[edit source]
Michael Jackson's Thriller music video, particularly the songs dance routine in the video, have been referenced in television series and films including Donga (1985), Coming to America (1988), The Malibu Beach Vampires (1991), Dead & Breakfast (2004), 13 Going on 30 (2004), Bo! in the USA (2006), I Am Zombie Man (2007) and Si j'étais toi (2007), The Disney Channel Show - A.N.T. Farm (Episode - "infuANTces", February 2013) and in an episode of television show, Alvin & the Chipmunks.[66][better source needed]
The song is briefly featured in film Doogal (2006) and the songs lyrics were sung by the characters in an episode, entitled "Soultaker" on the television series Mystery Science Theater 3000.[66] The zombie gorillas did a similar dance routine in the video for "Clint Eastwood" by Gorillaz.[67][better source needed]
In 1997, South Park had an episode, "Pinkeye", which parodies the song and the video.[68][better source needed]
The Chemical Brothers said in a January 2002 interview that if their song "My Elastic Eye" is played on large speakers, the bass would resemble "Thriller".[69] Scottish band Tigerstyle released a bhangra remix of "Thriller" to which dance act Signature danced to it in their semi-final performance in the second series of Britain's Got Talent in May 2008.[70][better source needed]
In 2011, the cast of American musical TV series Glee performed "Thriller" as a mash up with "Heads Will Roll" by Yeah Yeah Yeahs in episode "The Sue Sylvester Shuffle".[71][72]
Pop singer Britney Spears made a reference to "Thriller" in her music video for "I Wanna Go" (2011). In the ending of her video actor Guillermo Díaz leads Spears out of the room. He then turns to the camera with glowing red eyes and his laugh is heard, similar to Vincent Price.[73]
The video has been spoofed on Thriller Night, a 6-minute short film parody of "Thriller",[74] directed by Gary Trousdale and featuring the characters of the Shrek film series. It released on September 13, 2011, on the Scared Shrekless DVD.[75][76] It has also been spoofed on YouTube web series Annoying Orange by the titular character, in the episode "Chiller".[77][better source needed]
PopCap's game Plants vs Zombies features a Michael Jackson zombie, in which he stops and zombies pop out of the ground and they do the dance moves to "Thriller". The zombie's sprite was later replaced with a disco zombie at the request of Jackson's estate.[78][better source needed]
Personnel[edit source]
Written and composed by Rod Temperton
Produced by Quincy Jones
Michael Jackson: Solo and background vocals Featuring: Rap by Vincent Price (Not featured on original edited single version)
Greg Phillinganes, Rod Temperton & Brian Banks: Synthesizers
Anthony Marinelli: Synthesizer programming
David Williams: Guitar
 Jerry Hey, Gary Grant: Trumpets, flugelhorns
Larry Williams: Saxophone, flute
Bill Reichenbach: Trombone
Vocal, rhythm and synthesizer arrangement by Rod Temperton
Horn arrangement by Jerry Hey
Effects by Bruce Cannon and Bruce Swedien

Charts and certifications[edit source]

Charts[edit source]

Chart (1983-1984)
Peak
 position

Australia (Kent Music Report)[79] 4
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[80] 1
Belgian VRT Top 30[26] 1
Canadian RPM Top Singles[81] 3
France (SNEP)[25] 1
Germany (Media Control AG)[82] 9
Irish Singles Chart[83] 4
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[84] 3
Netherlands (Mega Single Top 100)[85] 4
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[86] 6
Spain (PROMUSICAE) 1
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[87] 20
UK (Official Charts Company)[24] 10
US Billboard Hot 100[16][18] 4
US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary[16] 24
US Billboard Hot Black Singles[16][23] 3
US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play[16] 1

Chart (2005)
Peak
 position
U.S. Billboard Hot Digital Songs[16] 2

Chart (2006)
Peak
 position

France (SNEP)[88] 35
Germany (Media Control Charts)[32] 9
Irish Singles Chart[83] 8
Italy (FIMI)[30] 5
Netherlands (Mega Single Top 100)[85] 34
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[32] 1
Swiss (Swiss Hitparade)[32] 3

Chart (2007)
Peak
 position

Hot Canadian Digital Singles[16] 7
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[89] 20
UK (Official Charts Company)[24] 57

Chart (2008)
Peak
 position

Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[90] 55
Norway (VG-lista)[91] 13
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[92] 53
UK (Official Charts Company)[24] 35

Chart (2009)
Peak
 position

Australia (ARIA)[93] 3
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[90] 5
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Back Catalogue Singles Flanders)[94] 3
Belgium (Ultratop 30 Back Catalogue Singles Wallonia)[95] 2
Denmark (Tracklisten)[33] 25
European Hot 100 Singles[96] 16
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[34] 11
France (SNEP)[97] 3
Irish Singles Chart[32] 8
Italy (FIMI)[30] 2
Japan Singles Top 100 (Oricon)[32] 41
Netherlands (Mega Single Top 100)[85] 9
New Zealand (RIANZ)[32] 12
Norway (VG-lista)[91] 7
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[89] 1
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[87] 10
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[92] 3
UK (Official Charts Company)[24] 12
US Billboard Hot RingMasters[16] 1

Chart (2010)
Peak
 position

Spain (PROMUSICAE)[89] 12
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[92] 68
UK (Official Charts Company)[24] 68

Chart (2012)
Peak
 position

France (SNEP)[88] 143
Irish Singles Chart[83] 30
Japan Hot 100 Singles[16] 93
UK (Official Charts Company)[24] 49
US Billboard Hot Digital Songs[16] 2
US Billboard Hot RingMasters[16] 1

Sales and certifications[edit source]

Region
Certification
Sales/shipments

Australia (ARIA)[98]
2× Platinum 140,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[99]
Platinum 100,000^
France (SNEP)[100]
Platinum 975,000[101]
Italy (FIMI)[102]
Gold 25,000*
Mexico (AMPROFON)[103]
Gold 30,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[104]
Silver 250,000^
United States (RIAA)[105]
Platinum (physical)
 Gold (digital)
 Gold (MT) 1,000,000 (physical)
 3,304,000 (digital)[106]
 500,000 (ringtone)
Total available sales:
 6,314,000

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone


Track listing[edit source]
7" single'[107]
1."Thriller" (special edit) – 4:37
2."Things I Do for You" (live) – 3:31
7" single[107]
1."Thriller" – 5:57
2."Thriller" (instrumental) – 5:57
12" maxi[107]
1."Thriller" – 5:57
2."Thriller" (remixed short version) – 4:05
3."Things I Do for You" (live) – 3:31
 CD single[107]
1."Thriller" (remixed short version) – 4:08
2."Can't Get Outta the Rain" – 4:09
DualDisc single[107]
CD side
1."Thriller" (remixed short version) – 4:09
2."Thriller" (album version) – 5:58
DVD side
1.Michael Jackson's Thriller – 13:40

See also[edit source]

Portal icon Michael Jackson portal
List of best-selling singles
List of best-selling singles in the United States
List of most expensive music videos
"Michael Jackson's Thriller"
Thriller (viral video)
Thrill the World
References[edit source]
1.^ a b Jones, Jel D. Lewis (2005). Michael Jackson, the king of pop: the big picture : the music! the man! the legend! the interviews : an anthology. Amber Books Publishing. p. 6. ISBN 0-9749779-0-X. Retrieved 2010-07-22.
2.^ a b c Patrick Kevin Day, Todd Martens (February 18, 2008). "25 'Thriller' facts". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
3.^ a b c d e f g h i Peter Lyle (November 25, 2007). "Michael Jackson's monster smash". Telegraph.co.uk. Telegraph Media Group Limited. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
4.^ a b AOL Radio Staff (June 26, 2009). "10 Best Michael Jackson Songs". AOLRadioBlog.com. AOL Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
5.^ a b Eliot Glazer (September 25, 2009). "Top 1984 Songs". AOLRadioBlog.com. AOL Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
6.^ Simon Vozick-Levinson (February 18, 2008). "Quincy Jones' 'Thriller' Memories". EW.com. Time Warner Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
7.^ "Thriller – Michael Jackson Digital Sheet Music (Digital Download)". MusicNotes.com. Alfred Publishing Co. Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-24.
8.^ George, p. 23
9.^ "Review of "Anthology" by Rick James".
10.^ Ashley Lasimone (October 28, 2009). "Clash of the Cover Songs: Michael Jackson vs. Imogen Heap". Spinner.com. AOL Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
11.^ Jon Pareles (September 3, 1987). "Critic's Notebook; How Good Is Jackson's 'Bad'?". NYTImes.com. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
12.^ Ann Powers (February 15, 2008). "Nine reasons why Jackson masterpiece remains a 'Thriller'". SouthCoastToday.com. Dow Jones Local Media Group. Retrieved 2010-02-06.
13.^ Melissa Cabrera (November 24, 2009). "Top 100 '80s Songs". AOLRadioBlog.com. AOL Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
14.^ Sara D. Anderson (September 16, 2009). "10 Best Halloween Songs". AOLRadioBlog.com. AOL Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
15.^ Lindsey Weber (October 13, 2009). "10 Best Party Songs". AOLRadioBlog.com. AOL Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
16.^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Allmusic (Thriller > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles)". Allmusic.com. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
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18.^ a b "Week of March 3, 1984". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
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20.^ a b "Rock Music, etc., Terms". Georgetown College. October 26, 1999. Retrieved 2010-01-08.
21.^ Grein, Paul (October 24, 2012). "Week Ending Oct. 21, 2012. Songs: Maroon 5′s "Nixon Moment"". Chart Watch (Yahoo Music). Retrieved October 25, 2012.
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23.^ a b "Week of March 10, 1984". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
24.^ a b c d e f g h "Michael Jackson". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
25.^ a b "Toutes les Chansons N° 1 des Années 80". Infodisc.fr. Dominic Durand / InfoDisc. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
26.^ a b "Michael Jackson – Thriller". Top30-3.radio2.be (in Dutch). VRT – Auguste Reyerslaan. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
27.^ a b Ed Christman, Antony Bruno, (July 2, 2009). "Michael Jackson Music Sales Surge Could Last For Months". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
28.^ "July 11, 2009". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
29.^ "Chart For Week Up To 04/07/2009". ChartStats.com. The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
30.^ a b c "Italiancharts.com – Michael Jackson – Thriller". Top Digital Download.
31.^ "Certificazioni Download FIMI" (PDF) (in Italian). Federation of the Italian Music Industry. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
32.^ a b c d e f g h "Michael Jackson – Thriller – Music Charts". Acharts.us. aCharts.us. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
33.^ a b "Track Top 40 – July 10, 2009". Hitlisterne.dk. IFPI Danmark & Nielsen Music Control. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
34.^ a b "Finnishcharts.com – Michael Jackson – Thriller". Suomen virallinen lista.
35.^ a b c d Mike Celizic (April 26, 2008). "'Thriller' video remains a classic 25 years later". Today.MSNBC.com. MSNBC Interactive. Retrieved 2010-01-22.
36.^ a b c d Mike Celizic (April 28, 2008). "Director: Funds for ‘Thriller’ were tough to raise". Today.MSNBC.com. MSNBC Interactive. Retrieved 2010-01-22.
37.^ "Michael Jackson’s "Thriller" Video Turns 27". VH1. Retrieved 2010-01-22.
38.^ Gil Kaufman (December 30, 2009). "Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' Added To National Film Registry". MTV.com. Viacom. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
39.^ Jay Cocks, Denise Worrell, Peter Ainslie, Adam Zagorin (December 26, 1983). "Sing a Song of Seeing". Time.com (Time Inc). Retrieved 2010-01-22.
40.^ Girlfriend
41.^ Leah Greenblatt (July 3, 2009). "The Greatest Videos". EW.com. Time Warner Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
42.^ a b "MTV Video Music Awards – 1985". MTV.com. Viacom. Retrieved 2010-01-22.
43.^ Vinny Marino (May 2, 2001). "VH1 Names '100 Greatest Videos of All Time'". ABCNews.com. The Walt Disney Company. Retrieved 2010-01-22.
44.^ "MTV: 100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made". RockOnTheNet.com. Rock on the Net. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
45.^ Craig Duff (July 28, 2011). "The 30 All-TIME Best Music Videos – Michael Jackson, 'Thriller'". TIME. Retrieved August 19, 2011.
46.^ Halstead 2003
47.^ Nisid Hajarl (September 20, 1996). "The King of Pap". EW.com. Time Warner Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
48.^ Daniel Kreps (March 13, 2009). "Michael Jackson Sells Out 50 London Shows as Controversy Brews On Secondary Market". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
49.^ a b Own Gleiberman (October 28, 2009). "Michael Jackson's This Is It (2009)". EW.com. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
50.^ Richard Corliss (October 28, 2009). "Michael Jackson's This Is It Review: He's Still a Thriller". Times.com (Time Inc). Retrieved 2010-01-24.
51.^ Michael R. Blood (June 29, 2009). "Michael Jackson's Last Video: One Of The Sets Was A Cemetery". HuffingtonPost.com. HuffingtonPost.com, Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
52.^ "Michael Jackson's London O2 Arena setlist revealed". NME.com. IPC Media. March 12, 2009. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
53.^ "Unreleased Michael Jackson Song to Be Revealed". ETOnline.com. CBS Studios Inc. September 23, 2009. Retrieved 2010-01-24.[dead link]
54.^ "Amazon.com : This Is It : Michael Jackson: Music". Amazon.com. Amazon.com, Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-14.
55.^ "Michael Jackson's This Is It (The Music That Inspired the Movie)". iTunes.Apple.com. Apple Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-20.
56.^ a b c d e "Michael Jackson Cover Songs". The Covers Project. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
57.^ "Thriller by Maybebop from the album Heiße Luft". Audio Puzzle. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
58.^ "The Prodigy's The Way It Is sample of Michael Jackson feat. Vincent Price's Thriller". WhoSampled. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
59.^ a b Amos Barshad, Nick Catucci (July 10, 2009). "Song of the Summer: Michael Jackson Rarities, Remixes, Covers and More!". NYMag.com. New York Media LLC. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
60.^ "Ian Brown – Thriller (Michael Jackson Cover) | Video Youtube – NMETV Latest Music Videos and Clips". Nme.com. October 16, 2008. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
61.^ "Frei! – Wikipedia" (in (German)). De.wikipedia.org. January 5, 2012. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
62.^ "'Schiller' von Wise Guys – laut.de – Song". Laut.de. November 16, 2011. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
63.^ Marvin Marks (June 28, 2009). "Michael Jackson Thriller Covers". MusicByDay.com. Music By Day. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
64.^ Ashley Lasimone (October 28, 2009). "Clash of the Cover Songs: Michael Jackson vs. Imogen Heap". Spinner.com. AOL Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
65.^ "Patrick Stump Pays Tribute to Michael Jackson in Awesome A Cappella Medley". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2011-05-10.
66.^ a b "Thriller: Movie Connections". IMDb.com. IMDb.com Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
67.^ Mitchum, Rob (February 5, 2003). "Phase One: Celebrity Take Down (DVD)". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
68.^ "South Park Thriller". YouTube. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
69.^ "The Chemical Brothers - Remix Article". Planet Dust. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
70.^ "Signature – Semi Final Britain's Got Talent 26/5/08". YouTube. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
71.^ "'Glee' Super Bowl Episode Brings 'Thriller' to Football Fans". Billboard. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
72.^ "'Glee'-cap: 'Heads Will Roll' After Glee's Super Bowl 'Thriller!'" OK! Magazine. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
73.^ "Britney Spears' 'I Wanna Go': A Pop-Culture Cheat Sheet". MTV.com. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
74.^ "Scared Shrekless and Monsters vs Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space Halloween Party Double Pack". Starpulse.com. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
75.^ "Shrek Does Michael Jackson's Thriller". Theblackfedorablog.com. October 19, 2011. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
76.^ "Scared Shrekless". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
77.^ "Annoying Orange - Chiller (Thriller Parody)". YouTube. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
78.^ "Michael Jackson Estate Forces 'Plants vs. Zombies' Update". MTV.com. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
79.^ Kent, David (2003). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
80.^ "Ultratop.be – Michael Jackson – Thriller" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
81.^ "Top Singles – Volume 40, No. 1, March 10, 1984". RPM. Retrieved 2010-08-03.
82.^ "Michael Jackson - Thriller". Charts.de. Media Control.
83.^ a b c "Search Results: Thriller". IrishCharts.ie. Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
84.^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Michael Jackson search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40.
85.^ a b c "Dutchcharts.nl – Michael Jackson – Thriller" (in Dutch). Mega Single Top 100.
86.^ "Charts.org.nz – Michael Jackson – Thriller". Top 40 Singles.
87.^ a b "Swedishcharts.com – Michael Jackson – Thriller". Singles Top 60.
88.^ a b "Lescharts.com – Michael Jackson – Thriller" (in French). Les classement single.
89.^ a b c "Spanishcharts.com – Michael Jackson – Thriller" Canciones Top 50.
90.^ a b "Michael Jackson – Thriller – Austriancharts.at" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
91.^ a b "Norwegiancharts.com – Michael Jackson – Thriller". VG-lista.
92.^ a b c "Michael Jackson – Thriller – swisscharts.com". Swiss Singles Chart.
93.^ "Australian-charts.com – Michael Jackson – Thriller". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
94.^ "30 Back Catalogue Singles – July 18, 2009". UltraTop.be. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
95.^ "30 Back Catalogue Singles – July 4, 2009". UltraTop.be. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
96.^ "Michael Jackson Album & Song Chart History". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media. Retrieved 2011-10-29.
97.^ Download France Single Top 50 "Download Single Top 50 – 04/07/2009". Lescharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
98.^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2012 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association.
99.^ "Canadian single certifications – Michael Jackson – Thriller". Music Canada.
100.^ "French single certifications – Michael Jackson – Thriller" (in French). InfoDisc. Select MICHAEL JACKSON and click OK
101.^ "Les Singles de Platine :" (in French). Infodisc.fr. Retrieved May 7, 2012.
102.^ "Italian single certifications – Michael Jackson – Thriller" (in Italian). Federation of the Italian Music Industry. Select Online in the field Scegli la sezione. Select Week -- and Year ----. Enter Michael Jackson in the field Artista. Click Avvia la ricerca
103.^ "Mexican single certifications – Michael Jackson – Thriller" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas.
104.^ "British single certifications – Michael Jackson – Thriller". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Thriller in the field Search. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Click Go
105.^ "Gold and Platinum Searchable Database". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 7, 2012.
106.^ Paul Grein (April 17, 2013). "Week Ending April 14, 2013. Songs: PSY Gallops Back". Yahoo Music (Chart Watch). Retrieved April 18, 2013.
107.^ a b c d e "Michael Jackson – Thriller (Chanson)". Lescharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
Bibliography
Brooks, Darren (2002). Michael Jackson: An Exceptional Journey. Chrome Dreams. ISBN 1-84240-178-5.
George, Nelson (2004). Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection booklet. Sony BMG.
Grant, Adrian (2009). Michael Jackson: The Visual Documentary. Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-1-84938-261-8.
Jones, Jel (2005). Michael Jackson, the King of Pop: The Big Picture: the Music! the Man! the Legend! the Interviews!. Amber Books Publishing. ISBN 0-9749779-0-X.
Taraborrelli, J. Randy (2004). The Magic and the Madness. Terra Alta, WV: Headline. ISBN 0-330-42005-4.
Halstead, Craig (2003). Michael Jackson The Solo Years. On-Line Ltd. ISBN 978-0-7552-0091-7.
External links[edit source]
Michael Jackson's "Thriller" music video on YouTube
Full lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics

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Michael Jackson's Thriller

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This article is about the music video. For the song, see Thriller (song). For the album, see Thriller (album).

Michael Jackson's Thriller
Michael Jackson's Thriller title card.jpg
Title card used in the video.

Directed by
John Landis
Produced by
Michael Jackson
Written by
John Landis
 Michael Jackson
Starring
Michael Jackson
Ola Ray
Vincent Price
Distributed by
Epic Records
Vestron Music Video
Release date(s)
December 2, 1983
Running time
13:43
Country
USA
Language
English
Budget
$500,000[1]
Sales:
 9 million units

Music video
"Thriller" on YouTube
Michael Jackson's Thriller is an American 13-minute music video for the song of the same name released on December 2, 1983. It was directed by John Landis, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Jackson.
It was MTV's first world premiere video. Voted as the most influential pop music video of all time,[2] Thriller proved to have a profound effect on popular culture,[3][4] and was named "a watershed moment for the [music] industry"[2] for its unprecedented merging of filmmaking and music. Guinness World Records listed it in 2006 as the "most successful music video", selling over nine million copies.[5] In 2009, the video was inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, the first music video to ever receive this honor, for being “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant.[6] It is also the most watched music video of all time, seen by more than four billion people all over the world.[citation needed]
Costarring with Jackson was former Playboy centerfold Ola Ray. The video was choreographed by Michael Peters (who had worked with the singer on his prior hit "Beat It"), and Michael Jackson. The video also contains incidental music by film music composer Elmer Bernstein, who had previously worked with Landis on An American Werewolf in London. The video (like the song) contains a spoken word performance by horror film veteran Vincent Price. Rick Baker assisted in prosthetics and makeup for the production. "Thriller" was the third and final video for the Thriller album. The red jacket that Jackson wore was designed by John Landis' wife Deborah Landis to make him appear more "virile".[7]
To qualify for an Academy Award as a short subject, the film was shown in a theatrical screening along with the 1940 Disney animated feature Fantasia, in December 1983.[8]

Contents
  [hide] 1 Content
2 Credits
3 Awards 3.1 Grammy Award
3.2 MTV Award
4 Origins 4.1 Filming locations
4.2 Behind the scenes
5 Making Michael Jackson's Thriller
6 Broadway and litigation
7 Legacy
8 See also
9 References
10 External links

Content[edit source]



 Michael Jackson dancing with the living dead.
Since Michael Jackson was a Jehovah's Witness at that time, the first scene includes a disclaimer by Jackson stating that, "Due to my strong personal convictions, I wish to stress that this film in no way endorses a belief in the occult."
In a serene setting of the 1950s, the teenaged Michael Jackson and his unnamed girlfriend (Ola Ray) ran out of gas in a dark, wooded area. They walk off into the forest, and Michael asks her if she would like to be his girlfriend. She accepts and he gives her a ring. He warns her, however, that he is "not like other guys". A full moon appears, and Michael begins convulsing in agony—transforming into a horrifying werecat,[2] growling at her to "GO AWAY!" in the process. The girl screams and runs away, but the werecat catches up, knocking her down and lunging at her with his claws.
The scene then cuts to a movie theater where Michael and his date, along with an excitable audience, are actually watching the scene unfold in a fictional Vincent Price movie titled "Thriller". Michael's girlfriend leaves the theater as Michael hands his popcorn to another moviegoer, catches up to her, and tells her that "It's only a movie". Some debate follows as to whether or not she was scared by the movie: she denies it, but Michael disagrees. They then walk down a foggy road as Michael teases her by singing the verses of "Thriller". They pass a nearby graveyard, in which the undead begin to rise out of their graves as Vincent Price performs his sprechgesang.
The zombies corner the two main characters threateningly, and suddenly, Michael becomes a zombie himself. The zombies then break into an elaborate song and dance number, followed by the main chorus of "Thriller" (during which Michael reverts to human form), frightening his date to the point where she runs for cover.
Michael (who has turned back into a zombie) and his fellow corpses chase the frightened girl into the corner of a nearby abandoned house. Michael then reaches for the girl's throat as she lets out a bloodcurdling scream, only to awake and realize it was all a dream. Michael then offers to take her home, and she happily accepts. As they walk out of the house, Michael turns to the camera with a sinister grin, revealing his yellow werecat eyes, as Vincent Price offers one last haunting laugh.
During the closing credits, a reprised scene of the zombies dancing is shown. At the end of the closing credits, a disclaimer appears, saying that "Any similarity to actual events or characters living, dead, (or undead) is purely coincidental." The same disclaimer appeared in An American Werewolf in London, also directed by Landis. After this, the zombies then dance back into their graves, ending with one of them (an uncredited Vincent Price, in full prosthetic makeup) giving the audience a terrifying grimace as the scene fades to black.
Credits[edit source]
Directed by: John Landis
Produced by: George Folsey, Jr., Michael Jackson & John Landis
Written by: John Landis & Michael Jackson
Starring: Michael Jackson
Co-starring: Ola Ray
Director of Photography: Robert Paynter, B.S.C.
Special Make-up Effects Designed & Created by: Rick Baker & EFX, Inc.
Choreography: Michael Peters & Michael Jackson
Edited by: Malcolm Campbell & George Folsey, Jr.
Art Director: Charles Hughes
Costume Designed by: Kelly Kimball & Deborah Nadoolman Landis
Production Manager: Dan Allingham
First Assistant Director: David Sosna
Scary Music by: Elmer Bernstein
ThrillerPerformed by: Michael Jackson
Featuring 'Rap' by: Vincent Price
Produced by: Quincy Jones & Michael Jackson
Written by: Rod Temperton
Recorded & Mixed by: Bruce Swedien
Available on Epic Records & Cassettes
Awards[edit source]



"Thriller"




The album of Thriller was released in 1982
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Problems playing this file? See media help.
In December 2009, it was selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress along with 24 other films.[9] It was the first ever music video to be selected.[10] The Registry titled Thriller as “the most famous music video of all time”.[11] The coordinator of the National Film Preservation Board, who decides upon candidates for inclusion in the National Film Registry, Steve Legett, said “The time is right” for Thriller to be included, because of the death of Jackson that year.[10]
Grammy Award[edit source]

Year
Category
Result
Notes
1985 Best Video, Long Form Won "Thriller"
1984 Best Video Album Won Making Michael Jackson's Thriller
MTV Award[edit source]

Year
Category
Result
1999 100 Greatest Music Videos of all Time [12] Won
1984 Best Overall Performance in a Video Won
1984 Best Choreography (Michael Peters) Won
1984 Viewer's Choice Won
Origins[edit source]
In the summer of 1983, Thriller had begun to decline in sales. Walter Yetnikoff and Larry Stessel answered calls throughout the night from Jackson. "Walter, the record isn’t No. 1 anymore," Yetnikoff recalls Jackson saying. "What are we going to do about it?" 'We’re going to go to sleep and deal with it tomorrow,'" Yetnikoff remembered answering. Jackson manager Frank DiLeo first mentioned the idea of making a third video, and pressed Jackson to consider the album’s title track. "It’s simple—all you’ve got to do is dance, sing, and make it scary," DiLeo recalls telling Jackson.[13]
In early August, John Landis was contacted by Jackson to direct. At the time, commercial motion-picture directors did not direct music videos, but Landis was intrigued.[13]
Filming locations[edit source]
The music video was filmed at the Palace Theatre in downtown Los Angeles, the zombie dance sequence at the junction of Union Pacific Avenue and South Calzona Street in East Los Angeles and the final house scene in the Angeleno Heights neighborhood at 1345 Carroll Avenue. All principal photography was done in mid-October 1983.
Behind the scenes[edit source]
In an interview that aired December 11, 1999, for MTV's 100 Greatest Videos Ever Made, Jackson spoke about the making of the video:

My idea was to make this short film with conversation ... in the beginning - I like having a beginning and a middle and an ending, which would follow a story. I'm very much involved in complete making and creating of the piece. It has to be, you know, my soul. Usually, you know, it's an interpretation of the music. It was a delicate thing to work on because I remember my original approach was, 'How do you make zombies and monsters dance without it being comical?' So I said, 'We have to do just the right kind of movement so it doesn't become something that you laugh at.' But it just has to take it to another level. So I got in a room with [choreographer] Michael Peters, and he and I together kind of imagined how these zombies move by making faces in the mirror. I used to come to rehearsal sometimes with monster makeup on, and I loved doing that. So he and I collaborated and we both choreographed the piece and I thought it should start like that kind of thing and go into this jazzy kind of step, you know. Kind of gruesome things like that, not too much ballet or whatever.
—Michael Jackson[14]
Making Michael Jackson's Thriller[edit source]



 The Palace Theatre is featured in the music video.
Released in tandem with the video was an hour-long documentary providing candid glimpses behind the scenes of the production. Called Making Michael Jackson's Thriller, it, too, was shown heavily on MTV for a time and was the top-selling home-video release of all time at one point, with over 9 million copies sold. The VHS also included video clips from the songs "Can You Feel It", "Beat It", and the Motown 25 performance of "Billie Jean" as well as audio clips from Jackson's songs "Off the Wall" and "Workin' Day and Night".
MTV paid $250,000 for the exclusive rights to show the documentary; Showtime paid $300,000 for pay-cable rights; and Vestron Music Video reportedly put down an additional $500,000 to market the cassette, in "a profit participation."[15]
Rick Baker expected to have a few weeks to do the special effects make up for the zombies (which usually requires impressions to be taken of the actors face to base the prosthetics on) only to find out the dancers would not be cast until a few days before shooting began. It was decided to do generic make up for the dancers (using a combination of precast prosthetics) while members of Bakers crew in the more elaborate make up for shots that featured more closeups (like the zombie coming out of the manhole)
Broadway and litigation[edit source]
In 2009, Jackson sold the rights of "Thriller" to the Nederlander Organization, to stage a Broadway musical based on the video.
Jackson was sued by Landis in a dispute over royalties for the video; Landis claims that he is owed four years worth of royalties.[16][17]
Ola Ray has also complained about difficulties collecting royalties. At first, Ray blamed Jackson, but then she apologized to him in 1997. However, Ray did sue Jackson on May 6, 2009 in a dispute to obtain uncollected royalties.[18] less than two months before Jackson's death on June 25.[19]
Legacy[edit source]
Following the success of the "Thriller" video, a Hollywood production company reportedly began serious work on trying to turn Jackson's song "Billie Jean", which is also featured on Jackson's Thriller album, into a feature film; to date no plans have ever been completed.[20] Vinny Marino of ABC News commented that "Thriller"'s music video was being selected as the 'Greatest Video of All Time" was a "no-brainer" and remarked that, "Michael Jackson's "Thriller" continues to be considered the greatest video ever by just about everyone."[21] Gil Kaufman of MTV described the "Thriller" video as being "iconic" and felt that it was one of Jackson's "most enduring legacies".[22] Kaufman also noted that the music video was the "mini-movie that revolutionized music videos" and "cemented Jackson's status as one of the most ambitious, innovative pop stars of all time".[22] Steve Peake, of About.com, listed "Thriller" as being Jackson's eighth best song of the 1980s.[23] Patrick Kevin Day and Todd Martens, of The Los Angeles Times commented that,

"Thriller's" phenomenal success led to a breaking down of traditional racial barriers on FM radio at the time. New York's WPLJ, a "white" station, played Jackson's "Beat It" because of Eddie Van Halen's appearance on it. The song caused a wave of protests from some listeners who didn't want "black" music on their station. MTV also had a reputation for favoring white performers at the time, and its heavy rotation of Jackson videos helped alleviate the criticism.[20]
Leaders in Michael Jackson's religion were not so pleased, by contrast. In spite of his disclaimer at the beginning of the video, Jackson made a public "apology" in the pages of the Awake! magazine by the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania. " 'I would never do it again!” says Jackson. “I just intended to do a good, fun short film, not to purposely bring to the screen something to scare people or to do anything bad. I want to do what’s right. I would never do anything like that again.” Why not? “Because a lot of people were offended by it,” explains Jackson. “That makes me feel bad. I don’t want them to feel that way. I realize now that it wasn’t a good idea. I’ll never do a video like that again!” He continues: “In fact, I have blocked further distribution of the film over which I have control, including its release in some other countries. There’s all kinds of promotional stuff being proposed on Thriller. But I tell them, ‘No, no, no. I don’t want to do anything on Thriller. No more Thriller.’ ”[24]
In December 2009, the music video for "Thriller" was selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, "Thriller" is the first music video to ever be inducted.[25] The Registry explained, "because of the way the recording industry is evolving and changing, we thought it would be good to go back to the development of an earlier seismic shift, which was the development of the music video"[22] and described the music video as being "the most famous music video of all time".[26] The coordinator of the National Film Preservation Board, who decides upon candidates for inclusion in the National Film Registry, Steve Legett, noted that the music video was considered for induction for years, but was chosen mainly due to Jackson's death that year.[27] In a poll conducted by Myspace in 2010, which asked over one thousand users on their site to name the most influential music video of all time from a list of twenty videos selected by music and entertainment critics, Michael Jackson's Thriller was voted the most influential video.[28]
In 2002 Lexington, Kentucky, became the first city to launch a "Thriller" reenactment as a Halloween festivity. The video’s storyline and dance sequences were faithfully recreated, beginning outside the historic Kentucky Theater and featuring hundreds of zombies who attend rehearsals at nearby Mecca Live Studio in the weeks leading up to the parade. Lexington’s 10th annual Thriller Parade was sponsored by Lexington Parks and Recreation, Mecca, and WRFL FM 88.1, and took place on October 30, 2011 for an audience of thousands, with Albert Ignacio playing the role of Michael Jackson.[29] Lexington’s March Madness Marching Band also performed in zombie attire.
See also[edit source]
Michael Jackson's Thriller jacket
List of most expensive music videos
Return of the Living Dead Part II, the film features a dancing zombie resembling Michael Jackson from this video.
Thriller viral video featuring the CPDRC Dancing Inmates of Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center, Cebu, in the Cebu Province of the Philippines
Donga, the "Indian Thriller" internet meme
Thrill the World
Lenny Henry, Lenny made a spoof of the "Thriller" video, called "Thinner" in 1984.
References[edit source]
1.^ "Director: Funds for "Thriller" almost didn't appear".
2.^ a b c Celizic, Mike (April 26, 2008). "'Thriller' still a classic after 25 years - TODAY Entertainment - TODAYshow.com". MSNBC. Retrieved 2010-07-24.
3.^ "Sharon Stone | 50 Pop-Culture Moments That Rocked Fashion: The Top 25 | Photo 21 of 25". EW.com. Retrieved 2010-07-24.
4.^ "A farewell to Michael Jackson". Manchester Evening News. June 26, 2009. Retrieved 2010-07-24.
5.^ Guinness World Records (2006)
6.^ "Michael Jackson News - Yahoo! Music". New.music.yahoo.com. December 30, 2009. Retrieved 2010-07-24.
7.^ Lauren Goode (June 30, 2009). "Deborah Landis, Designer of the Red Jacket Michael Jackson Wore in "Thriller"". Wall Street Journal (Speakeasy). Retrieved July 4, 2009. "At the time, she says, the 25-year-old Jackson weighed only 99 lbs, with a 26-inch waist (“exactly the same height and weight as Fred Astaire”), and one of the challenges she faced was making the performer appear more “virile.”"
8.^ "'Thriller' teams with Disney". Pittzburgh Post-Gazzette. April 27, 1984. Retrieved December 15, 2012.
9.^ Alex Dobuzinskis (December 30, 2009). "Jackson "Thriller" film picked for U.S. registry". Reuters. Retrieved January 1, 2010.
10.^ a b "Michael Jackson's Thriller added to US film archive". BBC News. December 31, 2009. Retrieved January 1, 2010.
11.^ Itzkoff, Dave (December 30, 2009). "‘Thriller’ Video Added to U.S. Film Registry". The New York Times. Retrieved January 1, 2010.
12.^ MTV: 100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made
13.^ a b Griffin, Nancy (2010-07). "The "Thriller" Diaries". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 2011-01-02.
14.^ "Michael Jackson's Life & Legacy: Global Superstar (1982-86)". VH1. Archived from the original on July 6, 2009. Retrieved July 7, 2009.
15.^ "Sing a Song of Seeing". Time (magazine). December 26, 1983. Retrieved November 15, 2009.
16.^ Grossberg, Josh (January 27, 2009). "A Legal Thriller: Michael Jackson Sued by John Landis". E! Online. Retrieved January 14, 2012.
17.^ Michael Jackson sued by 'Thriller' director
18.^ Dillon, Nancy (May 5, 2009). "Gloves are off! 'Thriller' co-star Ola Ray sues Michael Jackson for royalties,". New York: Nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2010-07-24.
19.^ latimes.com
20.^ a b Patrick Kevin Day, Todd Martens (February 18, 2008). "25 'Thriller' facts". The Los Angeles Times. The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
21.^ Vinny Marino (May 2, 2001). "VH1 Names '100 Greatest Videos of All Time'". ABCNews.com. The Walt Disney Company. Retrieved 2010-01-22.
22.^ a b c Gil Kaufman (December 30, 2009). "Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' Added To National Film Registry". MTV.com. Viacom. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
23.^ Steve Peake. "Top 10 Michael Jackson Songs of the '80s". 80Music.about.com. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 2010-01-23.
24.^ Author Unknown (May 22, 1984). "Young People Ask..."What About Music Videos?"". Awake! (Watchtower Bible and Tract Society).
25.^ Alex Dobuzinskis (December 30, 2009). "Jackson "Thriller" film picked for U.S. registry". Reuters.com. Retrieved 2010-01-22.
26.^ Dave Itzkoff (December 30, 2009). "‘Thriller’ Video Added to U.S. Film Registry". NYTimes.com (The New York Times Company). Retrieved 2010-01-23.
27.^ "Michael Jackson's Thriller added to US film archive". BBC News. December 31, 2009. Retrieved 2010-01-22.
28.^ "‘Thriller’ voted most influential pop video". MSNBC. May 2, 2010. Retrieved 2010-05-03.
29.^ http://www.kentucky.com/2009/10/30/997818/its-thriller-time-if-you-want.html
External links[edit source]
Thriller at the Internet Movie Database
Michael Jackson's Thriller at AllRovi
"Thriller" official music video on YouTube

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Joe Jackson (manager)

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 This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (May 2013) 

Joseph Jackson
JosephJackson2007(cropped).jpg
Jackson in 2007

Born
Joseph Walter Jackson
 July 26, 1929 (age 84)[1]
Fountain Hill, Arkansas, U.S.
Nationality
American
Occupation
Talent manager
Years active
1960s–present
Spouse(s)
Katherine Scruse (m. 1949)
Children
10, See below
Parents
Samuel Jackson (1893–1993)
 Crystal Lee King (1907–1992)
Joseph Walter "Joe" Jackson (born July 26, 1928)[1] is a talent manager and the father of the Jackson family of entertainers which includes Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson and The Jackson 5.

Contents
  [hide] 1 Early life
2 The Jackson 5
3 Public image
4 Children
5 References
6 External links

Early life[edit source]
Jackson was born to Crystal Lee (née King; 1907-1992) and Samuel Jackson (1893-1993), a schoolteacher, in Fountain Hill, Arkansas.[1] Jackson was the eldest of six children, which included sisters Verna Mae, Lula Mae and Wanda and brothers Lawrence and Luther.
Jackson recalled from early childhood that his father was domineering and strict and he described himself as a "lonely child" in his memoirs, The Jacksons. Jackson's family moved to East Chicago, Indiana while he was still a toddler. At eleven, his parents divorced and for a while he lived with his mother at their East Chicago home with a stepfather. In his teen years, he spent a few years in Oakland where his father relocated. He returned to East Chicago where he eventually began working at East Chicago's U.S. Steel company, where he eventually became a crane operator. He also had a second job at the American Foundries food store.
Jackson first became acquainted with Katherine Scruse in 1948. Within a year, the couple married on November 5, 1949. In January of 1950, they purchased a three-room house in Gary, Indiana. During the early 1950s, Jackson briefly performed with his own blues band, The Falcons, playing guitar. Despite their efforts, the Falcons failed to get a recording deal and subsequently broke up.
The Jackson 5[edit source]
See also: The Jackson 5
Jackson began working with his sons' musical group in the early 1960s, first working with his three eldest sons, Jackie, Tito and Jermaine. Younger sons Marlon and Michael eventually joined the backing band. At first, the group went under the Jackson Brothers. Following the inclusions of Marlon and Michael and Michael's increased vocal role in the group, their name was changed to the Jackson 5.
After a couple years performing in talent contests and high school functions, Jackson had his sons perform on the chitlin' circuit, where they eventually performed at the Regal Theatre and the Apollo Theater. After this success, Jackson only began working part time at U.S. Steel. By 1967, the brothers had signed their first deal with Steeltown Records and released their first single by the end of the year. Within a year, however, Jackson helped to land his sons an audition for Motown Records in Detroit. The brothers immediately signed in 1968.
The Jackson 5 eventually became crossover stars, scoring four consecutive number-one hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and becoming international sensations. In 1973, wanting to reassure his role of control, Jackson had his family, including youngest son Randy, and daughters Rebbie, La Toya and Janet perform at casinos and resorts in Las Vegas, inspired by the success of fellow family act, The Osmonds. In 1975, the Jackson 5, with the exception of Jermaine, left Motown and signed a lucrative deal with CBS Records without alarming Motown of the deal, leading to a lawsuit against the family.
After a delay of recording, the Jackson 5 were forced to give up their name as the name was now in control of Motown and changed it slightly to The Jacksons, releasing their debut CBS record in 1976. The album was the first to feature Randy as an official replacement for Jermaine. In 1978, Jackson formed Joe Jackson Productions, with his sons as clients. Eventually, CBS' subsidiary, Epic Records, allowed the brothers to be able to produce their next record by themselves following two albums produced mainly by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. The album, Destiny, eventually reached platinum status. Two years later, the brothers released another platinum album, Triumph.
In 1979, Michael Jackson followed his brother Jermaine in leaving his father's management company and later released the hugely successful Off the Wall album that same year. In 1980, under Joseph Jackson Productions, daughter La Toya released her debut album, which flopped. Two years later, in 1982, Jackson helped to launch youngest daughter Janet's solo career with A&M Records where her own self-titled debut album was released. In 1983, the rest of the Jackson brothers terminated their contract with their father's company. In 1984, though he no longer managed his six sons, he helped to produce the Jacksons' concert tour to support their Victory album.
In 1985, Jackson hired John McClain to look after his youngest daughter Janet's fledgling singing career. Upon discovering that Janet was working with Minneapolis producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Jackson advised the duo to "not have my daughter sound like Prince." Following the success of the Control album a year later, in 1986, Janet left her father's management team and began working with McClain full time. In 1987, La Toya became the final child of Joseph's to leave his management company. Rebbie, who was managed by her late husband Nathaniel Brown throughout her career, was never managed by Joseph. Following this, Jackson found difficulties managing other acts he had signed to his management company and often agreed to deals that ended badly with either Michael or Janet bailing him out, however, this stopped in the early 1990s. With the exception of Michael and Janet, most of the Jackson siblings' careers never found much success after the breakup of the Jacksons.
Public image[edit source]
Michael Jackson claimed that from a young age he was physically and emotionally abused by his father, enduring incessant rehearsals, whippings and name-calling, but also admitting that his father's strict discipline played a large part in his success.[2] In one altercation—later recalled by Marlon Jackson—Joseph held Michael upside down by one leg and "pummeled him over and over again with his hand, hitting him on his back and buttocks."[3] Michael first spoke openly about his childhood abuse in a 1993 interview with Oprah Winfrey. He said that during his childhood he often cried from loneliness and would sometimes get sick or start to vomit upon seeing his father.[4][5][6][7] Michael recalled that Joseph sat in a chair with a belt in his hand as Michael and his siblings rehearsed and that "if you didn't do it the right way, he would tear you up, really get you."[8] Joseph admitted to whipping his children with switches and belts as punishment, but said he did not do so at random, and claimed never to have used any hard object as he felt was implied by the word "beating." [9] Despite the much-publicized abuse, Michael honored his father with an annual "Joseph Jackson Day" at Neverland Ranch[10] and ultimately forgave him, noting that Joseph's deep-South upbringing during the Great Depression and the Jim Crow years and working-class adulthood hardened him emotionally and made him push his children to succeed as entertainers.[11]
In 2003, in an interview with Louis Theroux for a BBC TV documentary called Louis, Martin & Michael, Joseph admitted to using physical punishment on his children.[12] In the same documentary, Joseph took advantage of the opportunity to promote his record label's new artists, even though the intention was to talk about Michael in the interview.[13] In the same interview, Joe Jackson expressed an extreme dislike of gay people after Theroux asked if he'd like to see Michael settle down with a "partner".
Following Michael's death on June 25, 2009, Joseph attended the BET Awards on June 28. The event was hastily reorganized as a tribute to Michael following his sudden passing. Joseph appeared at the event, speaking to several reporters about Michael's death.[14] He struggled with CNN reporter Don Lemon's questions about his family, first appearing cheerful, then mournful, then asking a family spokesperson to read a prepared statement. After the statement was read, Joseph talked about his new hip-hop recording project. This exchange led to accusations of insensitivity from the press.[15] In a press conference two days later, Joseph said he had honestly answered a question about what he had been doing, and mentioned his recording project again before going on to praise Michael's life and work. Additionally, when speculation arose that a Norwegian friend of Michael, named Omer Bhatti, was Michael's son, Joseph accepted the claims, even though sources close to Bhatti had denied the claims.
Joseph Jackson was portrayed by Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs in the mini-series The Jacksons: An American Dream & by Frederic Tucker in the 2004 VH1 biopic Man in the Mirror: The Michael Jackson Story.
Children[edit source]

Portal icon The Jackson Family portal
Jackson has had ten children with his wife Katherine Scruse.
Maureen Reillette "Rebbie" Jackson (born May 29, 1950)
Sigmund Esco "Jackie" Jackson (born May 4, 1951)
Toriano Adaryll "Tito" Jackson (born October 15, 1953)
Jermaine La Jaune Jackson (born December 11, 1954)
La Toya Yvonne Jackson (born May 29, 1956)
Brandon Jackson (March 12, 1957, died at birth)
Marlon David Jackson (born March 12, 1957)
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009)
Steven Randall "Randy" Jackson (born October 29, 1961)
Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966)

 Jackson has a daughter born in 1974 named Joh'Vonnie Jackson that was produced while in a 25 year long affair with a woman named Cheryl Terrell.[16]
References[edit source]
1.^ a b c "Joe turns 80". Chicago Defender. 2008.
2.^ "Michael Jackson's Secret Childhood". VH1. Retrieved June 20, 2008.
3.^ Taraborrelli, pp. 20–22
4.^ Campbell (1995), pp. 14–16
5.^ Lewis, pp. 165–168
6.^ George, pp. 45–46
7.^ Taraborrelli, p. 620
8.^ Taraborrelli, p. 602
9.^ "Singer Jackson whipped by father". BBC News. November 13, 2003. Retrieved May 6, 2010.
10.^ Michael Jackson's Private Home Movies
11.^ Jackson, Michael. "Heal the Kids." Speech at the Oxford Union, March 2001.
12.^ BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Music | Singer Jackson whipped by father
13.^ Video of the interview, 24:00 onwards
14.^ Premsrirut, Rutt (2009-07-01). "In Defense of Joe Jackson". ABCNews.com (ABC News). Retrieved 2009-07-01.
15.^ Staff writer (2009-06-30). "Joe Jackson's behavior draws criticism". UPI.com (United Press International). Retrieved 2009-06-30.
16.^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/michael-jackson/6185704/Michael-Jacksons-secret-sister-JohVonnie-Jackson-says-she-was-rejected.html
External links[edit source]

Portal icon The Jackson Family portal
Official website for Joseph Jackson
Profile at German branch of Random House
BBC Interview 2003

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Parents
Joe Jackson: 1928·
 Katherine Jackson: 1930
 

Children
Maureen Reillette (Rebbie): 1950·
 Sigmund Esco (Jackie): 1951·
 Toriano Adaryll (Tito): 1953·
 Jermaine La Jaune: 1954·
 La Toya Yvonne: 1956·
 Marlon David: 1957·
 Michael Joseph: 1958–2009·
 Steven Randall (Randy): 1961·
 Janet Damita Jo: 1966
 

Musical groups
The Jackson 5/The Jacksons·
 3T
 

Television
The Jacksons·
 The Jacksons: An American Dream·
 The Jackson Family Honors·
 The Jacksons: A Family Dynasty
 

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Death of Michael Jackson

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Death of Michael Jackson
Jackson's star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame, showing flowers for fans to express grief.
Jackson's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, surrounded by barriers and covered with flowers, became a focal point for fans to express grief.

Location
Holmby Hills, Los Angeles, California, United States
Date
June 25, 2009
Result
Personal physician convicted of involuntary manslaughter
On June 25, 2009, Michael Jackson died of acute propofol and benzodiazepine intoxication after suffering a cardiac arrest at his home on North Carolwood Drive in the Holmby Hills neighborhood in Los Angeles. His personal physician, Conrad Murray, said he had found Jackson in his room, not breathing and with a barely detectable pulse, and that he administered CPR on Jackson's bed to no avail. After a call was placed to 9-1-1 at 12:20 pm, Jackson was treated by paramedics at the scene and was later pronounced dead at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center.[1] On the eve of Jackson's 51st birthday, the Los Angeles County Coroner concluded that his death was a homicide.[2] Shortly before his death, Jackson had reportedly been administered propofol and three anti-anxiety benzodiazepines, lorazepam, and midazolam, in his home.[3] His personal physician was convicted in 2011 of involuntary manslaughter and is serving a four-year sentence in prison.[4]
Jackson's death triggered an outpouring of grief around the world, creating unprecedented surges of Internet traffic and causing sales of his music and that of the Jackson 5 to increase dramatically.[5] Jackson had intended to perform a series of concerts entitled This Is It to over one million people at London's O2 Arena between July 13, 2009 and March 6, 2010.[6] A public memorial service for Jackson was held on July 7, 2009 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, where he had rehearsed for the London concerts the night before his death. The service was broadcast live around the world, attracting a global audience of up to one billion people.[7] In March 2010, Sony Music Entertainment signed a US$250 million deal with Jackson's estate to retain distribution rights to his recordings until 2017, and to release seven posthumous albums over the decade following his death. Jackson's death is ranked No. 1 on VH1/VH1 Classic's list of 100 Most Shocking Moments in Music.[8]

Contents
  [hide] 1 Circumstances
2 Investigation 2.1 Autopsies
2.2 Forensic anesthesiologist's report
2.3 Law enforcement agencies
2.4 Drug-use allegations 2.4.1 Propofol
2.5 Medical professionals 2.5.1 Personal physician

3 Health
4 Family and legal affairs 4.1 Family reaction
4.2 Estate
5 Public reaction 5.1 Media and Internet coverage
5.2 Grief
5.3 Tributes
5.4 Record sales
6 Services 6.1 Memorial
6.2 Burial
7 References
8 Further reading

Circumstances[edit source]

Two white multi floored squared buildings with blue colored windows. There is a street and clear sky surrounding the buildings.

 Jackson's body arrived at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center on June 25, 2009 at 1:14 p.m. local time.
Jackson arrived for rehearsal at Staples Center around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June 24, according to Ed Alonzo, a magician who was there. The singer jokingly complained of laryngitis and did not rehearse until 9 p.m. "He looked great and had great energy,"[9] Alonzo added. The rehearsal went past midnight.[9] The next morning Jackson did not come out of his bedroom.[10] According to the attorney of Conrad Murray, Jackson's personal physician, Murray entered the room in the afternoon and found Jackson in bed and not breathing. Jackson had a weak pulse, and his body was still warm.[11] Murray tried to revive Jackson for five to ten minutes, at which point he realized he needed to call for help. Murray stated that he was hindered because there was no landline in the house. Murray also stated that he could not use his cell phone to call 911 because he did not know the exact address. Murray stated that he also phoned security, but did not get an answer. Finally, Murray ran downstairs, yelled for help, and told a chef to bring security up to the room.[12] By the time security called 911, Murray's lawyer stated that at least 30 minutes had passed.[12]
Statements described Murray as using a non-standard CPR technique on Jackson. During the tape of the emergency call, released on June 26 one day after Jackson's death, the doctor was described as administering CPR on a bed, not on a hard surface such as a floor, which would be standard practice.[13][14] The doctor's attorney said that Murray placed one hand underneath Jackson and used the other hand for chest compression, where the standard practice is to use both hands for compression.[10][15] A Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) spokesperson said the 911 call came in at 12:21:04 p.m. PST (19:21:04 UTC). Paramedics reached Jackson at 12:26 p.m. and found that he was not breathing.[16][17]
Paramedics performed CPR for 42 minutes at the house.[18] Murray's attorney stated that Jackson had a pulse when he was taken out of the house and put in the ambulance.[10] An LAFD official gave a different account, stating that paramedics found Jackson in "full cardiac arrest", and that they did not observe a change in Jackson's status on the route to the hospital.[19] LAFD transported Jackson to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center.[16] The ambulance arrived at the hospital at approximately 1:14 p.m. A team of medical personnel attempted to resuscitate Jackson for more than one hour. They were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at 2:26 p.m at the age of 50.[20][21][22]
Investigation[edit source]
Autopsies[edit source]
Jackson's body was flown by helicopter to the Los Angeles Coroner's offices in Lincoln Heights, where on June 26 a three-hour autopsy was performed on behalf of the Los Angeles County Coroner by the chief medical examiner, Lakshmanan Sathyavagiswaran.[23] Jackson's family arranged for a second autopsy, a practice that could yield expedited—albeit limited—results.[24] After the preliminary autopsy was completed, Craig Harvey, chief investigator for the coroner's office, said there was no evidence of trauma or foul play.[25] On August 28, the LA County Coroner made an official statement classifying Jackson's death as a homicide. The county coroner stated that Jackson died from the combination of drugs in his body, with the most significant drugs being the anesthetic propofol and the anxiolytic lorazepam. Less significant drugs found in Jackson's body were midazolam, diazepam, lidocaine and ephedrine. The coroner is keeping the complete toxicology report private, as requested by the police and district attorney.[2] On October 1, the BBC reported that the autopsy report revealed that Jackson was "very healthy"[26] for his age and that his heart was strong. The document stated that Jackson's most significant health problem was his chronically inflamed lungs, but this did not contribute to his death. His other major organs were normal and he had no atherosclerosis except for some slight plaque accumulation in his leg arteries.[27][28] The autopsy stated that he weighed 136 pounds (62 kg) with a height of 5'9" (175 cm), which equates to a BMI of 20.1.[29] Fox News said that this confirmed rumors that Jackson was emaciated,[30] while the Associated Press stated that his weight was in the acceptable range.[28] The autopsy also revealed that Jackson's arms were covered with punctures and his face and neck were scarred.[31] He was balding and had worn a wig for the last decade of his life. A tattooed hairline was found on his scalp.[27]
Forensic anesthesiologist's report[edit source]
Based on toxicology findings performed on samples taken at the time of autopsy, the cause of Michael Jackson’s death was determined to be acute propofol intoxication with a contributory benzodiazepine effect. The manner of death was determined by the coroner to be homicide. At the center of this case are several anesthetic medications. Insight into the toxicology, review the autopsy results, and summary of the findings are provided from a forensic anesthesiologist's point of view.[32]
Law enforcement agencies[edit source]
Although they did not immediately announce that they suspected foul play, by the day after Jackson's death the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) began to investigate the unusual and high-profile case.[33] By August 28, the LAPD had announced that the case would be referred to prosecutors who might file criminal charges.[2] Because the LAPD did not secure Jackson's home, and allowed the Jackson family access to it too, before returning to remove certain items, the department raised concerns by some observers that the chain of custody had been broken.[34][35] The police maintained that they had followed protocol.[35] On July 1, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) joined the LAPD in the investigation. Having the authority to investigate issues otherwise protected by doctor-patient confidentiality, the DEA could legally follow the entirety of what appeared to be the complex trail of prescription drugs supplied to Jackson.[34] California Attorney General Jerry Brown announced that his office was helping the LAPD and DEA to create a statewide database of all medical doctors and prescriptions filled.[36]
The LAPD subpoenaed medical records from doctors who had treated Jackson. On July 9, William Bratton, then the Los Angeles Chief of Police, indicated that investigators were focusing on the possibility of homicide or accidental overdose, but had to wait for the full toxicology reports from the coroner.[37] The Los Angeles Times quoted a senior law enforcement source as saying authorities may not pursue charges even if the coroner declares the case a homicide, because Jackson's well-documented drug abuse would make any prosecution difficult. Nonetheless, the source said prosecutors had not ruled out more serious charges "all the way up to involuntary manslaughter" if it were determined that Jackson's death was indeed caused by the drug propofol.[38]
Drug-use allegations[edit source]
The website TMZ wrote that Jackson used a number of aliases to secure prescription drugs, including Omar Arnold and Jack London, and the names of one of his bodyguards and an office manager. One doctor would allegedly call the pharmacy to say that Jackson was coming to get pethidine, and the pharmacy would fill the prescription with the patient's name blank.[citation needed] Jackson was said to have used propofol, as well as alprazolam (an antianxiety agent), and sertraline (an antidepressant).[39] Other drugs named in connection with him included omeprazole, hydrocodone, paroxetine, carisoprodol, and hydromorphone.[40] After his death, police found several drugs in his home, including propofol. Some of these drugs had labels made out to Jackson's pseudonyms, while others were unlabeled.[41][42] A 2004 police document prepared for the 2005 People v. Jackson child abuse trial alleged that Jackson was taking up to 40 alprazolam pills a night.[37] Alprazolam was not found in his bloodstream at his time of death.[3] Dr. A.J. Farshchian, Michael Jackson's friend and confidante, has claimed that Jackson was scared of drugs.[43]
Deepak Chopra, an internist, endocrinologist, and speaker about mind–body intervention who was a friend of Jackson's for 20 years, expressed concern that, despite presumably having access to a large arsenal of drugs, Jackson appears to have been given no naloxone, a drug used to counteract the effects of an opioid overdose.[44] Chopra also criticized what he saw as "enabling" by some Hollywood doctors: "This cult of drug-pushing doctors, with their co-dependent relationships with addicted celebrities, must be stopped. Let's hope that Michael's unnecessary death is the call for action."[44]
Eugene Aksenoff, a Tokyo-based physician who had treated Michael Jackson and his children on a few occasions, expressed concern about Jackson's use of and interest in various drugs. Aksenoff told The Japan Times that Jackson asked for stimulants so that he could get through some demanding performances. Aksenoff said he refused to prescribe them. He recalled that the singer suffered chronic fatigue, fever, insomnia and other symptoms and took a large amount of drugs. He suspected one of the major factors causing Jackson these symptoms was excessive use of steroids or other skin-whitening medications.[45] According to the toxicological tests effectuated on Jackson’s body, no addiction had been reported, and none of the experts called to testify at Murray’s trial have identified the singer as a drug addict.[3]People magazine reported that the Jackson family tried to stage an intervention in early 2007, when Michael was living in Las Vegas, a fact Janet Jackson later confirmed.[46] Janet Jackson and some of her brothers allegedly traveled to his home, but were turned away by security guards who were ordered not to let them in. He was also rumored to have refused calls from his mother. "If you tried to deal with him," one source told CNN, "he would shut you out. You just wouldn't hear from him for long periods." The family denied that they had tried to intervene.[47]
Propofol[edit source]

An ampoule of propofol.

 An ampoule of propofol
Of all the drugs found in Jackson's home, the one that most concerned investigators was propofol (Diprivan), a powerful anesthetic administered intravenously in hospitals to induce anesthesia in preparation for surgery.[48] Nicknamed "milk of amnesia" because of its opaque, milk-like appearance (and a play on words of "milk of magnesia"), the drug has been associated with cardiac arrest,[48] but it still may be increasingly used off-label for anxiolytic and other medically unsubstantiated purposes.[42] Several propofol bottles—some empty, some full—were found in Jackson's home.[42]
On June 30, Cherilyn Lee, a nurse who had worked as Jackson's nutritionist, said that he had asked her in May to provide propofol to help him sleep, but she refused. He told her he had been given the drug before for persistent insomnia, and that a doctor had said it was safe. Lee said she received a telephone call from an aide to Jackson on June 21 to say that Jackson was ill, although she no longer worked for him. She reported overhearing Jackson complain that one side of his body was hot, the other side cold. She advised the aide to send Jackson to a hospital.[49]
Arnold Klein told CNN that Jackson used an anesthesiologist to administer propofol to help him sleep while he was on tour in Germany. CNN said the anesthesiologist would "take him down" at night and "bring him back up" in the morning during the HIStory tour of 1996 to 1997.[47]
On August 24, a search warrant affidavit sworn by a Los Angeles detective was made public.[50] The affidavit indicated that authorities were considering a potential manslaughter charge. According to Affidavit [51] results that Murray claimed that.
Medical professionals[edit source]
The Los Angeles Times wrote that the DEA was focusing on at least five doctors who prescribed drugs to Jackson, trying to determine whether they had had a "face to face" relationship with him, and whether they had made legally required diagnoses.[42] Fox News Channel published a list of nine doctors whom they said were under investigation.[52] The Sunday Times wrote that the police wanted to question 30 doctors, nurses, and pharmacists, including Arnold Klein.[53] Klein said that he occasionally had given Jackson pethidine to sedate him, but had administered nothing stronger, and that he had turned his records over to the medical examiner.[54]
Personal physician[edit source]
Main article: Trial of Conrad Murray

A one-story tan colored building. Bushes, trees, a sidewalk and a sky with multiple clouds surround the building.

 Murray practiced out of the Armstrong Clinic in Houston. The clinic was raided during an investigation of Murray in July 2009.
Cardiologist Conrad Murray joined Jackson's camp in May 2009 as part of Jackson's agreement with AEG Live, the promoter of his London concerts. Murray first met Jackson in Las Vegas when the doctor treated one of the singer’s children. AEG Live said the singer insisted the company hire Murray to accompany him to England.[55] During Murray’s trial emerged that AEG employed the doctor and that Jackson didn’t sign the contract for the above-cited employment either.[56]
Murray said through his attorney that he did not prescribe or administer pethidine or oxycodone to Jackson, but did not say what, if anything, he did prescribe or administer.[48] Los Angeles police said the doctor spoke to officers immediately after Jackson's death, and during an extensive interview two days later. They stressed that they found "no red flag" and did not suspect foul play.[13] On June 26, police towed away a car used by Murray, stating that it might contain medication or other evidence. The police released the car five days later.[34]
Politician and minister Jesse Jackson, a friend of Michael Jackson's family, said that the family was concerned about Murray's role. "They have good reason to be [...] he left the scene."[57] Over the next few weeks, law enforcement grew increasingly concerned about the doctor, and on July 22 detectives searched Murray's medical office and storage unit in Houston, removing items such as a computer and two hard drives, contact lists and a hospital suspension notice.[58] On the 27th, an anonymous source reported that Murray had administered propofol within 24 hours of Jackson's death.[59] Murray's lawyers refused to comment on what they called "rumors, innuendo or unnamed sources."[60] The following day, the ABC News program Nightline reported that investigators had searched Murray's home and office in Las Vegas, and that Murray had become the primary focus of the investigation.[61] On August 11, a Las Vegas pharmacy was searched by investigators looking for evidence regarding Murray, according to an anonymous police source cited by The New York Times.[62] Murray's lawyer advised patience until the toxicology results arrived, noting that "things tend to shake out when all the facts are made known".[61] On February 8, 2010, Murray was charged with involuntary manslaughter by prosecutors in Los Angeles. Murray pleaded not guilty and was released after posting $75,000 (USD) bail.[63] Shortly after, the California Medical Board issued an order preventing Murray from administering heavy sedatives.[64]
On January 11, 2011, the judge from Murray's preliminary hearing determined that Murray should stand trial for involuntary manslaughter in the Jackson case. The judge also suspended Murray's license to practice medicine in California.[65] The trial was originally to begin on March 24, but a delayed opening rescheduled it for May 9. Finally, the trial was rescheduled to September 8, with no further delays, as reported by CNN.[66] The jury selection of Murray's trial began on September 8, 2011 in Los Angeles. The trial began on September 27, 2011.[67] On November 7, 2011, Murray was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter[68] and he was held without bail to await sentencing.[69] On November 29, 2011, Murray received the maximum sentence of 4 years in prison.[70]
Health[edit source]

A white piece of paper with personal information about the death of a person. The paper's writing is all in black and has multiple sections blacked-out.

 Michael Jackson's initial death certificate, issued pending toxicology reports...
Another white piece of paper, with black writing and multiple sections blacked out, amending the prior form shown

 ... and the amendment form issued by the coroner, after toxicology reports became available. Note the change of cause from "deferred" to "acute propofol intoxication" and the ruling of "Homicide" added.
Further information: Michael Jackson's health and appearance
Stacy Brown, a biographer, said Jackson had become "very frail, totally, totally underweight," and that his family had been worried about him. Another biographer, J. Randy Taraborrelli, who became friends with Jackson in the 1970s, said Jackson had suffered from an addiction to painkillers which went on and off for decades.[25] Arnold Klein, Jackson's dermatologist, confirmed that Jackson misused prescription drugs, and that Klein had diagnosed Jackson with vitiligo and lupus. Yet, Klein said, when he saw Jackson at his office three days before his death, the singer "was in very good physical condition. He was dancing for my patients. He was very mentally aware when we saw him and he was in a very good mood."[54] In none of multiple hospitalizations in latest decades, did medics find drugs in Jackson's system.[71][72]
Family and legal affairs[edit source]
Further information: Jackson family and The Jackson 5
Jackson is survived by his three children, Prince Michael Joseph Jackson (b. 1997); Paris-Michael Katherine Jackson (b. 1998), born during his marriage to his second wife, Debbie Rowe; and Prince Michael Jackson II, known as "Blanket", born in 2002 to a surrogate mother. He is also survived by his brothers, Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Randy; sisters Rebbie, La Toya, and Janet; and parents Joseph and Katherine. Katherine was granted temporary guardianship of Michael's three children on June 29.[73]
Family reaction[edit source]
The Jackson family released a collective statement following the death:

Our beloved son, brother and father of three children has gone so unexpectedly, in such a tragic way and much too soon. It leaves us, his family, speechless and devastated to a point, where communication with the outside world seems almost impossible at times.[74]
La Toya indicated that the family would file a lawsuit against anyone they believed responsible for her brother's death, as well as push for criminal charges.[75] In 2009, she stated that Jackson might have been administered an ultimately lethal dose of drugs by "a shadowy entourage" of handlers[75] and, in 2010, said that she believed her brother "was murdered for his music catalogue."[76] Shortly after Jackson's death, the family raised questions about the role of AEG Live, the This Is It concert promoter, in the last few weeks of his life.[57] Joseph has since filed a complaint with the California Medical Board alleging that AEG Live was illegally practicing medicine by demanding that Murray get Jackson off various medications. The complaint also alleges that AEG Live failed to provide the resuscitation equipment and nurse which Murray had requested. AEG spokesman Michael Roth declined to comment on the complaint.[77]
After Murray pleaded not guilty to the manslaughter charge, several members of the Jackson family said they felt he deserved a more severe charge.[78] On June 25, 2010, Joseph filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Murray. The lawsuit alleges that Murray repeatedly lied to cover up his use of propofol, did not keep sufficient medical records and was negligent in his use of medications on Jackson. Murray's civil attorney, Charles Peckham, denied that Murray gave Jackson anything life-threatening.[79] On August 15, 2012, Joseph dropped his wrongful death lawsuit against Murray.[80][81]
On September 15, 2010, Panish Shea & Boyle LLP also filed a wrongful death lawsuit on behalf of Michael Jackson’s three children and his mother against the Anschutz Entertainment Group, Inc. (AEG) and its subsidiaries and principals (including Randy Phillips, Kenny Ortega, Paul Gongaware and Thimothy Leiweke).[82] The suit alleges that AEG put their desire for profits from the This Is It concerts over the health and safety of Michael Jackson, ultimately causing his death". Roth declined to comment on the lawsuit, saying that AEG not seen it.[83]
On November 7, 2011, Michael Jackson's family arrived at the courthouse in Los Angeles shortly after the jury announced they reached their verdict: Guilty. Michael's father Joe Jackson replied to reporters, only saying, "Justice." LaToya Jackson tweeted that she was shaking uncontrollably when she heard the verdict, and continued to tweet her emotions throughout the day.[84]
Estate[edit source]
Further information: Value of Sony/ATV Music Publishing
Jackson's last will was filed by attorney John Branca at the Los Angeles County courthouse on July 1, 2009. Signed July 7, 2002, it names Branca and accountant John McClain as executors; they were confirmed as such by a Los Angeles judge on July 6, 2009.[85] All assets are given to the (pre-existing) Michael Jackson Family Trust (amended March 22, 2002),[86] the details of which have not been made public. The Associated Press reports that, in 2007, Jackson had a net worth of $236.6 million: $567.6 million in assets, which included Neverland Ranch and his 50% share of Sony/ATV Music Publishing' catalogue, and debts of $331 million.[87] The guardianship of his three children is given to his mother, Katherine, or if she is unable or unwilling, to singer Diana Ross.[88] The will states that Jackson's former wife Debbie Rowe was omitted intentionally.[89] Jackson's will allocates 20% of his fortune as well as 20% of money made after death to unspecified charities.[90]
Media reports suggested that settlement of Jackson's estate could last many years.[91] The value of Sony/ATV Music Publishing is estimated by Ryan Schinman, chief of Platinum Rye, to be US$1.5 billion. Shinman's estimate makes Jackson's share of Sony/ATV worth US$750 million, from which Jackson would have had an annual income of US$80 million. Sony Corporation has not commented on whether it intends to buy Jackson's share of Sony/ATV from the Jackson estate. Jackson's creditors could force a distressed sale, which would act in Sony's favor since it would lower the sale price, but only if the trust set up by Jackson for his stake in Sony/ATV is revocable. A distressed sale would lower the value of Jackson's estate, and thus might not raise enough to cover the debts owed by the estate.[92]
Public reaction[edit source]
Media and Internet coverage[edit source]



 Wikipedia spikes at 15:00 hrs in Los Angeles, June 25.
The first reports that Jackson had suffered a cardiac arrest, then that he had died, came from TMZ.com, a Los Angeles-based celebrity news website. Doctors at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center pronounced Jackson dead at 2:26 pm, and 18 minutes later at 2:44 pm. TMZ published: "Michael Jackson passed away today at the age of 50."[17] The Los Angeles Times website confirmed the report at 2:51 pm PDT (5:51 pm EDT).[93] The news spread quickly online, causing websites to slow down and crash from user overload. Both TMZ and the Los Angeles Times suffered outages.[93] Google initially believed that the input from millions of people searching for "Michael Jackson" meant that the search engine was under attack. Twitter reported a crash, as did Wikipedia at 3:15 pm.[94] The Wikimedia Foundation reported nearly a million visitors to Jackson's biography within one hour, probably the most visitors in a one-hour period to any article in Wikipedia's history.[95] AOL Instant Messenger went down for 40 minutes. AOL called it a "seminal moment in Internet history", adding, "We've never seen anything like it in terms of scope or depth."[96]
Around 15% of Twitter posts—or 5,000 tweets per minute—reportedly mentioned Jackson after the news broke,[97][98] compared to the 5% recalled as having mentioned the Iranian elections or the flu pandemic that had made headlines earlier in the year.[98] Overall, web traffic ranged from 11% to at least 20% higher than normal.[97][99] MTV and Black Entertainment Television (BET) aired marathons of Jackson's music videos.[100] Jackson specials aired on multiple television stations around the world. The British soap opera EastEnders added a last-minute scene, in which one character discussed the news with another, to the June 26 episode.[101] Whilst all British newspapers printed pictures of Jackson in his youth or in his prime, The Sun (for the day after his death) was the only paper to show Jackson from 2009 at his frailest, and keeping to their regular promotion of 'Wacko Jacko.' The next day The Sun fell into course with the rest of the newspapers and Jackson was the topic of every front-page headline in The Sun for about two weeks following his death.[102] During the same period, the three major U.S. networks' evening newscasts—ABC's World News, CBS Evening News, and NBC Nightly News—devoted 34 percent of their broadcast time to him.[103] Magazines including TIME published commemorative editions.[104] A scene that had featured Jackson's sister La Toya was cut from the film Brüno out of respect toward Jackson's family.[105]
According to an analysis released by the Global Language Monitor, "72 hours after his death, Jackson jumped to the No. 9 spot for the global print and electronic media. For Internet, blogs and social media, Jackson jumped to the No. 2, only trailing the election of Barack Obama to the presidency of the United States. The results showed the growing disparity between the mainstream global media, and what is playing out for news on the Internet, and beyond".[106] Paul JJ Payack, president and chief word analyst of GLM said, "the death of Michael Jackson has resulted in a global media event of the first order", and added, "the fact that he has broken into the top media of the 21st century is a testament to the global impact of the man and his music." Commentators around the globe made connections between Jackson's death and the problems they perceived with everything from the racial dichotomy that Jackson sang about, to the "profoundly tragic figure of Michael Jackson"[107]—from American capitalism[108] and globalization, to the fall of the music industry in the 1980s. "Commentators around the world have absolutely flipped", wrote Patrik Etschmayer of Switzerland's Nachrichten newspaper.[109] Le Figaro columnist Yann Moix said that although Jackson, like his iconic Moonwalk, lived life in reverse, the world at his death shed "identical and universal tears".[110]
Statistics published by the Pew Research Center suggested that two out of three Americans believed the coverage of Jackson's death was excessive, while 3% felt it was insufficient.[111] In the UK, the BBC received over 700 complaints from viewers who thought the death dominated the news.[112] On June 29, American conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh said the coverage was "a horrible disgrace" and lent his support to activist-ministers Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, who were fighting to stem the press's speculation about what caused the death.[113] Other conservatives, including commentator Bill O'Reilly[114] and Congressman Peter T. King,[115] also disapproved of the media attention Jackson's death received. Meanwhile, Hugo Chávez, the President of Venezuela, called the pop star's death "lamentable news",[116] but criticized CNN for giving this news more coverage than they gave a coup d'état taking place in Honduras.[108][116]
In August 2009, there were reports that Michael Jackson's family paid social media marketing company uSocial.net to increase the numbers of followers on Jackson's Twitter profile.[117] According to the New York Daily News, uSocial was contracted to deliver 25,000 followers to the account.[118] It was not specified whether the service was rendered before or after his death.
Grief[edit source]

The floor on an area on the ground is covered with flowers, cards and balloons. The area is closed off with metal barricades.

 Jackson's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame became a focal point for public grief.
Jackson's death triggered a global outpouring of grief. The circumstances and timing of his death were compared to those of Elvis Presley and John Lennon. Fans gathered outside the UCLA Medical Center, Neverland Ranch, his Holmby Hills home, the Hayvenhurst Jackson family home in Encino, the Apollo Theater in New York, and at Hitsville U.S.A., the old Motown headquarters in Detroit where Jackson's career began, now the Motown Museum. Streets around the hospital were blocked off, and across America people left offices and factories to watch the breaking news on television.[119] A small crowd, including the city's mayor, gathered outside his childhood home in Gary, where the flag on city hall was flown at half staff in his honor.[120] Fans in Hollywood initially gathered around the Walk of Fame star of another Michael Jackson—unable to access the singer's star, which had been temporarily covered by equipment in place for the Brüno film premiere.[121] Grieving fans and memorial tributes relocated from the talk radio host's star the next day.[122]
From Odessa[123] to Brussels,[124] and beyond, fans held their own memorial gatherings. U.S. President Barack Obama sent a letter of condolence to the Jackson family,[13] and the House of Representatives observed a moment of silence.[125] Obama later stated that Jackson "will go down in history as one of our greatest entertainers".[126] Former South African President Nelson Mandela issued a message through his foundation saying Jackson's loss would be felt worldwide.

A group of people standing outside a gated area. There are trees, bushes, and grassed areas. A majority of the area the people and in are shadowed by the trees by the gate.

 Fans visiting the makeshift memorial set up outside the Neverland Ranch entrance shortly after Jackson's death.
In Japan, where Jackson had somewhat of an idol status, the top government spokesman and other ministers expressed their condolences. Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Tsutomu Sato told reporters, "I feel sad as I had watched him since he was a member of Jackson Five." "Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada has credited him with building a generation with his music."[127] "'He was a superstar. It is an extremely tragic loss. But it is fantastic he was able to give so many dreams and so much hope to the people of the world,' said Health Minister Yoichi Masuzoe."[128]
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown issue a brief statement on Jackson's death: "This is very sad news for the millions of Michael Jackson fans in Britain and around the world." The Conservative opposition leader, David Cameron, said, "I know Michael Jackson's fans in Britain and around the world will be sad today. Despite the controversies, he was a legendary entertainer."[129]
Russian fans gathered outside the U.S. embassy in Moscow to mourn. One told Russia's Novosti newspaper, "This is so difficult! I'm hurt, very hurt! … For us, this is a very great loss. To us, he became a symbol of the spiritual world. It's hard to convey how great a loss this is."[130] France's Minister Culture, Frédéric Mitterrand, said, "We all have a Michael Jackson within."[131] Elizabeth Taylor, a long-time friend, said she can't imagine life without him.[132] Liza Minnelli told CBS, "When the autopsy comes, all hell's going to break loose, so thank God we're celebrating him now."[133] His sister La Toya claimed that his daughter said he was being overworked. La Toya is quoted as saying: "She said, 'No, you don't understand. They kept working him and Daddy didn't want that, but they worked him constantly'. I felt so bad."[134]
Tributes[edit source]

A group of males and a female performing on stage in front of a crowd of people. A male is shown blowing a kiss to the audience while wearing a white glove on his right hand and a white shirt with black pants and a jacket. An African American male wearing a white and dark grey shirt is shown in a crouched down position. The female is waving her hands in the air while wearing black fingerless gloves with a black shirt and pink shorts. There is also two other African American males in the background making hand gestures. Behind the people on the stage, there is a screen that shows a black and white photo.

 During the second leg of Madonna's Sticky & Sweet Tour in June 2009, she and a Jackson impersonator performed a medley of Jackson's songs while photos of Jackson's were shown on a screen behind them.
On June 30, 2009, U2 while performing their first show of the U2 360 tour in Barcelona dedicated the song Angel Of Harlem to Jackson. Bono sang verses from "Man In The Mirror" and "Don't Stop Till You Get Enough" at the end of the song. On July 10, 2009, six thousand fans attended a musical tribute in Jackson's hometown of Gary, Indiana. Local performers staged a medley of his songs, and mayor Rudy Clay unveiled a seven-foot memorial to him. Jesse Jackson addressed the crowd, stating, "This is where Michael learned to dance, where he learned to sing, where he learned to sacrifice."[135] The Game, was among the first performers to release a tribute song: his single "Better on the Other Side" came out the day after Jackson's death. Produced by DJ Khalil, this song featured vocals by Diddy, Chris Brown, Polow da Don, Mario Winans, Usher, and Boyz II Men.[136] A wide variety of other artists recorded musical tributes, such as 50 Cent,[137] LL Cool J, Robbie Williams, Akon and guitarist Buckethead (whose song entitled "The Homing Beacon" was inspired by Jackson's 3-D film, Captain EO.)[138]
On June 26, multiple artists, such as Pharrell Williams and Lily Allen, paid tribute to Jackson at the Glastonbury Festival.[139] Performances included Allen wearing a single white glove (which was a signature look for Jackson) for her set on the Pyramid Stage, while The Streets performed a cover of "Billie Jean".[139] Tributes to Jackson at the musical festival continued over the weekend from June 26 to June 28.[140] On July 5, 2009. Madonna performed a tribute to Jackson during the second leg of the Sticky & Sweet Tour.[141] While performing a medley of Jackson's songs, as a Jackson impersonator performed Jackson's signature moves, photos of Jackson were shown on screen behind them.[141][142] After the performance, Madonna told the crowd, "Let's give it up for one of the greatest artists the world has ever known", leading to applause from the crowd.[142]
Artists from the Metal and Hard Rock community also paid homage to Jackson. Metallica paid tribute to Jackson during its encore at the Sonisphere Festival. Honoring Michael Jackson during its July 4 headlining appearance at the event, the band played a portion of 'Beat It' before easing into a riotous cover of Queen's 'Stone Cold Crazy'.[143] Boston hard rockers Extreme performed a cover version of Jacksons's "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin" at the Midnight Rodeo in Amarillo, Texas.[144] Judas Priest bassist Ian Hill, spoke about Jackson in an interview for an internet blog: "He was an immense star, wasn't he? Let's face it. He's a worldwide superstar really and the grief that everybody's is showing, it doesn't surprise me at all. He was a very, very talented man." [145] Members of the legendary metal band Black Sabbath released official statements regarding the passing of Michael Jackson. Drummer Bill Ward: "For those in heartache today, I wish you all wellness in healing. A great entertainer has died. I think those who experienced and heard his heart are more enlightened people for it than before. I believe you're all most fortunate to have connected to Michael Jackson." [146] Bassist Geezer Butler: "Saddened and shocked to hear of the passing of Michael Jackson. He truly was, and always will be, a true icon. 'Thriller' was one of the greatest pop masterpieces of all time. A sad day for our world. R.I.P." [147] Legendary shock rocker, Alice Cooper released the following statement: "Michael Jackson was easily as influential as James Brown, and that's saying a lot. We had Vincent Price in common. I used him first on 'Welcome To My Nightmare' in 1975, and he later used him on 'Thriller'. Nobody moved like Michael, he was truly the King of Pop." [148] Van Halen guitarist Eddie Van Halen, who worked with Jackson during the recording of Thriller, stated: "I am really shocked; as I'm sure the world is, to hear the news. I had the pleasure of working with Michael on 'Beat It' back in '83 — one of my fondest memories in my career. Michael will be missed and may he rest in peace." [149] Queen guitarist Brian May stated in his official website: "Hard to know what to say — what to feel. I find myself wondering what might have happened on his tour... The number of dates in the U.K. that he had committed to was insane. I did have a feeling it was impossible, but I was so shocked to hear that he went so suddenly. Very sad. Of course, I still think of him as a boy — he used to come and see us (Queen) play when we were on tour in the States, and he and Freddie Mercury became close friends, close enough to record a couple of tracks together at Michael's house. Tracks which have never seen the light of day. Michael was the boy star of the Jackson Five, and always the most screamed at. I remember in their show, they tried very hard to make all the brothers equal in the presentation, but it was abundantly obvious that all most of the girl fans really wanted to see was little Michael. It was Michael who heard our track 'Another One Bites the Dust' when he came to see us on 'The Game' tour ... and told us we were mad if we didn't release it as a single." [149] Former Guns n' Roses guitarist Slash, who played guitar on Jackson's single "Give In to Me" stated: "Really sad news about Michael. He was a talent from on high." [149] Chris Cornell of Soundgarden and Audioslave performed a cover version of "Billie Jean" on June 27, 2009 at the Peace & Love festival in Borlänge, Sweden.[150] Steve Vai and Andy Timmons of Danger Danger performed an instrumental version of the "Beat It" at the Meinl Guitar Festival 2009 on June 27 in Gutenstetten, Germany.[151] Former Skid Row frontman, Sebastian Bach commented: "Another angel down... I am very sorry for my friend Jermaine's loss. I lived with Jermaine for three weeks last year (during the filming of the second season of CMT's hit series, 'Gone Country'), and we talked about his brother frequently. He said to me, 'When you cut up my brother, you're cutting up me'. I feel for the Jackson family, because I know all too well how they feel. Unfortunately." [152] Geoff Tate of Queensrÿche stated: "I grew up listening to Michael Jackson, watching him and his brothers perform on television. He made performing seem easy and inspired my generation with his music and his grace. He was one of a kind and will be missed but his music will live forever." [152] Legendary Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen recorded "Beat It" with ex-Judas Priest/Iced Earth frontman Tim "Ripper" Owens on vocals.[153] Guitarist Buckethead wrote a song entitled "The Homing Beacon", inspired by Jackson's 3-D film, Captain EO.)[138] Alternative metal band CKY performed "Beat It" for the duration of their "Carver City" Tour. In some instances, guitarist Chad I Ginsburg wore T-shirts depicting Jackson during the performances.[154] Poison drummer Rikki Rockett commented: "Michael Jackson — huge loss!!! The words genius and musical are used in the same sentence too often. Not in the case of Michael Jackson. His musical expression will never be topped and his inspiration will live forever. R.I.P."
Jackson's sister La Toya released her song, "Home", on July 28 as a charity single in her brother's honor. All proceeds are being donated to one of Michael's favorite charities.[155] BET's annual 2009 Awards Ceremony aired three days after Jackson's death, on June 28, 2009. It featured a tribute to the singer. Host Jamie Foxx said, "We want to celebrate this black man. He belongs to us and we shared him with everybody else." The ceremony featured performances of several of Jackson's songs, including pieces from his time with The Jackson Five and those from his solo career.[156] Joe Jackson and Al Sharpton were in the audience, and Janet Jackson spoke briefly on behalf of the family. The show was the most watched BET annual awards show in the awards shows history.[157] A few days after Jackson's death, there were news reports to the effect that AEG Live, the promoter for Jackson's This Is It concerts, was preparing a tribute concert for September 2009. The show would reportedly follow the style arranged for the This Is It concerts.[158][159] However, no details of any such concert have been announced.
The day after Jackson's death, the mayor of Rio de Janeiro announced that the city would erect a statue of the singer in the favela of Dona Marta. Jackson visited the community in 1996 and filmed a music video for "They Don't Care About Us" there. The mayor said that Jackson had helped make the community into "a model for social development."[160] Memorials were held all over the world, in places as diverse as Tokyo,[160] Bucharest[161] and Baku, Azerbaijan.[162] In Midyat, Turkey, even a Salat al-Janazah (Islamic funeral prayer) was performed, and traditional funeral helva was cooked and distributed.[163] The music video for "Do the Bartman", a Simpsons song co-written by Jackson, was broadcast ahead of an episode rerun of The Simpsons on June 28. It featured a title card paying tribute to Jackson.[164] The 1991 Simpsons episode that Jackson guest starred in under the name of John Jay Smith, "Stark Raving Dad", was broadcast on Fox on July 5.[165] The episode had been broadcast on the Dutch Comedy Central the day after his death, and was dedicated to Jackson's memory.[166] His 1978 film The Wiz (in which he co-starred alongside Diana Ross and Richard Pryor) was briefly re-released in a rare 35mm format and was shown at the Hollywood Theater in his honor. It was also re-released a week prior to the release of Michael Jackson's This Is It in select cities. Madonna opened the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards with a speech about Michael Jackson. Janet Jackson made an appearance at the VMAs to pay musical tribute to her late brother and honor his career.[167] He was honored with a posthumous lifetime achievement award during the 52nd Grammy Awards on January 31, 2010.[168] Jackson, who had an acting role in the 1978 film The Wiz, was featured in the 82nd annual Academy Awards ceremony's "In Memoriam" tribute.[169]
Record sales[edit source]
Jackson's record sales increased dramatically, eightyfold by June 29, according to HMV.[170] Bill Carr of Amazon said the website sold out of all Jackson and Jackson 5 CDs within minutes of the news breaking, and that demand surpassed that for Elvis Presley and John Lennon after their sudden deaths.[171] In Japan, six of his albums made SoundScan Japan's Top 200 Albums chart,[160] and in Poland, Thriller 25 topped the national album chart and was replaced by King of Pop the following week.[172]
In Australia, 15 of his albums occupied the ARIA top 100 as of July 5, four of them in the top ten, with three occupying the top three spots. He had 34 singles in the top 100 singles chart, including four in the top ten. Album sales were 62,015 for the previous week; singles tallied 107,821 units.[173] In the second week, album sales rose from the previous week and tallied 88,650 copies. On July 12, four albums were in the top 10 with three occupying the top three spots. In New Zealand, Thriller 25 topped the chart.[174] In Germany, King of Pop topped the album chart,[175] and from June 28 to July 4, nine of his albums occupied the Top 20 of CAPIF in Argentina.[176] In Billboard's European Top 100 Albums, he made history with eight of his albums in the top ten positions.[177] As of August 3, King of Pop has spent four weeks atop Billboard's European Top 100 Albums chart.[178] The Collection also spent two weeks atop the same chart.[179]
In the UK, on the Sunday following his death, his albums occupied 14 of the top 20 places on the Amazon.co.uk sales chart, with Off the Wall at the top. Number Ones reached the top of the UK Album Chart, and his studio albums occupied number two to number eight on the iTunes Music Store top albums. Six of his songs charted in the top 40: "Man in the Mirror" (11), "Thriller" (23), "Billie Jean" (25), "Smooth Criminal" (28)", "Beat It" (30), and "Earth Song" (38).[180] The following Sunday, 13 of Jackson's songs charted in the top 40, including "Man in the Mirror", which landed the number two spot.[181] He broke Ruby Murray's 1955 record of five songs in the top 30.[182] The Essential Michael Jackson topped the album chart, giving Jackson a second number one album in as many weeks. He had five of the top ten albums in the album chart.[183] In third week sales, The Essential Michael Jackson retained the number one position and Jackson held three other positions within the top five.[184] By August 3, Jackson had sold 2 million records and spent six consecutive weeks atop the album chart.[178][185] He retained the top spot on the album chart for a seventh consecutive week.[186]
In the U.S., Jackson broke three chart records on the first Billboard issue date that followed his death. The entire top nine positions on Billboard's Top Pop Catalog Albums featured titles related to him. By the third week it would be the entire top 12 positions.[187] Number Ones was the best-selling album of the week and topped the catalog chart with sales of 108,000, an increase of 2,340 percent. The Essential Michael Jackson (2) and Thriller (3) also sold over 100,000 units. The other titles on the chart are Off the Wall (4), Jackson Five's Ultimate Collection (5), Bad (6), Dangerous (7), HIStory: Past, Present and Future – Volume 1 (8) and Jackson's Ultimate Collection (9). Collectively, his solo albums sold 422,000 copies in the week following his death, 800,000 copies in the first full week, and 1.1 million copies in the following week of his memorial service.[187] He also broke a record on the Top Digital Albums chart, with six of the top 10 slots, including the entire top four. On the Hot Digital Songs chart he placed a record of 25 songs on the 75-position list. In the U.S., Jackson became the first artist to sell over one million downloads in a week, with 2.6 million sales.[188][189]
By August 5, Jackson had sold nearly 3.8 million albums and 7.6 million tracks in the U.S.. Number Ones was the best-selling album for six out of seven weeks that followed his death.[190][191] By year's end in 2009, Jackson had become the best selling artist of the year selling 8.2 million albums in the U.S.[192] He also became the first artist in history to have four of the top 20 best-selling albums in a single year in the U.S., nearly doubling the sales of his nearest competitor.[193][194] Jackson was also the third best selling digital artist of 2009 in the U.S., selling approximately 12.35 million units.[195] In the 12 months that followed his death Jackson sold nine million albums in the U.S., and 35 million albums worldwide.[196] His estate also generated revenues of one billion dollars.[197]
Services[edit source]
Memorial[edit source]

A white round building that has one glass front wall showing with a sign in red text that reads "Staples Center" in capital letters. In the background, there are multiple people waling in front of the building and a white parked car and a cloudy blue sky.

 An estimated one billion viewers saw coverage of the memorial held in the Staples Center, pictured here during the memorial service.
Main article: Michael Jackson memorial service
A private family service was held at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles, after a public memorial at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California on July 7, where Jackson had rehearsed on June 24, the day before he died. The memorial service was organized by Jackson's concert promoter, AEG Live,[198] who gave away 17,500 free tickets (even if AEG was initially out to sell them, but due to complaints had to desist[199] to fans worldwide through an online lottery that attracted over 1.2 million applicants in 24 hours,[200] and over a half-billion hits to the webpage.[201] The service was broadcast live around the world, and was believed to have been watched by up to 2.5 billion people.[7][202]
Jackson's solid-bronze casket (which reportedly cost twenty-five thousand dollars)[53] was placed in front of the stage. Numerous celebrity guests attended the services.[203] His brothers each wore a single, white, sparkling glove, while Stevie Wonder, Mariah Carey, Lionel Richie, Jermaine Jackson and others sang his songs. Jackson's 11-year-old daughter, Paris, broke down as she told the crowd, "Ever since I was born, Daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine ..."[204] Marlon Jackson said, "Maybe now, Michael, they will leave you alone."[205]
Burial[edit source]
According to reports, Jackson's burial was originally scheduled for August 29, 2009 (which would have been his 51st birthday).[206] His service and burial was held at Forest Lawn Cemetery of Glendale on September 3, 2009, 10 weeks to the day after his death.[207] The burial was attended by his family members, first wife Lisa Marie Presley as well as his old friends Macaulay Culkin, Chris Tucker, Quincy Jones, Eddie Murphy and Elizabeth Taylor, amongst others.[208] The service began with Jackson's three children placing a golden crown on his casket.[208]
Jackson's funeral cost one million dollars.[209][210] Cost for the funeral included; $590,000 for Jackson's crypt in Forest Lawn's Great Mausoleum, a vast granite and marble filled palazzo, guest invitations for $11,716.[209][210] The bill for security, including the fleet of luxury cars that delivered Jackson's children, parents and siblings to the ceremony, came to $30,000 and the florist's bill was $16,000, and the funeral planner for $15,000.[209] Howard Weitzman, a lawyer for the estate executors noted that Jackson's family decided on the details of the ceremony, but said a lavish funeral fit the life Jackson lived, commenting, "It was Michael Jackson. He was bigger than life when he was alive."[209][210]
Jackson's remains are interred in the Holly Terrace section in the Great Mausoleum. The mausoleum is a secure facility that is not accessible to the general public or to the media, except on an extremely limited basis. The unmarked crypt, which is partially visible at the tinted entrance of the Holly Terrace mausoleum, is covered in flowers fans leave, which are placed by security guards outside the crypt.[207] The family had considered burying Jackson at Neverland Ranch. However, some family members objected to the site, saying that the ranch had been tainted by the sexual abuse allegations.[207] Also, the owners of the ranch would have had to go through a permitting process with county and state government before establishing a cemetery at the site. In July 2010, security was increased at the mausoleum due to vandalism by fans leaving messages such as "Keep the dream alive" and "Miss you sweet angel" in permanent ink.[211]
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122.^ Behrens, Zach. Crowds Gather Around Michael Jackson's Star After Bruno Premiere, Hollywood LAist, June 26, 2009.
123.^ In Odessa honoured memory of Michael Jackson, UNIAN (June 29, 2009)
124.^ (Dutch) Hulde aan Michael Jackson in Brussel, Gazet van Antwerpen (July 7, 2009)
125.^ Gavin, Patrick. Congress pauses for Michael Jackson, The Politico, June 26, 2009.
126.^ Mark Murray (July 2, 2009). "Obama On Michael Jackson's Death". MSNBC. Retrieved March 9, 2010.
127.^ Big In Japan: Tokyo Mourns Jackson's Death, TIME, June 26, 2009
128.^ "Michael Jackson Had Loyal, Generous Fans in Japan". The Walt Disney Company. Associated Press. June 26, 2009. Retrieved March 9, 2010.
129.^ "Brown 'saddened' by Jackson de". BBC News. June 26, 2009. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
130.^ Yekaterina Blinova (June 28, 2009). "Russian Fans of Michael Jackson Still Devastated". WorldMeetsUs.com. Retrieved March 9, 2010.
131.^ Alexis Griffiths (June 27, 2009). "Jackson: The Tragic 'Genetically Modified' Icon of Globalization". WorldMeetsUs.com. Retrieved March 9, 2010.
132.^ Elizabeth Taylor: "I Loved Michael With All My Soul", US Magazine, June 26, 2009.
133.^ Gumbel, Andrew. Police focus on doctor who was with Michael Jackson as he died, The Guardian, June 27, 2009.
134.^ "Michael Jackson's daughter reveals death fears". The Daily Telegraph. UK: News Limited. October 2, 2009. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
135.^ Michael Jackson: thousands pay tribute at birthplace memorial, The Telegraph, retrieved on July 11, 2009
136.^ Gamble, Ronnie. The Game Gets Assist From Chris Brown, Diddy For Michael Jackson Tribute, BallerStatus, June 26, 2009. Retrieved July 1, 2009.
137.^ Reid, Shaheem. 50 Cent Pays Tribute To Michael Jackson, MTV, June 26, 2009
138.^ a b The Landing Beacon, Buckethead. Retrieved July 6, 2009.
139.^ a b "Glastonbury tributes for Jackson". BBC News. June 26, 2009. Retrieved March 13, 2010.
140.^ "Glastonbury's Emily Eavis announces Michael Jackson tribute plans". NNE. June 26, 2009. Retrieved March 13, 2010.
141.^ a b Jason Rodriquez (July 5, 2009). "Madonna Salutes Michael Jackson At London's O2 Arena". Viacom. Retrieved March 1, 2010.
142.^ a b Saad, Mardeen (July 5, 2009). "Madonna pays tribute to Michael Jackson in concert". Google News. Associated Press.
143.^ "Metallica's Michael Jackson Tribute at Germany's Sonisphere".
144.^ "Extreme pays tribute to Michael Jackson".
145.^ "Judas Priest bassist talks about Michael Jackson's death".
146.^ "Black Sabbath drummer comments on Michael Jackson's passing".
147.^ "Black Sabbath/Heaven & Hell bassist comments on Michael Jackson's passing".
148.^ "Alice Cooper, Chris Cornell, Fred Durst pay tribute to Michael Jackson".
149.^ a b c "Van Halen, Queen, Poison, Velvet Revolver members comment on Michael Jackson's passing".
150.^ "Chris Cornell pays tribute to Michael Jackson at Sweden's Peace & Love Festival".
151.^ "Steve Vay, Andy Timmons pay tribute to Michael Jackson".
152.^ a b "Sebastian Bach, Geoff Tate comment on Michael Jackson's passing".
153.^ "Yngwie Malmsteen covers Michael Jackson classic 'Beat It' on 'High Impact'".
154.^ "carveycitytour2009" (July 3, 2009). "CKY performs 'Beat It' during 'Carver City' Tour". CKY. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
155.^ "LaToya Song Re-Released as Michael Jackson Tribute". The Walt Disney Company. Associated Press. July 17, 2009. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
156.^ BET Awards to pay tribute to Jackson, CNN. Retrieved July 2, 2009.
157.^ "Ratings: Jackson Tribute Leads BET Awards to All-Time High, Disney Queens Rule, and More", seattlepi.com. Retrieved July 2, 2009.
158.^ Singh, Amar. Justin Timberlake 'cautious' about Michael Jackson tribute show, This Is London, June 30, 2009.
159.^ "Jackson's tour to become tribute concert". MSNBC. June 27, 2009. Retrieved July 3, 2009.
160.^ a b c Cobo, Leila. Michael Jackson Remains A Global Phenomenon, Billboard, July 2, 2009.
161.^ Nu te vom uita niciodata!, MTV Romania. Retrieved July 5, 2009.
162.^ Michael Jackson commemorated in Baku APA, Jun 29, 2009
163.^ "Midyat'a Michael Jackson anıtı yapılıyor (Michael Jackson memorial to be erected in Midyat)". January 21, 2012. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
164.^ Snierson, Dan (June 27, 2009). "Michael Jackson: 'The Simpsons' to re-air 'Do the Bartman' video in tribute on Sunday". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved June 28, 2009.
165.^ Snierson, Dan. Michael Jackson: 'The Simpsons' to re-air the pop star's 1991 episode, Entertainment Weekly, July 2, 2009.
166.^ Screenshot of a cached version of Comedy Central's TV Guide for June 26, 2009 (In Dutch)
167.^ Janet Jackson To Pay Tribute To Michael At The VMAs. Retrieved on Sep 8, 2009.
168.^ Singh, Anita (February 1, 2010). "Michael Jackson's children pay tribute to their father at Grammys". The Daily Telegraph (London). Retrieved Feb. 2, 2010.
169.^ "Farrah Fawcett, Bea Arthur Absent From Oscar ‘In Memoriam’ Montage". Access Hollywood. NBC Universal. March 8, 2010. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
170.^ "Michael Jackson tops album chart". BBC News. June 29, 2009. Retrieved April 11, 2011.
171.^ Metz, Rachel. June 28, 2009; Wood, Daniel B. Outpouring over Michael Jackson unlike anything since Princess Di, Christian Science Monitor, June 27, 2009; Catherine Boyle (July 1, 2009). "Michael Jackson’s post-death music sales outstrip Elvis and John Lennon". The Times (London). Retrieved March 9, 2010.
172.^ "Sprzedaż w okresie 29.06.2009–05.07.2009". OLiS. Retrieved March 9, 2010.
173.^ Cashmere, Paul. Michael Jackson Dominates Australian Chart, Undercover, July 5, 2009.
174.^ "Michael Jackson – Thriller 25 (album)". Charts.org.nz. Hung Medien. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
175.^ "Michael Jackson – King of Pop". media control. Retrieved Jul. 7, 2009.
176.^ CAPIF – Representando a la Industria Argentina de la Música
177.^ Sexton, Paul. Michael Jackson Scores Eight Of Top 10 Euro Albums, Billboard, July 16, 2009.
178.^ a b Paul Sexton (August 3, 2009). "Michael Jackson, Black Eyed Peas Control U.K. Charts". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
179.^ Paul Sexton (August 17, 2009). "Michael Jackson Continues U.K. Chart Run". Billborad. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
180.^ Singles chart for 04/07/2009, Chart Stats, June 29, 2009.
181.^ "Chart Stats – Michael Jackson – Man In The Mirror". chartstats.com. Retrieved August 2, 2009.
182.^ Singles chart for 06/07/2009, Yahoo UK music charts, July 6, 2009.
183.^ "Jackson maintains chart dominance". British Broadcasting Corporation. July 5, 2009. Retrieved July 5, 2009.
184.^ "Michael Jackson increases chart dominance". NME. UK. July 12, 2009. Retrieved July 12, 2009.
185.^ "Jackson still top of British album charts". Thomson Reuters. August 3, 2009. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
186.^ "Second chart-topper for Stryder". BBC Online. August 9, 2009. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
187.^ a b Keith Caulfield (July 14, 2009). "Fans Snap Up 1.1 Million Michael Jackson Albums In One Week". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
188.^ Caulfield, Keith. "Michael Jackson Breaks Billboard Charts Records", Billboard, June 30, 2009.
189.^ Sisario, Ben. In Death as in Life, Michael Jackson Sets Music Sales Records, The New York Times, July 2, 2009.
190.^ Simon Vozick-Levinson (August 12, 2009). "Sugarland, outsold by Michael Jackson, tops the albums chart". Entertainment Weekly. Time Warner Inc. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
191.^ Bill Werde (August 5, 2009). "Michael Jackson, Dave Grohl's Supergroup, Kristina Debarge". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
192.^ Swift Beats Boyle, Plus Michael Jackson, Beatles Rule 2009 Charts. Rolling Stone Magazine, January 7, 2010.
193.^ SMITH, Than (March 16, 2010). "Sony Places Big Bet on a Fallen 'King'". The Wall Street Journal (Dow Jones & Company, Inc). Retrieved March 16, 2010.
194.^ Caulfield, Keith. Taylor Swift Edges Susan Boyle For 2009's Top-Selling Album. Billboard, January 6, 2010.
195.^ "2009 U.S. Music Purchases up 2.1% over 2008; Music Sales Exceed 1.5 Billion for Second Consecutive Year". Business Wire. Berkshire Hathaway Company. Jan. 6, 2010. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
196.^ "Jackson sells 35 million albums since death". Today.msnbc.msn.com. June 27, 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-21.
197.^ Caulfield, Keith (June 21, 2010). "How Michael Jackson Made $1 Billion Since His Death". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved June 21, 2010.
198.^ Parks, Tim (July 3, 2009). "AEG to release Jackson memorial tickets". Digital Spy.
199.^ "AEG Live Backtracks Over Michael Jackson Funeral Tickets, Offers Giveawayerrors". cdn.singersroom.com. July 3, 2009. Retrieved May 6, 2013.
200.^ Allen, Nick (July 6, 2009). "Thirteen applications per second for Michaeldate=July 6, 2009". The Daily Telegraph (London).
201.^ "Website for Jackson tickets gets 500 million hits in first hour". Los Angeles Times. July 3, 2009. Retrieved July 28, 2009.
202.^ MSN India
203.^ Sarah Netter, Emily Friedman (July 6, 2009). "Michael Jackson to be Buried in Famed Hollywood Cemetery". The Walt Disney Company. Retrieved February 26, 2010.
204.^ Liveblogging Michael Jackson's funeral and memorial service, The Guardian, July 7, 2009.
205.^ Fans and family remember Jackson, BBC News, July 7, 2009.
206.^ Daniel Kreps (August 18, 2009). "Michael Jackson Burial Scheduled For August at Forest Lawn". Rolling Stone. Wenner Media LLC. Retrieved February 26, 2010.
207.^ a b c Alexander, Bryan. Picking Jackson's Burial Place: Security Was Key, Time, September 3, 2009
208.^ a b Gil Kaufman (September 4, 2009). "Michael Jackson's Kids Lay Golden Crown On His Casket At Funeral". Viacom. Retrieved February 26, 2010.
209.^ a b c d Harriet Ryan. Victoria Kim (November 11, 2009). "Michael Jackson's funeral cost more than $1 million, court documents show". The Los Angeles Times (Tribune Company). Retrieved February 26, 2010.
210.^ a b c Daniel Kreps (November 11, 2009). "Michael Jackson Funeral Cost $1 Million; Objections Against Estate Executors Dropped". RollingStone.com. Wenner Media LLC. Retrieved February 26, 2010.
211.^ "Jackson Fans Graffiti Tomb". National Ledger. July 14, 2010. Retrieved July 15, 2010.
Further reading[edit source]

Portal icon 2000s portal
Portal icon Death portal
Portal icon Greater Los Angeles portal
Portal icon Michael Jackson portal
 Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Michael Jackson
 Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Death of Michael Jackson
Jackson Tour Video—The Final Rehearsals, TMZ, July 2, 2009.
Barnes, Brooks. A Star Idolized and Haunted, Michael Jackson Dies at 50, The New York Times, June 25, 2009.
BBC News. Obituary: Michael Jackson, June 26, 2009.
Boucher, Geoff and Woo, Elaine. Michael Jackson's life was infused with fantasy and tragedy, Los Angeles Times, June 26, 2009.
Rayner, Ben. Michael Jackson, 50: Child star, thriller, sad sideshow, The Toronto Star, June 26, 2009.
Saperstein, Pat. Michael Jackson dies at 50, Variety, June 25, 2009.
Sullivan, Caroline. Michael Jackson, The Guardian, June 26, 2009.
The Smoking Gun. "Lethal Levels" Of Drug Killed Jackson, August 24, 2009, includes State of California search warrant and affidavit.
The Sydney Morning Herald. Michael Jackson obituary: a gifted, troubled king of pop, June 26, 2009.
The Times. Michael Jackson, June 26, 2009.
Walters, Dell. "Michael Slept Here", Washingtonian, August 1, 2009.
Wikipedia article traffic statistics – Michael Jackson – June 2009.

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2009 in American music
2009 in California
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Michael Jackson memorial service

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Michael Jackson memorial service

Held at the Staples Center, where Michael Jackson rehearsed on June 24 (the day before he died).

Participants
Rev. Lucious Smith, Smokey Robinson, Mariah Carey, Chris Moyles, Trey Lorenz, Queen Latifah, Lionel Richie, Stevie Wonder, Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, Jennifer Hudson, Berry Gordy, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rev. Al Sharpton, John Mayer, Brooke Shields, Jimmy Savile, Jermaine Jackson, Martin Luther King III, Bernice King, Sheila Jackson-Lee, Usher, Shaheen Jafargholi, Nick Griffin, Kenny Ortega, Judith Hill, Marlon Jackson, Janet Jackson, Paris Jackson, Orianthi Panagaris,
Location
Staples Center, Los Angeles, California, United States
Date
July 7, 2009
A public memorial service for Michael Jackson was held on July 7, 2009 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California twelve days after his death. The event was preceded by a private family service at Forest Lawn Memorial Park's Hall of Liberty in Hollywood Hills, and followed by a gathering in Beverly Hills for Jackson's family and close friends.
Jackson's closed, solid-bronze casket, plated with 14-karat gold and lined with blue velvet, which was not originally expected to be at the memorial service, arrived just before 10:00 a.m. local time, when it was placed in front of the stage. The memorial began a few minutes after 10:30 a.m. with music and a eulogy from Pastor Lucious Smith. The stage was filled with floral arrangements, with photographs and film of Jackson and the Jackson 5 projected onto screens at the back. Music and video montages traced his life from the beginning of his career to the end.[1]
Jackson's brothers, sitting in the front row, each wore a single white sequined glove in tribute of their late brother. Mariah Carey, Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie, Jennifer Hudson, Usher, Jermaine Jackson, and Shaheen Jafargholi sang Jackson's songs, and John Mayer played guitar. Berry Gordy, Brooke Shields, and Smokey Robinson gave eulogies, while Queen Latifah read "We Had Him", a poem written for the occasion by Maya Angelou. The Reverend Al Sharpton received a standing ovation when he told Jackson's children, "Wasn't nothing strange about your daddy. It was strange what your daddy had to deal with."[2]
Toward the end, the family gathered on stage to offer the final eulogies. Jackson's then-11-year-old daughter, Paris Katherine, tearfully told the crowd, "Ever since I was born, Daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine ... I just want to say I love him so much."[3] Additionally, an emotional Marlon Jackson said, "Maybe now, Michael, they will leave you alone."[4]

Contents
  [hide] 1 Background
2 Service 2.1 Video montage
2.2 Guest list
2.3 Casket
2.4 Live broadcast
2.5 Media coverage
2.6 Cost
3 External links
4 References

Background[edit source]
The memorial service was organized by Jackson's concert promoter, AEG Live, and AEG Ehrlich Ventures, LLC (Kenneth Ehrlich - Executive Producer),[5] who gave away 17,500 free tickets to fans worldwide through an online lottery that attracted over 1.2 million applicants in 24 hours,[6] and over a half-billion hits to the webpage.[7] An estimated 750,000[8] up to a million fans were expected to congregate outside Staples Center[9][10] but due to Los Angeles's $530 million budget crisis, city and police officials urged fans to stay home.[11] Street and highway exit around the Staples Center were sealed off,[11] and 3,000 officers, the largest security effort planned since the 1984 Olympics,[11] were on duty at a cost of $1.4 million to the city.[12] The motorcade for Jackson's casket was headed by two police motorcycle outriders, and the LA freeways were closed for the journey of approximately 11 miles (18 km) from Forest Lawn to the Staples Center.[13] The service was broadcast live around the world. The United States viewership was extremely high taking into consideration that the service was unusually held on a workday (Tuesday) and a host of people reported watching the service during work.
Service[edit source]
The service began with Smokey Robinson reading messages of condolences from Diana Ross and former South African President Nelson Mandela. A gospel choir sang Andrae Crouch's "Soon and Very Soon" as Jackson's casket entered (culminating around the line "you will see the King"), followed by statements from Pastor Lucious Smith. Mariah Carey and Trey Lorenz then sang "I'll Be There", a number one single for both The Jackson 5 and Carey and Lorenz. This was followed by a statement from Queen Latifah, who also read "We Had Him", a poem written by Maya Angelou for the occasion. Lionel Richie, Jackson's friend and his co-writer on "We Are the World", performed the song "Jesus Is Love" by The Commodores. In the eulogy of Berry Gordy, founder of Motown Records, he stated, "I feel the King of Pop is not big enough for him. I think he is simply the greatest entertainer that ever lived." The statement was met with the longest standing ovation of the night.[14][15][16]



 A crowd of spectators gathering outside the Staples Center during the memorial service.
A video montage of Michael Jackson's life followed. Stevie Wonder spoke, played a small portion of "I Can't Help It", a song from Off the Wall that Wonder co-wrote, then performed a version of his songs "Never Dreamed You'd Leave in Summer" and "They Won't Go When I Go". Next Kobe Bryant spoke about Jackson's humanitarian work, and Magic Johnson (who had appeared in the music video for "Remember the Time") recalled his memories of Jackson. Accompanied by a dancing chorus, Jennifer Hudson performed "Will You Be There" a song Jackson wrote and performed for the 1993 film Free Willy which is also from his Dangerous album, along with the dancers who would have been on stage with Jackson for his O2 concerts. John Mayer played guitar on a mainly instrumental version of "Human Nature" from Jackson's Thriller. Brooke Shields then spoke about the personal time she spent with Jackson, read excerpts from The Little Prince, and said that his favorite song was Charlie Chaplin's "Smile", which was then performed by Jermaine Jackson.
Martin Luther King, Jr.'s children, Martin III and Bernice, then stated that Michael Jackson was the best that he could be. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-Texas, Houston), representing the United States House of Representatives, emphasized that in the US, people are "innocent until proven guilty" (as the crowd cheered) then spoke about his "American story" plus his meetings with foreign diplomats, and that "Michael never stopped giving". She then went on to claim him as an American legend and world humanitarian (House Resolution 600[17]), closing her speech with a military salute as she said, "Michael Jackson, I salute you." Usher walked to the casket and then sang Larry Grossman and Buzz Kohan's "Gone Too Soon", which Jackson recorded as a tribute for Ryan White after his death; Usher choked with grief near the end of the song, but managed to finish. Following Usher, a clip from The Ed Sullivan Show in 1969 featuring the Jackson 5's rendition of The Miracles' "Who's Lovin' You" was shown. Following this, the song's composer and Miracles lead singer, Smokey Robinson, spoke about and made joking remarks about the Jackson 5 covering his song, and continued with a speech. Shaheen Jafargholi from Britain's Got Talent then performed the song.
Jackson choreographer Kenny Ortega presented Jafargholi, honored Jackson, and introduced the final performance of the memorial, which Jackson had been slated to perform during the This Is It dates. The concerts' chorus singers, Darrell Phinnessee, Ken Stacey, Dorian Holley, Judith Hill and guitarist Orianthi performed "We Are the World" and were joined on the stage by several of the guest speakers and performers as well as the Jackson family for the final chorus. With the entire group still on stage, Hill then led a performance of "Heal the World", with the remainder of the group joining in the chorus. Jackson's family then addressed the crowd. Jermaine—who had earlier performed a tearful rendition of "Smile"—gave a brief speech, followed by a eulogy by Marlon, where he tributed his stillborn twin brother Brandon, who died at birth, telling his younger brother to "give him a hug" for himself as a favor. Marlon then handed the microphone over to Janet, but in a move that came as a surprise to the show's organizers, she said that her niece, Paris, had something to say. Surrounded by her paternal aunts and uncles, Paris tearfully addressed the crowd before breaking down and being escorted off the stage by her family:
“ I just want to say that ever since I was born, daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine... and I just want to say that I love him so much... ”



 Outside the Staples Center during the memorial service.
Marlon Jackson then thanked the crowd in attendance, and the family escorted the casket out of the arena while an instrumental version of "Man in the Mirror" was performed. A microphone placed center stage was lit by spotlight while the instrumental version of "Man in the Mirror" played out, symbolizing the 'absence' of Michael Jackson. Many in the crowd applauded and cheered as Michael Jackson's coffin was carried out of the building. Pastor Lucious Smith closed the service with a prayer and quote saying "I'm alive and I'm here forever" from the Paul McCartney/Michael Jackson duet song The Man. The memorial was finished at 12:48 p.m.[18][19][20] Before broadcast of the service ended, a final slideshow of photos starting with Jackson's childhood and concluding with his final years played with Mariah Carey's version of "I'll Be There" playing.
Video montage[edit source]
The video montage shown during the service consisted of footage from:
Neverland Ranch
Jackson's meeting with Ronald Reagan
"Billie Jean"
"Bad"
"Thriller"
"Black or White"
"Scream"
"They Don't Care About Us"
"You Are Not Alone"
"We Are the World"
Jackson's tours
Jackson's scenes from his films Moonwalker, The Wiz, and Ghosts
Jackson's performance at Super Bowl XXVII
Jackson's performance at Motown 25
Guest list[edit source]
The participants were Ron Boyd (family friend), Los Angeles Lakers greats Magic Johnson and Kobe Bryant, Mariah Carey, Andrae Crouch (choir), Berry Gordy, Queen Latifah, Judith Hill (recruited 'This Is It' performer), Jennifer Hudson, Shaheen Jafargholi (a child finalist on Britain's Got Talent, who sang a Jackson song), Martin Luther King III, Bernice A. King, John Mayer, Lionel Richie, Omer Bhatti (a Norwegian rapper and rumored to be Michael Jackson's secret son), Smokey Robinson, Rev. Al Sharpton, Brooke Shields, Pastor Lucious Smith (family friend), Usher, and Stevie Wonder. In addition to the above persons, ABC News reported, Lionel Richie's daughter Nicole, who was Michael's goddaughter, and singers Akon and Sean Combs would attend the services.[21]
Debbie Rowe, Jackson's ex-wife and mother of two of his three children, hoping not to be a distraction,[22] did not attend the funeral.[23] Macaulay Culkin, Elizabeth Taylor and Diana Ross, three of Jackson's closest friends, as well as Eliza Jackson Duphrey, Ivonne Ester Duphrey (Michael Jackson's cousins) also did not attend.[21]
Casket[edit source]
Jackson was presented in a gold-plated solid bronze Promethean casket furnished by the Batesville Casket Company, which cost roughly $25,000. It is similar to the one in which James Brown was buried.[24][25] The closed casket at the Staples Center was decorated with red roses and Bells of Ireland flower arrangement. The casket was escorted by Jackson's brothers, each wearing a single sequined white glove on the hand in which they held the casket. Jackson was originally to be buried on what would have been his 51st birthday, however the services were postponed and he was interred at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale on September 3, 2009.
Live broadcast[edit source]
The service was broadcast live around the world, from the U.S. to Slovakia to parts of Asia. Public screenings were held in 37 cinemas across the U.S., as well as in Barcelona, Berlin, Brussels, Bucharest, Gothenburg, Lisbon, London, Madrid, Malmö, Oslo, Paris, Milan, Seville, Stockholm, and Tallinn.[26] There was also a live broadcast at 3am in Melbourne, Australia at Federation Square.[27] Before the event, the organizers expected an estimated one billion viewers.[28][29][30] According to Nielsen, 31.1 million Americans watched the service live on television;[31] an amount comparable to the 35.1 million that watched the state funeral of former president Ronald Reagan in 2004.[32] According to some news sources the event exceeded 2.5 billion viewers, which would make it the most watched live television broadcast in history worldwide.[33] Although this number is not widely agreed upon.



Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department motorcycle detail patrolling the parameter of the Staples Center during the memorial service.
Also in comparison to other big non-funeral related events, the inauguration of President Barack Obama garnered about 38 million viewers, and the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics garnered about 34.2 million viewers in the U.S. alone.[34] The memorial service was the most watched event in online streaming history.[35] CNN's webcast drew at least 9.7 million streams; their feed on Ustream, 4.6 million streams; and MSNBC's feed via Justin.tv drew three million.[36]
Media coverage[edit source]
According to Global Language Monitor, the coverage from the death and aftermath to the funeral of Michael Jackson tops Pope John Paul II as No.1 media (noting the longer timeframe and contentious circumstances re. the former).[37]
Cost[edit source]
The city of Los Angeles, which is $530 million in debt, said the memorial had cost the city $1.4 million for 1,400 police officers, trash pick-up, sanitation, and traffic control. The city set up a webpage asking fans for donations to help with the expenses, though it kept crashing. City Attorney Carmen Trutanich said it would be wrong to expect taxpayers to finance a private event. "The city attorney does not want something like this happening again, the city paying for a private event," spokesman John Franklin told CNN. "That's especially in a cash-strapped city, where people have been furloughed or even lost jobs."[38]
External links[edit source]
Michael Jackson Memorial Service (2009 TV) at IMDB
References[edit source]
 Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Michael Jackson memorial service

Portal icon Los Angeles portal
1.^ TVGuideNews (July 7, 2009). "Top Moments: Michael Jackson Memorial". TVGuide.com. Retrieved July 8, 2009.
2.^ "Video of Sharpton's eulogy". Macleans (macleans.ca). July 7, 2009.
3.^ Burkeman, Oliver (July 7, 2009). "Liveblogging Michael Jackson's funeral and memorial service". The Guardian (London). Retrieved May 12, 2010.
4.^ "Emotional farewell to King of Pop". BBC News (bbcnews.com). July 7, 2009. Retrieved September 3, 2009.
5.^ Parks, Tim (July 3, 2009). "AEG to release Jackson memorial tickets". Digital Spy.
6.^ Allen, Nick (July 6, 2009). "Thirteen applications per second for Michael". The Daily Telegraph (London: telegraph.co.uk).
7.^ "Website for Jackson tickets gets 500 million hits in first hour | L.A. Now | Los Angeles Times". Latimesblogs.latimes.com. July 3, 2009. Retrieved July 28, 2009. Text "July 3, 2009 " ignored (help)
8.^ Suter, Leanne (July 2, 2009). "Jackson memorial set for Staples Center". ABClocal.com. Retrieved August 7, 2009.
9.^ "One million fans expected at Michael Jackson memorial". azcentral.com. July 3, 2009. Retrieved July 28, 2009. Text "July 3, 2009 " ignored (help)
10.^ ."1 Million Expected at Jackson's Star-Studded Memorial". Star Magazine. July 3, 2009.
11.^ a b c "Cost only security problem at Jackson memorial". CNN (CNN.com). July 7, 2009. Retrieved May 12, 2010.
12.^ Vercammen, Paul (July 8, 2009). "Mayor's office: Michael Jackson memorial cost L.A. $1.4 million". CNN (CNN.com). Retrieved September 3, 2009.
13.^ Singh, Anita (July 7, 2009). "Michael Jackson funeral to take place in Los Angeles". The Daily Telegraph (London: telegraph.co.uk).
14.^ "Farewell to a King". People. July 20, 2009. Retrieved November 26, 2009.[dead link]
15.^ "BERRY GORDY - GORDY BRINGS MOURNERS TO THEIR FEET WITH JACKSON TRIBUTE". Contact Music. July 7, 2009. Retrieved November 26, 2009.
16.^ "Michael Jackson hailed as greatest entertainer, best dad". Reuters UK. July 8, 2009. Retrieved November 26, 2009.
17.^ http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:H.RES.600:
18.^ "Entertainment | Reporters' log: Jackson memorial". BBC News. July 7, 2009. Retrieved July 8, 2009.
19.^ Itzkoff, Dave (July 7, 2009). "Live Blogging the Jackson Memorial - ArtsBeat Blog - NYTimes.com". Artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com. Retrieved July 21, 2009.
20.^ Boucher, Geoff; DiMassa, Cara Mia (July 7, 2009). "Michael Jackson hailed during emotional memorial service". Los Angeles Times (latimes.com). Retrieved September 3, 2009.
21.^ a b Fisher, Luchina; Marikar, Sheila (July 7, 2009). "Michael Jackson's Memorial Lures A-List Attendees, Participants". ABC News (ABCNEWS.com).
22.^ Larry King Live (television). CNN. July 6, 2009.
23.^ Netter, Sarah; Friedman, Emily (July 6, 2009). "Michael Jackson to be Buried in Famed Hollywood Cemetery". ABC News (ABCNEWS.com). Retrieved September 3, 2009.
24.^ Harlow, John (July 5, 2009). "Police target 30 in hunt for Michael Jackson’s drug suppliers". The Sunday Times.
25.^ "Promethean Bronze". Caskets by Batesville.
26.^ "Broadcast of Jackson Memorial Service to Mann Chinese Six Theatre in Los Angeles, CA to Be Cancelled at Request of Los Angeles Police Department". Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp. cinedigm.com. July 7, 2009.
27.^ Lawless, Jill (July 7, 2009). "Jackson's world fans mourn idol before memorial". Associated Press.
28.^ de Moraes, Lisa (July 9, 2009). "Lisa De Moraes Column on Michael Jackson's Memorial Service". The Washington Post.
29.^ [1]
30.^ [2]
31.^ de Moraes, Lisa (July 9, 2009). "Jackson's Memorial a Hit With Viewers but Not Quite Off the Charts". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 14, 2009.
32.^ "Michael Jackson Memorial Earns 31 Million Viewers & More TV News - Inside TV Blog". Television.aol.com. July 9, 2009. Retrieved July 28, 2009.
33.^ "Hazarikas funeral creates world record". MSN. July 8, 2009.
34.^ "31.1 million watched Jackson memorial". MSNBC.com. Associated Press. July 13, 2009. Retrieved September 3, 2009.
35.^ "Michael Jackson memorial draws crowds online - CNN.com". Edition.cnn.com. July 8, 2009. Retrieved July 28, 2009.
36.^ Ostrow, Adam (July 7, 2009). "CNN Live Stream of Michael Jackson Memorial: 9.7 Million Views". Mashable. Retrieved July 8, 2009.
37.^ "Michael Jackson funeral tops Pope John Paul II as No. 1 media". Global Language Monitor.
38.^ Duke, Alan; Saeed, Ahmed (July 8, 2009). "More associates link Jackson to prescription drugs". CNN (CNN.com).



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Personal relationships of Michael Jackson

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A man in a red shirt smiling toward the camera. Atop his head is a blue baseball cap.

 Michael Jackson in 1988
The personal relationships of Michael Jackson have been the subject of public and media attention for several decades. His introduction to sex was made when he was nine years old and a member of The Jackson 5. He and his brothers would perform at strip clubs, sharing the bill with female strippers and drag queens. The sexual adventures between his brothers and groupies further affected Jackson's early life, as did his own experiences with female fans and prostitutes. The entertainer said his "first real date" was with the child actress Tatum O'Neal,[1] when he was a teenager in the 1970s, and he called her "my first love - after Diana [Ross]."[2] The pair eventually "cooled off" and Jackson entered into a romance with model Brooke Shields in 1981. Although the relationship became largely platonic, Shields said there were times he had asked her to marry him.[3] As they grew older, the two saw each other less and subsequently lost contact in 1993.
Having first been introduced in 1974 by Elvis Presley, Jackson reconnected with his daughter Lisa Marie in November 1992.[4] Shortly after becoming involved with Lisa Marie, Jackson was made the subject of what would be his first set of child sexual abuse accusations, with similar allegations later being made in 2003. Presley supported Jackson as he became dependent on pain medication, eventually helping convince him to enter drug rehabilitation. In a telephone call, he proposed marriage to Presley. She agreed and the two wed on May 26, 1994, at a private ceremony in the Dominican Republic. Married life for the couple was difficult; they had frequent disagreements. The union ended with divorce in August 1996. Presley and Jackson continued to date, on and off, for 4 more years after their divorce.
Throughout his marriage with Presley, Jackson had a friendship with Debbie Rowe. She was the assistant of the pop singer's dermatologist and had been treating his appearance-changing disease vitiligo since the mid-1980s. While separated but still married to Presley, Jackson impregnated Rowe but she suffered a miscarriage and lost their baby in March 1996. Following the ordeal and his first divorce being finalized, he wed a pregnant Rowe on November 13, 1996, in Sydney, Australia. From the marriage, two of Jackson's three children were produced: son Michael Joseph "Prince" Jackson, Jr. (born February 13, 1997) and daughter Paris Michael Katherine Jackson (born April 3, 1998). The pair divorced on October 8, 1999, with Rowe giving full custody rights of the children to Jackson. His third and final child, son Prince Michael Jackson II, was born to an unnamed surrogate mother on February 21, 2002.
In July 2009, it was revealed Jackson's will named Diana Ross as the next-in-line guardian for his children after his mother.[5] In September 2009, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach released a book based on taped conversations he had with Jackson in 2001.[6] It included Jackson's thoughts on personal relationships in general and specific ones. His romantic feelings for two famous friends were widely cited in the media. When asked if he got jealous when his long-time friend Elizabeth Taylor dated other men, he replied, "Yes and no. I know that if we ever did anything romantically the press would be so mean and nasty and call us the Odd Couple. It would turn into a circus and that's the pain of it all."[7][8] He also considered asking Princess Diana, who he said used to call him and confide in him, out on a date,[9] saying, "I loved her very much...she was my type for sure, and I don't like most girls. There are very few I like who fit the mould. It takes a very special mould to make me happy and she was one of them.[6][8] But he didn't ask her because he was never able to ask a girl out; "they have to ask me."[6]

Contents
  [hide] 1 Early sexual and emotional experiences 1.1 Strip clubs
1.2 Groupies and prostitutes
2 First relationships 2.1 Tatum O'Neal
2.2 Brooke Shields
3 Lisa Marie Presley 3.1 First meeting and courtship
3.2 Proposal and wedding
3.3 Married life and disagreements
3.4 Primetime and further marriage difficulties
3.5 Divorce
3.6 Aftermath
4 Debbie Rowe 4.1 Background and friendship
4.2 First pregnancy and miscarriage
4.3 Second pregnancy and reaction
4.4 Wedding
4.5 Birth of Prince Michael
4.6 Third pregnancy and birth of Paris
4.7 Divorce
4.8 After divorce
5 Allegations regarding sexuality
6 References

Early sexual and emotional experiences[edit source]
Strip clubs[edit source]

A mature African American man wearing a grey suit, black shirt and light blue tie. His hair is short and he wears a hooped earring in his right ear.

 Jackson's father Joseph had his sons play in strip clubs, despite the boys' strict religion
From a young age, Jackson was exposed to sex. He received mixed messages on the subject from his parents. His mother Katherine was a devout Jehovah's Witness and conveyed her thoughts clearly; lust in thought or deed was sinful and physical intimacy should be saved for marriage. In contrast to his wife, father Joseph, a steel mill worker, shunned the religion and would have The Jackson 5 perform at strip clubs and seedy bars in the earliest days of their career.[10][11] He allowed nine-year-old Michael to watch from the wings of the stage as male audience members whistled at women who stripped until nude. In one incident, a fascinated Michael watched as an apparently big breasted female removed all but her underwear. The stripper then proceeded to reach into her bra, removing two large oranges and the wig from her head, to reveal that the person he thought was a female was not a woman at all.[10]
While playing at Chicago's Peppermint Lounge, the brothers made use of a peephole in their dressing room, through which they had a clear view of the women's bathroom. They would take turns to voyeur the women and, as Marlon recalled, "learned everything there was to know about ladies".[10] During other residencies, the siblings would perform Joe Tex's "Skinny Legs and All". Joseph Jackson would instruct a young Michael to make his way into the audience, crawl under tables, lift up ladies' skirts and peek at their panties as part of the performance.[10][12] Though embarrassed by the task, Jackson feigned enjoyment as he knew the audience loved the routine.[10]
Following such performances, the Jackson brothers would be tucked in bed by their oblivious mother and reminded of the virtues of being a good Jehovah's Witness. Katherine remained unaware of her sons' strip club activities for many years.[10] Journalist J. Randy Taraborrelli reflected on Jackson's early life and noted that at such a young age, the singer may not have been psychologically equipped to fully understand any sexual stimulation he may have received from such voyeuristic events. The writer further commented that Jackson's views on sex must have been conflicted between those of his religiously strict mother and his promiscuous father.[10]
Groupies and prostitutes[edit source]
Jackson was also exposed to sex through groupies and prostitutes.[11] As members of the increasingly successful Jackson 5, Michael's brothers Jermaine and Jackie found fame to be advantageous. As they toured the country, they had sex with many female fans. Their guide was their father Joseph, who would often cheat on his wife Katherine with their sons' groupies. The two brothers would bring girls back to a hotel room, where younger siblings Michael and Marlon were instructed to "play sleep".[11][13] One of Jermaine's conquests recalled such an experience:

"I jumped into bed with him and he climbed on top of me. As he climaxed, he shuddered so loudly I was afraid he would wake up Michael and Marlon, who were sleeping three feet away in the next bed. Or at least I thought they were sleeping. As I was slipping out of the room, I heard Michael say to Jermaine, 'Nice job. Now, can we please get some sleep?'"[13]
While Marlon would correspond with and eventually marry his wife Carol at 18, Michael never had sex with groupies, finding his brothers' behavior toward women disgusting. In addition to not touching groupies, Jackson reportedly never had an interest in having any type of sex as a youngster. In one alleged incident, when he was 15 years old, a male family member arranged for two prostitutes to take his virginity. They were told to "work him over," before being locked in a room with him.[13] It remains unknown whether the prostitutes' full services were given to Jackson. His eldest sister Rebbie later stated that the event traumatized him.[11][13]
Though having no desire for sex with them, Jackson often used prostitutes for conversation in his younger years.[13] James McField, who worked with The Jackson 5, stated that the lead singer of the band often needed someone to talk with. It was at these times that women would be introduced to him for companionship. McField asserted that he never witnessed anything sexual, and that such females were not Jackson's type; "He liked nice girls, pure girls who appeared to have no street background."[13]
Jackson occasionally admonished and advised the groupies and prostitutes sent to pleasure his siblings. One Jackson fan recalled being selected from the audience to meet with Jackie. Backstage, she was handed a scrap of paper with an address to the location in which they were to meet. Michael approached her from behind and warned her that his brothers did not treat women right. Changing the subject, the female fan asked for the pop star's autograph, to which he obliged, also writing "Please, don't go." The woman ignored Michael's request and headed to the Jacksons' apartment complex, where she had sex with Jackie. Afterward, Jackie informed his conquest that they would not meet again. Ashamed and upset, the fan left the apartment in tears.[13]
On another occasion, a prostitute was brought to Jackson's room after a concert in Madison Square Garden. There, the pop star interrogated the sex worker, asking why she was a prostitute, whether she wanted to have sex with him, and how much it would cost. The woman responded that she was a prostitute for the money, but that she would have sex with him for free because she wanted him. The prostitute then proceeded to unbutton her blouse, exposing her breasts. Apparently repulsed, Jackson turned his head and begged her to "put them back".[13] The singer suggested that they talk instead, to which the prostitute declined; she was not there to talk. Instead, she gave Jackson her telephone number, urging him to call her when he wanted to "get off." Jackson acknowledged the prostitute as she left, stating that he would perhaps call her one day, though he never did.[13]
First relationships[edit source]
Tatum O'Neal[edit source]
One of Jackson's first documented relationships was with the child actress Tatum O'Neal in the 1970s. Their friendship was established by the time O'Neal was 12 and Jackson was 17, and featured in gossip columns for several years after.[14][15] Jackson reflected in 1982 that he and O'Neal had been engaged in a serious relationship, but because of both being busy, it had "cooled off" to the point of them remaining just friends.[15]
In the 2003 documentary Living With Michael Jackson, he alleged that near the beginning of their relationship, the 12-year-old actress tried to seduce the then 17-year-old singer. According to Jackson, the incident happened at her home, where she attempted to unbutton his shirt and talked explicitly about sex. O'Neal's behavior apparently proved too much for Jackson, who became scared and covered his face, before she walked away. When confronted with the allegation, O'Neal claimed to have been "just as shocked as everyone else". She stated that while having respect for Jackson as an artist and a person, he had "a very vivid imagination". The actress described his statements as "inaccurate"; "at 12 years old, there was no way" she was capable "of being as mature or as sophisticated as he claimed".[16][17] O'Neal released her autobiography A Paper Life in 2004, a year after the Jackson documentary. In the book, she claimed that it was Jackson who attempted to make out with her. The actress wrote, "I was just 12 and not at all ready for a real-life encounter[...] Michael, who was sweating profusely, seemed as intimidated as I was. He jumped up nervously and said, 'Uh ... gotta go.'"[18]
But this contradicted O'Neal's own account of the relationship in 1995 in Vibe magazine where she remembered Jackson as "being so shy" and "one of the nicest, most innocent people I've ever met", and that "Once he came into my bedroom, and he wouldn't even sit on my bed."[14] She described the relationship as a "a really wonderful friendship" where they would dance and "talk on the phone all the time."[14] She recalled that he found it funny that she could drive at 12 and he couldn't. And that one time they had a "jam session" at her house where he played the drums and her brother played guitar. She said the relationship ended when she was 12 after he asked her to go to the premiere of The Wiz with him, but her agent disapproved, "maybe because they thought he wasn't a big enough star yet" and that she did what she was told because she was a child.[14] She said that she loves him even though he never talked to her after that.[14]
Jackson also spoke about O'Neal in 2001 with Rabbi Shmuley. He described holding hands with her: "I was, like, in heaven. It was the most magical thing. It was better than kissing her, it was better than anything."[6] He recalled one of the times they held hands:

I remember we went to this club, and I don't go to clubs, which was called the Roxy. And I was watching the band, I was sitting there, and underneath the table, she was holding my hand, and I was, like melting. [Rabbi Shmuley: She held your hand and you felt love?] Fireworks going off.[6] It was all I needed. But that means nothing to kids today. She grew up too fast. She wasn't into innocence, and I love that.[19]
And similar to what he told Bashir, he said, "...she was 13. And I was naive. She wanted to do everything and I didn't want to have sex at all."[19][20]
Brooke Shields[edit source]
Jackson met 15-year-old actress/model Brooke Shields in 1981 at the Academy Awards.[6][21] From there, the pair enjoyed a close relationship. Speaking in 2009, she reflected that they were close because sex was never an issue for them.[22] Although the headlines in the media referred to Shields talking about an "asexual Jackson" after his death, what she actually said was, “As he grew older and the more he started to change physically, the more asexual he became to me.”[3] She also said that as she grew up and started having boyfriends, she would share with him about her intimate experiences as he was curious. She said, "he was like a little kid who talked about the bases - what first base was, what second base was" and that his curiosity was understandable given his guarded life.[3]
In 2001, Jackson told Rabbi Shmuley that Shields was "one of the loves of my life. I think she loved me as much as I loved her" and that they "dated a lot."[6] Before meeting her, he said that he had pictures of her all over his room. He recalled his happiness when they first met. He was at the Academy Awards with Diana Ross and Shields walked up and introduced herself; then at the after-party she asked him to dance with her. They exchanged numbers and he "was up all night, singing, spinning around my room, just so happy."[6] He also said, “We had one encounter when she got real intimate and I chickened out. And I shouldn’t have.”[23]
In Moonwalk, Jackson said his relationship with Shields was "romantically serious for a while."[2] Shields said that while never formally proposing, he would speak about the two marrying and raising adoptive children together. The suggestions were met with disapproval from Shields, who felt that such a move would have "divided [her] life too much".[24][25] She recalled: "There were times when he would ask me to marry him, and I would say, 'You have me for the rest of your life, you don’t need to marry me, I’m going to go on...have my own marriage and my own kids, and you’ll always have me.' I think it made him relax. He didn’t want to lose things that meant something to him."[3]
As the couple's separate lives became different, the two gradually saw each other less.[25] At the time of Jackson's death in 2009, the pair had not seen each other for 16 years. Shields claimed that in the singer's last years "it was harder to get the right number to get through to him".[25] In July 2009, she spoke at the Michael Jackson memorial service, reminiscing on their time together:[26][27]

"Thinking back to when we met and the many times that we spent together and whenever we were out together, there would be a caption of some kind, and the caption usually said something like 'an odd couple' or 'an unlikely pair,' but to us it was the most natural and easiest of friendships.... Michael always knew he could count on me to support him or be his date and that we would have fun no matter where we were. We had a bond.... Both of us needed to be adults very early, but when we were together, we were two little kids having fun."[26][27]
In a June 30, 2009 interview, Ola Ray also said that she and Jackson "would play like little kids" when working on the Thriller video, as she recalled how he was clearly "into Brooke Shields" and kept on teasing her about Shields visiting the set.[28]
Lisa Marie Presley[edit source]
First meeting and courtship[edit source]

A woman in a black T shirt holds her left hand on her hip, while leaning against a chest-height surface with her right elbow. She is wearing blue headphones and looks towards her right.

 Lisa Marie Presley was introduced to Jackson by her father Elvis
In 1974, a 16-year-old Michael Jackson—who would later be dubbed "The King of Pop"—was introduced for the first time to his future wife at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Paradise, Nevada by her father, "The King of Rock 'n' Roll", Elvis Presley. Lisa Marie was six at the time, and had been brought to the hotel to watch a show by The Jackson 5, of whom she was a big fan. The young girl was particularly fascinated by lead singer Michael Jackson and his talent at dancing.[29]
According to a friend of Presley's, "their adult friendship began in November 1992 in L.A."[4] They met at a private dinner held at the home of their mutual friend the artist Brett-Livingstone Strong. Knowing that Presley had been looking for help within the music industry, Strong had her play tapes for Jackson, who was impressed with the female singer's voice. The pair talked for the remainder of the night, until it was time for Jackson to leave. At this point, according to Strong, the entertainer gave Presley a penetrating look and said in a conspiratorial voice, "You and me, we could get into a lot of trouble. Think about that, girl."[29]
In the days following this interaction, Presley and Jackson spoke on the telephone almost every day, forging a strong friendship. The two came to realize that they had much in common: both had been protected and sheltered from the real world, both felt that they had missed out on a normal childhood, both were mistrustful of outsiders having spent most of their lives feeling exploited by them. The pair both had problems with the media. Presley was raised in Graceland, while Jackson lived at Neverland. The two felt that they understood each other and were soulmates.[29]
He was the subject of child sexual abuse accusations and relied on the female singer for emotional support. He would call Presley from overseas as he embarked upon the second leg of the Dangerous World Tour and the child abuse investigation intensified. During such telephone conversations, the female star attempted to reverse Jackson's sadness with humour and advice. Presley later recalled that she believed in the musician's innocence and that she could "save him".[29] Fuelled by her past addictions and the death of her father, Presley supported Jackson as he became addicted on painkillers, urging him to settle the allegations out of court and go into rehabilitation. He subsequently did both.[29]
Proposal and wedding[edit source]
It was during one of Jackson's calls to Presley that he proposed marriage. "If I asked you to marry me, would you do it?", the singer queried.[29] Though still married to actor Danny Keough, whom she had wed in 1988 and had two children with, Presley replied that she would. After a pause, Jackson exclaimed that he had to use the bathroom. Having apparently relieved himself, the singer explained to his new fiance that his love for her was genuine and that she had to believe him.[29] In 2010, Presley acknowledged to Oprah Winfrey that Jackson did formally propose one day in the library, taking out a 10 carat diamond ring and getting down on his knees.[30]
Following several months engaged, Jackson and Presley wed on May 26, 1994, at a ceremony in the Dominican Republic.[31][32] Presley had divorced Keough only 20 days before. The 15-minute ceremony was held by Judge Hugo Francisco Alvarez Perez at his home in the La Vega Province. The union was conducted in Spanish, and translated for Presley and Jackson by an attorney. Eva Darling, Presley's friend, served as a witness along with Thomas Keough, the brother of her ex-husband.[31][32] At the time of their marriage, the press and public were unaware that the two even knew each other. The wedding was kept secret from them, Jackson's family and Presley's mother Priscilla. However, Gotham Chopra recalled that Jackson called him "in a panic" on his wedding night and asked if he had any "sex advice", wanting "to make sure that Lisa was impressed with his 'moves.'"[33]
Upon being informed of her daughter's marriage with Jackson a week later, Priscilla became irritated; she felt that the male pop singer was using her child to rehabilitate his image following the child abuse accusations.[31] To the press, however, Priscilla stated that she was "very supportive of Lisa Marie and everything she does".[34]
The union was met with a mixed reaction from the media when it was made public two months later. Some sources described the union of "The King of Pop" and "The Princess of Rock 'n' Roll" as being "The Marriage of the Century".[35] One newspaper headline scoffed, "Jackson-Presley Union Sparks Shock, Doubt, Laughs."[34] Addressing both the media and public, the new Mrs. Presley-Jackson issued a statement:

"My married name is Mrs. Lisa Marie Presley-Jackson. My marriage to Michael Jackson took place in a private ceremony outside the United States (11) weeks ago. It was not formally announced until now for several reasons; foremost being that we are both very private people living in the glare of the public media. We both wanted a private marriage ceremony without the distraction of a media circus. I am very much in love with Michael, I dedicate my life to being his wife. I understand and support him. We both look forward to raising a family and living happy, healthy lives together. We hope friends and fans will understand and respect our privacy."[36]
Married life and disagreements[edit source]
For the next year of their married life, the newly wedded couple divided their time between Jackson's 2,700-acre (11 km2) Neverland Ranch in Santa Ynez, California and Presley's 1-acre (4,000 m2) estate, 100 miles (160 km) away in Hidden Hills. Defying the initial thoughts of some of the public, Presley did not move into Jackson's home upon getting married. According to J. Randy Taraborrelli, this was due to her wanting to remain independent, as well as the singer's children (Danielle and Benjamin) finding their new stepfather "a little strange".[37]
The pair's first television appearance together was made at the 1994 MTV Video Music Awards, in what has been described as a "memorable moment". Holding hands, the pair walked on to the stage in New York. In front of a television audience of 250 million, Jackson announced, "Just think, nobody thought this would last", before embracing Presley in a kiss.[38] Afterward, Jackson's wife became angered at her husband, feeling that he had used her. The male pop singer reasoned that the liplock, which was dubbed "The Kiss of the Century", would be talked about for decades, with people playing the clip over and over.[35][38] Jackson's attempts at placating his wife proved futile; she told the singer not to "fucking even come near me" and remained angry for several days.[38]
In the same week, Jackson and Presley had another argument. Newspaper reports had been suggesting that if Elvis were alive, he would not approve of his daughter's marriage. Annoyed, Jackson reportedly suggested that the couple could find out by holding a séance to contact the deceased "King of Rock 'n' Roll".[38] During the session they would ask his opinion of the union. Presley felt that the idea was tasteless and, upon Jackson continuing to push the idea, warned, "If you stay on this particular road, they're gonna need a medium to contact you in the Great Beyond, because I'm about to put you there, right now."[38] The two supposedly never spoke of the incident again.[38]
Primetime and further marriage difficulties[edit source]
Jackson and Presley appeared on the television show Primetime in June 1995.[38] In Jackson's first interview since 1993 and Presley's first ever, Diane Sawyer quizzed the pair on their private life with, according to Jet, a series of "insensitive" questions.[38][39] Presley boasted that she and Jackson had regular sex, following Sawyer questioning their sex life.[40][41] When asked if the marriage was a sham, Presley asserted that such rumors were "crap"; the singer claimed that she would never marry someone for any other reason than being in love with them.[38] She concluded that if the public thought any different, they could "eat it".[38] The following day, Presley reflected that the interview had been a disaster; she had hoped that couple would be perceived as being serious, yet Jackson fooled around during the show, at one point holding two fingers behind his wife's head to make bunny ears. Presley's friend Monica Pastelle revealed that it was at this point that the female singer began to wonder whether she had made a mistake in choosing Jackson as a long-term partner.[38]
A further problem for the pair was Jackson's insistence on being around children. Though she never believed him to be a pedophile—"I wouldn't have let him near my kids if I thought that"—she felt that her husband was only opening himself up to more rumor and innuendo following the 1993 allegations.[42] One evening at Neverland, Presley confronted the pop star on the issue, and was met with a defiant Jackson, resulting in another argument. Upon being called selfish, the male musician pointed to his humanitarian endeavors. Presley countered that his philanthropy was irrelevant, and that the issue was about them.[42][43]
Jackson's wife also disagreed with having children by the singer. Imagining the future and what would happen if the marriage ended, Presley saw a "custody battle nightmare".[44] In addition, she felt that her husband was too emotionally immature to be a parent, having watched his daily interactions with other people. She believed that he was the one in need of parenting. Jackson explained to his wife over breakfast one morning that she did not have to be the biological mother if she so desired. He explained, "My friend Debbie [Rowe] said she will get pregnant and have my baby. If you won't do it, then she will. How about that?"[44] Unmoved, Presley replied that it was fine by her.[44]
Following several more troubled months, Jackson ended up in the hospital; he had collapsed while rehearsing for a concert in New York. Presley arrived to meet her ill husband and yet another heated debate ensued. The argument ended after Jackson warned her that she was making his heart rate go up and asked her to leave. She obliged, being admonished by a doctor and Jackson's mother Katherine along the way.[45] Presley subsequently returned to Los Angeles. Upon being discharged from hospital, Jackson went to Disneyland Paris to recover. Defying his wife, the singer had at least six children accompany him.[45]
Divorce[edit source]
Presley filed for divorce in early 1996, citing "irreconcilable differences" and noting their date of separation as December 10, 1995, shortly after the incident in the hospital.[45][46] The divorce was finalized on August 20, 1996. As part of the settlement, the female singer received 10% of the royalties from HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I, an album that contained the song "You Are Not Alone", the music video of which featured a semi-nude Presley and Jackson frolicking against an ethereal backdrop.[47][48] As she did not sign a confidentiality agreement, a further clause stated that Presley could write a tell-all book about her time with Jackson. At the time, "The Princess of Rock 'n' Roll" revealed that she had no wish to write a memoir; the singer still had respect for Jackson and did not want to speak critically of him. Presley also wanted to preserve her own dignity and keep their life together private.[47]


It's easy to be skeptical of Michael's relationship with her, but doing so risks ignoring his obvious humanity. Despite the plastic surgeries and maddening friendships with boys, and all the rest of the eccentric behavior that goes into making Michael Jackson such a strange individual, he is still a human being with emotions, feelings and a beating heart - and, somehow, Lisa Marie Presley was the one to truly touch it, to truly affect him.
J. Randy Taraborrelli, The Magic and the Madness (2004)[47]
The divorce proved difficult for Jackson, who spent several weeks lamenting his loss. Presley was the first person with whom he had connected on such a high level. She had supported him as he faced allegations and became dependent on pain medication. It was also the first time that the pop singer had had a sexual chemistry with another.[47] Presley was able to make him open up and express himself through their physically intimate moments together. At the time, Jackson was afraid that there would never be another that made him feel the way his ex-wife had. He eventually realized that he had to move on; he had a world tour coming up and music to work on. Jackson also knew that Presley would never make him a father, which he longed to be.[47]
Aftermath[edit source]
Presley was seen with Jackson in various cities during HIStory World Tour in 1997; notably at various functions in South Africa[49][50] and in London, holding hands backstage[51] and around the city.[52] In February 1998, they were photographed in an intimate moment together outside a Beverly Hills restaurant on Presley's birthday.[53]
In a 2010 Oprah interview, Presley admitted that they spent four years after the divorce "getting back together and breaking up", until she felt she "had to push it away."[30] She described the parallels between the lives of Jackson and her father Elvis, and said Jackson constantly asked her about the details of Elvis' death because he felt that he was "going to end up the same way."[30] She had described such a conversation in a blog post the day after Jackson died, where she shared her feelings about his death. According to Presley, the last "coherently good conversation" she had with Jackson was in 2005.[30] She said Jackson told her she had been right about certain people around him, that she called "vampires."[30] She replied that she was indifferent when he asked if she still loved him.[30] But Presley also said his death made her realize that he loved her. She acknowledged his efforts in the relationship, saying, "He honestly tried so hard and went through so much with me" but "I didn’t appreciate it then and I wish I did."[30] At the end of the conversation, he reportedly told her "he felt that someone was going to try to kill him to get a hold of his catalog and his estate" and named some names that she didn't want to say on the interview.[30]
Debbie Rowe[edit source]
Background and friendship[edit source]
Debbie Rowe met Michael Jackson in the mid-1980s, while working as an assistant for the pop star's dermatologist Dr. Arnold Klein. Rowe treated Jackson's vitiligo, which he had been diagnosed with in 1986 and that would affect his physical appearance for the remainder of his life.[54][55] Rowe supported Jackson, providing answers to the questions Jackson asked about his medical condition. The pair became good friends; the pop star frequently sent autographed merchandise to the woman, who hung them on the walls of her office. According to Rowe's friend Tanya Boyd, the dermatologist's assistant would obsess over Jackson, gushing over him and his traits. She would say to her friend, "If people knew him like I knew him, they would not think he was strange. He's unique, kinky, actually."[55]
The Jackson-Rowe friendship would remain for several years, during which time the female assistant married and divorced Richard Edelman, a man she claimed to have felt trapped by. Rowe and the musician would both talk to each other about their unhappy marriages; his with Presley and hers with Edelman, a teacher at Hollywood High School. Like Jackson's first wife, Rowe supported the entertainer as he was accused of child sexual abuse. Jackson kept his friendship with Rowe a secret from his wife, who eventually found out but thought nothing of it; she felt that the dermatologist's assistant was not her husband's type because she was not glamorous enough.[55]
First pregnancy and miscarriage[edit source]
As Presley had refused to carry Jackson's children, Rowe offered to give birth to a child for the pop singer. Shortly after the separation of Presley and Jackson, Rowe became pregnant but suffered a miscarriage in March 1996. The event devastated the woman, who feared that she would never be able to have a baby. Jackson comforted and consoled Rowe throughout the ordeal, which remained hidden from the media and public.[45][47]
Second pregnancy and reaction[edit source]
Jackson embarked on the first leg of his HIStory World Tour on September 1996. One month into the tour and several months after the divorce from Presley, Jackson's personal life made headlines as it was revealed that Debbie Rowe was pregnant with his child. One tabloid newspaper, the News of the World, told the story under the headline "I'm Having Michael's Baby". Rowe reacted furiously to the publication, labeling the editorial staff "bastards" and complaining that they reported the story as if she and Jackson were freaks. J. Randy Taraborrelli later noted that the article, which had been put together from a secret tape recording between Rowe and a friend, had been fairly accurate. It detailed that Jackson was the father of the baby and that he would be raising the child alone. It also stated that Jackson impregnated Rowe artificially with his own sperm cells, a "foolproof" method of insemination. Further reports alleged that the relationship was an "economic" one; she was in it for the money and he sought a baby.[47][56]
In a statement, Jackson condemned the accusations of being in an economic relationship and using artificial insemination as "completely false and irresponsible". Despite the denials, it was noted that Rowe had received millions of dollars from Jackson as "gifts" over the years. Among court papers filed against Jackson in 2002 by business manager Myung Ho Lee, a monthly budget for Jackson was detailed and included a $1.5 million payment to Rowe. The pop musician later bought the woman a $1.3 million home in 1997; he and Rowe never lived together.[56]
When the news of Rowe's pregnancy broke to Jackson's mother Katherine, the Jackson family matriarch urged her son to wed the mother of his unborn child. Katherine did not want her son to be like his father, who had produced an illegitimate child with a woman while married to Michael's mother. Katherine first spoke on the telephone to Rowe about the sanctity of marriage and about the Jehovah's Witness faith. She later spoke to Jackson, telling him to marry "that nice girl, Debbie" and "give your child a name, not like your poor, half-sister, Joh'Vonnie". The words resonated with the musician, who did not want to repeat his father's sins.[57]
Prior to Katherine's words, the view had been for Rowe to act as a surrogate mother; she would give the baby to Jackson as a friendly favor and he would raise it. Jackson intended to issue a statement following the birth that the identity of the mother was a secret, in the same way that the identities of many surrogates are protected. Katherine's involvement, however, influenced Jackson to call Rowe and ask her to meet him in Australia, where he was staying, as soon as she could. There, the entertainer announced his plans for them to wed the very next day.[57]
Wedding[edit source]

A man stands to the left of a woman who is smiling. He wears a black military jacket, under which is a white T shirt. Atop his head is a black fedora. His left hand holds the right of the woman's. Both hands are pressed against the stomach of the woman, who is dressed in black.

 Michael Jackson and Debbie Rowe on their wedding day
Jackson and Rowe wed on November 13, 1996, at the Sheraton on the Park Hotel in Sydney, Australia. The night before the wedding, Jackson had called Presley, who gave him and Rowe her blessing. In front of 15 friends, the pair exchanged vows at the hotel in Australia's largest city. An 8-year-old boy called Anthony, whom Jackson stated was his nephew, served as the best man during the ceremony. For the occasion, Jackson had put special effort into his appearance.[57][58] J. Randy Taraborrelli wrote in his book Michael Jackson - The Magic and the Madness:

"Michael had on a creamy foundation and transparent powder that made his face almost stark white. He had extra eyeliner on his lids, emphasizing their almond shape; his eyes stood out like dark coals. He highlighted his nose and cheekbones with bronze tones. His eyebrows were tweezed and darkened. He had on a black hat and one long curl framing each side of his face. Also, he appeared to have fake sideburns. The total effect was nothing short of jaw-dropping, in that Disneyland sort of way."[57]
Media and public reaction to the marriage was negative and cynical. Some commentators felt that Jackson was marrying a person he did not love, and that Rowe was having a baby that may or may not have been biologically Jackson's. The Daily Mirror, a British tabloid newspaper, published a photograph of Rowe on the balcony of an Australian hotel. In it, she is seen holding her head in her hands. One Jackson biographer stated that the woman's dismayed and exasperated pose was most probably due to the excessive presence of paparazzi below. The Daily Mirror, however, ran the photograph while mockingly proclaiming, "Oh, God! I've Just Married Michael Jackson."[58]
Birth of Prince Michael[edit source]
Jackson and Rowe's first child together, Michael Joseph Jackson Jr. (also known as "Prince Michael"), was born on February 13, 1997, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California.[59][60] The baby was named after Michael's grandfather and great-grandfather, who were both called Prince.[58][61] After Rowe and Jackson cut the baby's umbilical cord together, Prince was taken to intensive care, where he spent five hours with only minor problems. He was subsequently taken by his father to Neverland Ranch. Prince's mother recuperated at a friend's house upon her release from the hospital.[58]
Six weeks after the birth, Rowe saw her son for the first time since his arrival into the world. She had met with Jackson to pose for photographs with their newborn son at a hotel. Upon arriving, Rowe was ushered into the hotel room, where she was given the infant to hold and told to smile for the camera with Michael. Afterward, she was sent on her way. Rowe did not want to become too attached to Prince, as she felt it would make her situation harder to deal with.[58] At Neverland, Prince was cared for by a team of six nannies and six nurses during his first few months. According to one nanny who worked at the Californian ranch, Prince Michael's mother was not a significant presence in the child's early life. "I saw her maybe three times and she seemed very sullen."[62]
Third pregnancy and birth of Paris[edit source]
Rowe announced that she was pregnant with Jackson's second child in November 1997.[63] The baby was to be a girl and named Paris, after the French city in which her parents said she was conceived. On April 3, 1998, Paris-Michael Katherine Jackson was born. Her middle names come from her father and grandmother.[63][64] Jackson later claimed that he was so anxious following the birth of his daughter, that he "snatched" her and ran straight home "with all the placenta and everything all over her". Rowe later confirmed that Jackson had the placenta frozen.[65] Following the birth, Jackson's associates contacted Pope John Paul II at the Vatican in Rome, in the hope that the Pontiff would personally baptize the pop star's daughter. An official for the Pope informed Jackson by letter that the leader of the Catholic Church would not participate in what may be perceived as a publicity stunt.[63]
Divorce[edit source]
Feeling uncomfortable with their arrangement, Rowe asked Jackson for a divorce, which he granted on October 8, 1999. Rowe received around $10 million in a settlement, which started with an immediate payment of $1.5 million.[63] With the divorce, Rowe gave Jackson full custody rights to their children.[66] At the time, both Rowe and Jackson requested privacy and asked the public not to speculate on the reasons for their divorce. They concluded that despite coming to the end of married life, they would continue to remain friends.[67]
After divorce[edit source]

A man in public is dressed in black. He is surrounded by an entourage and members of the public, some of whom are holding cameras. He walks behind three young children, all of whom are wearing facial masks.

 Michael Jackson with his three children in 2006. The eldest two were borne by Debbie Rowe.
Following the divorce, Jackson would go on to have a third child. Prince Michael II was born on February 21, 2002, to an unnamed surrogate mother. Rowe denied being the biological mother of Prince Michael II, who is nicknamed "Blanket". Jackson stated that the baby was produced through artificial insemination using his own sperm cells. He further claimed that he did not know the mother, and she did not know him. The pop star added that in asking for a surrogate mother, he did not care what race she was. It did however matter to him that she was intelligent, healthy and had uncorrected eyesight.[63]
In the television documentary The Michael Jackson Interview: The Footage You Were Never Meant to See, a rebuttal video to Martin Bashir's 2003 Living with Michael Jackson interview, Rowe attempted to explain her relationship with Jackson and their two children:[68]

"My kids don't call me Mom because I don't want them to. They're Michael's children. It's not that they are not my children, but I had them because I wanted him to be a father. People make remarks, 'I can't believe she left her children.' Left them? I left my children? I did not leave my children. My children are with their father, where they are supposed to be. I didn't do it to be a mother... If he called me tonight and said let's have five more [children], I'd do it in a heartbeat."[68]
In 2006, Rowe legally applied for her access to her two children to be reinstated and subsequently reached an agreement with Jackson. Following the singer's death in 2009, his mother Katherine was made the permanent guardian of Prince Michael, Paris and their half-brother Prince Michael II. In addition, a new custody arrangement was made with Rowe, who has visitation rights with her two children and will continue to receive spousal support payments.[66]
Questions have frequently arisen as to whether Jackson was the biological father of his three children. Doubts first surfaced after it was reported that his son, Prince, had "white skin".[69] Jackson insisted in 2003 that the children were biologically his.[70]
Allegations regarding sexuality[edit source]
Further information: 1993 child sexual abuse accusations against Michael Jackson and People v. Jackson
Despite his relationships with women, Jackson's sexuality was the subject of speculation and controversy for decades. The pop singer faced allegations of being gay since he was a teenager, as well as later being labelled asexual.[71][72] One 1970s newspaper story alleged that the then 19-year-old singer was to have a sex change operation and marry the songwriter Clifton Davis. Jackson found out about the story from a crying fan. The musician reassured the girl that the tale was untrue and condemned it as a "stupid rumor".[71][73] The story circulated for many months, during which time Jackson became upset; he was raised in a family where homosexuality was considered sinful. Jackson would continue to deny being gay throughout his life. In a 1979 interview, the pop star stated that he was not gay and that he would not "have a nervous breakdown because people think I like having sex with men".[71] He added that if he let the rumor affect him, it would make him cheap. He expressed that many of his fans may be gay, and that he did not mind that. "That's their life and this is mine."[71]
In 1993, Jackson was accused of child sexual abuse by Evan Chandler, on behalf of his then-13-year-old child, Jordan Chandler. To the father's disapproval and concern, his son had become friends with the musician in May 1992. Under the influence of a controversial sedative administered by Evan Chandler, a dentist, his son said that Jackson had touched his penis.[74] Evan Chandler was tape-recorded threatening to damage the singer's music career, and engaged Jackson in unsuccessful negotiations to resolve the issue with a financial settlement.[75][76] Jordan Chandler then told a psychiatrist and later police that he and Jackson had engaged in acts of kissing, masturbation and oral sex.[76][77] The business partners of Jackson, worried about losing large sums of money if he had to undergo a process with a tour in progress, insisted a transition financial[clarification needed] with Chandler; Jackson opposed the transaction, that, then, was paid by the insurance, and he denounced Chandler because of extortion.[78] Jackson settled a civil suit out of court with the Chandler family and their legal team for $22,000,000 in January 1994. After Jordan Chandler refused to testify in the criminal proceedings, the state closed its criminal investigation citing lack of evidence, and Jackson was not charged with a crime. After Jackson's death, Evan Chandler committed suicide.[79]
Further accusations of child sexual abuse were made in 2003, by 13-year-old Gavin Arvizo.[80] The allegations came after Jackson and the boy appeared in the documentary Living with Michael Jackson, in which the entertainer stated that he shared his bed with children in a non-sexual fashion.[81][82] The musician was subsequently indicted on four counts of molesting a minor, four counts of intoxicating a minor, one count of abduction, and one count of conspiring to hold the boy and his family captive at Neverland Ranch.[83] During the five-month trial, Jackson faced allegations of child molestation and assertions that he had attempted to abduct the Arvizo family in a hot air balloon.[84] He denied all the charges and family members proclaimed that he was the victim of an extortion attempt.[85] One friend, Firpo Carr, expressed amazement at the allegations leveled against the singer, who at the time was living at Neverland Ranch. "I'm surprised they haven't accused him of bestiality because he also has a zoo there. I mean, it gets ridiculous after a while."[86] On June 13, 2005, the jury found Jackson not guilty on all charges.[87]
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87.^ "Michael Jackson jury reaches verdict". London: Associated Press. June 13, 2005. Retrieved November 9, 2009.
Bibliography
Boteach, Shmuley (2009). The Michael Jackson Tapes. Vanguard Press. ISBN 1-59315-602-2.
Campbell, Lisa (1995). Michael Jackson: The King of Pop's Darkest Hour. Branden. ISBN 0-8283-2003-9.
Grant, Adrian (2009). Michael Jackson: The Visual Documentary. Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-1-84938-261-8.
Jackson, Michael (2009) [First published 1988]. Moonwalk. Random House. ISBN 0-307-71698-8.
Jones, Jel (2005). Michael Jackson, the King of Pop: The Big Picture--The Music! The Man! The Legend! The Interviews: An Anthology. Amber Communications Group, Inc. ISBN 0-9749779-0-X.
Taraborrelli, J. Randy (2004). Michael Jackson: The Magic and the Madness. Pan Books. ISBN 0-330-42005-4.
Toms, Carl (2010). Michael Jackson's Dangerous Liaisons. Matador. ISBN 978-1-84876-340-1.

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The Jackson 5

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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"The Jacksons" redirects here. For the complete Jackson family, see Jackson family. For the TV variety show, see The Jacksons (TV series). For their tenth album, see The Jacksons (album).

The Jackson 5
Jackson 5 tv special 1972.JPG
Background information

Also known as
Jackson Five, The Jackson Brothers, The Jacksons
Origin
Gary, Indiana, United States
Genres
Rhythm and blues, soul, funk, disco, bubblegum pop, rock and roll
Years active
1964–1990, 2001, 2012–present
Labels
Steeltown, Motown, Philadelphia International, Epic
Website
www.thejacksons.com

Members
Jackie Jackson
Tito Jackson
Jermaine Jackson
Marlon Jackson

Past members
Michael Jackson
Randy Jackson
The Jackson 5 (also spelled The Jackson Five, sometimes stylized The Jackson 5ive), later known as The Jacksons, are an American popular music family group from Gary, Indiana. Founding group members Jackie Jackson, Tito Jackson, Jermaine Jackson, Marlon Jackson and Michael Jackson formed the group after performing in an early incarnation called The Jackson Brothers, which originally consisted of a trio of the three older brothers. Active from 1964 to 1990, the Jacksons played from a repertoire of R&B, soul, pop and (in the 1970s) disco. During their six-and-a-half-year Motown tenure, The Jackson 5 was one of the biggest pop-music acts of the 1970s,[1] and the band served as the launching pad for the solo careers of their lead singers Jermaine and Michael, the latter brother later transforming his early Motown solo fame into greater success as an adult artist. The Jackson 5/The Jacksons have sold 100 million records worldwide, making them one of the best selling artists of all time.
The Jackson 5 was one of few in recording history to have their first four major label singles ("I Want You Back", "ABC", "The Love You Save", and "I'll Be There") reach the top of the Billboard Hot 100.[2] Several later singles, among them "Mama's Pearl", "Never Can Say Goodbye" and "Dancing Machine", were Top 5 pop hits and number-one hits on the R&B singles chart. Most of the early hits were written and produced by a specialized songwriting team known as "The Corporation"; later Jackson 5 hits were crafted chiefly by Hal Davis, while early Jacksons hits were compiled by the team of Gamble and Huff before The Jacksons began writing and producing themselves in the late 1970s.
Significantly, they were one of the first black teen idols to appeal equally to white audiences, thanks partially to the successful promotional relations skills of Motown Records CEO Berry Gordy. With their departure from Motown to CBS in 1976, The Jacksons were forced to change their name and Jermaine was replaced with younger brother Randy as Jermaine chose to stay at Motown. During these years, they continued to have a number of hits such as "Enjoy Yourself", "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)", "Show You the Way to Go", and "Blame It on the Boogie". After two years under the Philadelphia International Records label, they signed with Epic Records and asserted control of their songwriting, production, and image, and their success continued into the 1980s with hits such as "Can You Feel It", "This Place Hotel", "Lovely One", and "State of Shock". Their 1989 album 2300 Jackson Street was recorded without Michael and Marlon, although they did appear on the title track. The disappointing sales of the album led to the group being dropped by their record label at the end of the year. The group has never formally broken up, but has been dormant since then, although all six brothers performed together at two Michael Jackson tribute concerts in September 2001. After Michael's death in June 2009, the group announced a 2012 reunion tour, The Unity Tour, although Randy did not take part.

Contents
  [hide] 1 History 1.1 Early Years
1.2 Joining Motown
1.3 Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5
1.4 Popularization and franchise expansion
1.5 Later career
1.6 The move to CBS Records
1.7 Michael and Marlon's departure and other work
1.8 The Jacksons: A Family Dynasty and reunion attempts
1.9 The Jacksons: Unity Tour 2012
2 Legacy
3 Band members
4 Discography
5 Tours
6 See also
7 Notes
8 References
9 External links

History[edit source]
Early Years[edit source]



 The Jacksons' childhood home in Gary, Indiana surrounded by gifts, flowers, and stuffed animals after Michael Jackson's death.
Born and raised in Gary, Indiana, the Jackson brothers were guided early in their careers by their father Joseph Jackson, a steel mill crane operator and former musician, and their mother Katherine Jackson, who watched over the boys during the early years.
Tito recalled playing around with his father's guitar while he was away working on Gary's steel mills. One night, Joseph discovered Tito had been playing his guitar after a string was broken. Initially upset with his son's playing behind his back, he saw their potential. Around 1964, the Jacksons' aunt Wanda, who was a successful professional musician, encouraged Jackie, Tito, and Jermaine to form a band. The Jackson Brothers originally included hometown friends Muffy Jones and Milford Hite on guitar and drums respectively. By the end of the following year, the group's younger brothers Marlon and Michael joined the instrumental band playing tambourine and congas respectively.
Showing extraordinary talent at a very young age, young Michael began demonstrating his dance moves and singing ability at the age of five. Michael's moving rendition of "Climb Every Mountain" sang at his kindergarten talent show earned him a place in his brothers' group. Before his eighth birthday, Michael was allowed to perform his song-and-dance routine at a talent contest held at Jackie's Roosevelt High School in Gary, helping his brothers win the competition. It was at that point that Tito's junior high school orchestra teacher Shirley Cartman began mentoring the group. She suggested replacing Jones and Hite with talented musicians Johnny Jackson (no relation) on drums and Ronnie Rancifer on keyboards. Tito moved up to lead guitar while Jermaine played bass guitar after several years as a rhythm guitarist.
Evelyn Lahaie, a local talent agent, suggested to Joe to rename the group the Jackson 5 when they performed in her Tiny Tots Jamboree in Gary.[3] After the contest win, the group began playing professional gigs in Indiana, Chicago and across the U.S. Many of these performances were in a string of black clubs and venues collectively known as the "chitlin' circuit". The group also found themselves performing at strip joints to earn money. Cartman got the Jackson 5 a record deal with Gordon Keith's local Steeltown label, and the group began making their first recordings in October 1967. Their first single, "Big Boy", was released in January 1968 and became a regional hit. This was followed by a second single, "We Don't Have to Be Over 21".[4]
The Jackson 5 had a number of admirers in their early days, including Sam & Dave, who helped the group secure a spot in the famous Amateur Night competition at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. The group won the August 13, 1967, competition during the Amateur Night showdown at the Apollo, impressing Motown Records artist Gladys Knight. Knight recommended the group to Motown chief Berry Gordy, but Gordy, who already had teenager Stevie Wonder on his roster, was hesitant to take on another child act because of the child labor laws and other problems involved. The Jackson 5's sound was influenced by many of the biggest stars of the 1960s, including the self-contained funk bands Sly & the Family Stone and The Isley Brothers, Motown group The Temptations, soul legend Marvin Gaye, rock 'n' roll kid group The Teenagers and soul shouters like Wilson Pickett, Jackie Wilson, Stevie Wonder, Joe Tex and James Brown.[5] At the time of their early success, R&B stars, especially coming from Motown Records, were among the most popular musicians; Motown had launched the careers of dozens of the decade's biggest stars, most notably The Supremes, The Miracles, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, the Four Tops and the Temptations.
Joining Motown[edit source]
By 1968, the Jackson 5 were a headlining act for the All Star Floor Show at Chicago's The Guys' and Gals' Cocktail Lounge and Restaurant. From July 12–27, 1968, the Jackson 5 opened for Motown act Bobby Taylor & the Vancouvers at Chicago's Regal Theater. Like Gladys Knight before him, Bobby Taylor was also very impressed with the boys, and he decided to make the commitment to bring them to Detroit and Motown. Joseph and The Jackson 5 stayed on the floor of Bobby Taylor's Detroit apartment the night of July 22, while Tayler and Motown executive Suzanne de Passe arranged for the Jackson 5 to audition for the label.
On July 23, the Jackson 5 had their Motown audition, for which they performed James Brown’s then current hit "I Got the Feelin'". Berry Gordy was not in attendance, but the audition was videotaped and sent to him in Los Angeles. Gordy's initial reluctance to sign the group disappeared when he finally saw the boys perform. Gordy decided to sign the Jackson 5 to Motown, and hosted a party at his Detroit mansion on November 25, 1968, to introduce them to the Motown staff and stars. Motown began negotiations to buy out the Jackson 5's Steeltown contract, completing the deal in March 1969. By the summer, Bobby Taylor began producing the group's first recordings at Motown's Hitsville U.S.A. recording studio in Detroit. The early Taylor-produced Jackson 5 records were all covers of both contemporary hits and Motown-standards, including Sly & the Family Stone's "Stand!" and their famous rendition of The Miracles' "Who's Lovin' You", written by Smokey Robinson. Gordy moved the Jackson 5 and Joseph to California, and he and Suzanne de Passe began the process of grooming them as the label's next big act, while the rest of the family remained in Gary. While looking for a house in California, Joseph, Jermaine, Tito, and Jackie lived with Berry Gordy, Marlon and Michael lived with Diana Ross in her California home.
Motown's marketing team prepared press kits and other promotional material to begin The Jackson 5's entrance into the mainstream music industry. Motown publicity significantly altered the group's history, publicizing the ages of most of its band mates as younger than they were — Michael's age changed from eleven to nine to make him appear cuter — and identifying unrelated band musicians Johnny Jackson and Ronnie Rancifer as cousins of the Jacksons. In a major marketing coup, Gordy and Motown decided to attach the group to an established star to increase public curiosity. Thus, it was decided that Motown star Diana Ross would "discover" the group as was explained in all early press kits.[6] According to their official Motown biography, referenced in several early interviews and liner notes, Diana Ross (and, in some versions of the story, Berry Gordy alongside her) was introduced to the Jackson 5 by Gary, Indiana's mayor, Richard G. Hatcher, at a benefit concert that the Jackson 5 were described as having played for the mayor in 1969. Impressed, Ross (and Gordy) had the act signed.
Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5[edit source]
The Jackson 5 practiced and rehearsed continuously during the late summer and early fall of 1969. Diana Ross formally introduced The Jackson 5 to the public on August 11, 1969, at a Beverly Hills, California club called "The Daisy." Towards the end of August, The Jackson 5 made their first television appearance, singing The Isley Brothers' "It's Your Thing" at the Miss Black America Pageant in Madison Square Garden, New York City.
The Jackson 5's first single, "I Want You Back", was written and produced by four Motown songwriters and producers — Berry Gordy, Alphonzo Mizell, Deke Richards, and Freddie Perren — who were collectively billed as "The Corporation". "I Want You Back" was released as a single for The Jackson 5, as Motown decided to officially bill the group, on October 7. The group performed "I Want You Back", Sly & the Family Stone's "Sing a Simple Song", The Delfonics' "Can You Remember", and James Brown's "There Was a Time" as part of their appearance on The Hollywood Palace as special guests of Diana Ross & the Supremes. "I Want You Back" was the only single from The Jackson 5's first album, Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5, which was released in December 1969. The song reached number one in January, 1970.[7] When it did, Michael became the first person born during the "Hot 100" era, established by Billboard Magazine, to reach the number one position on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart.
Popularization and franchise expansion[edit source]
Most of the early Jackson 5 singles were written and produced by The Corporation, who crafted for The Jackson 5 a sound that mixed the traditional "Motown Sound" with teenage-honed lyrics that they termed "bubblegum soul". The Jackson 5 became an instant sensation, with "I Want You Back" and its 1970 followups "ABC", "The Love You Save," and "I'll Be There" all going to number one on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Billboard Best Selling Soul Singles chart.[7] "The Love You Save" charted atop the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks and "I'll Be There" remained at the top position of the chart for four weeks, which is tied with "I Want You Back" for the most successful single for the band in the United States.[7] The three singles were commercially successful internationally, mainly peaking within the top ten on music charts.[8][9] Other early Top 5 hits included "Mama's Pearl" and "Never Can Say Goodbye." Now successful, Joseph was finally able to arrange to move Katherine and the rest of the family out to California in 1970. First moving into a two-story residence at 1616 Queens Road in Los Angeles, the Jackson family moved to a gated mansion they called "Hayvenhurst", which was purchased by Joseph in March 1971.
"Jacksonmania" swept the nation, and within a year of their debut The Jackson 5 were among the biggest names in popular music. The group essentially replaced The Supremes as Motown's main marketing focus, and, capitalizing upon the youth-oriented appeal of the Jackson brothers, Motown licensed dozens of Jackson 5-related juvenile products, including the now famous J5 Heart logo which appears on Johnny Jacksons drum kit and many of The Jackson 5's album covers, stickers, sewable patches, posters, and coloring books. A new teen magazine aimed at African-American youth, Right On!, began publication in 1971, and focused heavily on The Jackson 5; at least one Jackson adorned the cover of every issue published between January 1972 and April 1974. Animation producers Rankin/Bass produced The Jackson 5ive, a Saturday morning cartoon that debuted on September 11, 1971 and ran for two seasons on ABC. The Jackson 5 starred in two of their own television specials, Goin' Back to Indiana (aired September 16, 1971) and The Jackson 5 Show (aired November 5, 1972).
In 1971, Motown began a spin-off solo career for Michael, whose first single, "Got to Be There" became a Top 5 hit. Michael also sang the title track for the 1972 motion picture "Ben". His other successful solo singles included "Rockin' Robin" and "I Wanna Be Where You Are" (both 1972). Jermaine started a solo career of his own in 1972, and had a Top Ten hit with his Shep and the Limelites cover "Daddy's Home". Jackie also recorded a solo album in 1973, but his releases failed to chart. Despite fan rumors that all three Jacksons might leave the group as they released solo work, the solo careers of Michael, Jermaine, and Jackie co-existed alongside that of the group as a whole, allowing Motown to expand the success and sales of Jackson 5-related releases.
During the 1970's Vietnam War era, the group frequently joined U.S. comedian Bob Hope on USO (United Service Organizations) domestic tours, to support the military troops.[10]
Later career[edit source]

Question book-new.svg
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After 1972, The Jackson 5's releases were not as successful, but they still did very well. Later top-20 hits, mostly written and produced by Hal Davis included "Lookin' Through the Windows" (1972) and the disco-styled "Dancing Machine" (1974), which popularized the "Robot" dance routine. Jackson 5 albums declined somewhat in critical acclaim and financial success during the latter part of their Motown tenure, although LPs such as Lookin' Through the Windows (1972) and G.I.T.: Get It Together (1973) frequently included successful album tracks, including their version of "Hum Along and Dance", a popular number in their live act.
The Jackson 5 provided background vocals on Stevie Wonder's "You Haven't Done Nothin'" from his 1974 album Fulfillingness' First Finale.
Critics, The Jackson 5, and Joseph Jackson agreed [according to whom?]that the main reason for the group's declining success was Motown's refusal to update their image. Although they played their own instruments on stage and had begun writing and producing songs in their own home recording studio, The Jackson 5 later said that Motown wouldn't allow them to record their own compositions or play instruments in their studio recordings. The group's studio recordings were first handled by Motown's famed in-house studio band The Funk Brothers during their brief recording tenure at Hitsville and later instrumentation was played by many of the members of The Wrecking Crew, which formed Motown's Hitsville West studio band. Feeling that The Jackson 5 could be more of a success without Motown, which was by this time declining in success and popularity, Joseph began shopping for a new record deal for his sons.
The move to CBS Records[edit source]
In 1975, Joseph negotiated a new recording contract with CBS Records, who offered a royalty rate of 20% per record, compared to Motown's standard 2.8%; and would allow the Jackson brothers to write and produce their own records and play their own instruments. After unsuccessfully attempting to talk the group into staying on the label, Motown sued for breach of contract. Although Motown eventually let the group go, The Jackson 5 were forced to change their name to The Jacksons, because Motown retained the "Jackson 5" trademark during the settlement of the lawsuit. The Jacksons also replaced Jermaine with their brother, 14-year-old Randy, since Jermaine chose to stay with Motown after he married Berry Gordy's daughter, Hazel. Randy had been an unofficial member of The Jackson 5 since 1972, playing congas onstage as part of their live act.



Joey Bishop and the Jackson 5 from their television program in 1976.
After losing The Jacksons, Motown would not have another success of their caliber for the duration of Berry Gordy's ownership of the label. Gordy often said of The Jackson 5 that they were, coming after the label's most famous acts, "the last big stars to come rolling off the [Motown] assembly line."[11] In summer 1976, CBS television signed the Jackson family (including Michael, Marlon, Tito, Jackie, Randy, Rebbie, LaToya, and Janet) to appear in their own variety show, The Jacksons, to compete with ABC's Donny & Marie. The Jacksons debuted on June 16, 1976, and ran on CBS until its cancellation the following March 1977. The show was the first variety show hosted by an African American family.
First as part of CBS's Philadelphia International Records division, and later moving over to Epic Records, The Jacksons continued releasing popular singles such as "Enjoy Yourself", "Show You the Way to Go", and "Goin' Places", produced by Philadelphia International's Kenneth Gamble & Leon Huff. After two LPs produced by Gamble and Huff, The Jacksons wanted artistic control, and produced their next LP, 1978's Destiny, on their own. The album included The Jacksons' biggest post-Motown single, "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)", which charted at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and at number three on the Billboard R&B Singles chart. "Shake Your Body", written by Michael and Randy, sold over two million copies, attaining double-platinum status. Destiny also included "Blame It on the Boogie", and "Things I Do For You". Destiny also went platinum, and peaked at number 11 on the Billboard 200 album chart and number three on the R&B album charts. In 1979, The Jacksons received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1978, Michael starred alongside Diana Ross in the Motown/Universal Pictures motion picture The Wiz, an adaptation of the Broadway musical based upon L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Quincy Jones was the producer of the film's songs, and he and Michael began work on Michael’s first Epic solo album, Off the Wall, the next year. Off the Wall, released in 1979, sold 20 million copies worldwide and featured four Top 10 hit singles and two number-one singles, causing some speculation about whether Michael would leave The Jacksons, though Michael told several reporters at the time that such speculation was unfounded.[citation needed]
Michael and Marlon's departure and other work[edit source]
In 1980 the group released the Triumph album, which featured the hits "Lovely One", "Heartbreak hotel", and "Can You Feel It", as well as the dance club hit "Walk Right Now". The following year's The Jacksons Live! used recordings from the group's Triumph Tour, which in 1988 was described by Rolling Stone magazine as one of the best 25 tours from 1967 to 1987. The group's success was outperformed, however, by Michael's 1982 LP Thriller. Thriller went on to become the most successful album ever in the United States, and to date stands as the world's best-selling album of all time.[12][13] The Motown 25 television special, broadcast on NBC on May 16, 1983, featured a reunion performance between Jermaine and the other brothers. Outside of one 1979 appearance on the TV show Midnight Special this was the original Jackson 5's first performance in nearly seven years. The Motown 25 Jackson 5 reunion was overshadowed, however, by Michael's performance of "Billie Jean" on the same program, which introduced his trademark black sequin jacket, single decorated glove and "moonwalk" dance.
In 1984, all six Jackson brothers reunited to make the album Victory. The album was only modestly successful. Three singles were released from the album; "State of Shock", which features Mick Jagger, "Torture" and "Body". "Torture" peaked at No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 26 on the United Kingdom charts.[14][15] However, the subsequent Victory Tour of North America in the summer and fall of 1984 proved to be one of the biggest concert tours of the 1980s.[16] Aside from a few scattered TV and concert appearances in the 1970s, the Victory Tour period was the only time all six brothers performed together as full members of the band.
Michael left the band to continue his solo career after the tour, and after his album Thriller became the best selling album of all time winning eight Grammy Awards in 1984. Marlon left around the same time to pursue a business career outside music. The other brothers took on solo projects. Most of them would appear with Michael on the U.S.A. For Africa single "We Are the World" in 1985.
The last Jacksons album was 2300 Jackson Street in 1989. The first single from the project, "Nothin' (That Compares 2 U)" reached No. 4 on the US Billboard R&B Singles chart. Every Jackson sibling except for LaToya appeared on the title track, a No. 9 R&B hit single. The rest of the album featured Jermaine, Jackie, Tito, and Randy only.
In 1992, a miniseries depicting the rise of the group titled The Jacksons: An American Dream, aired on ABC and was hugely successful.
In September 2001, The Jacksons reunited to perform at a concert special at Madison Square Garden to celebrate 30 years of Michael Jackson's career as a solo artist. The concerts were filmed and the footage was shown in the special, 30th Anniversary celebration, which aired on CBS in November 2001 as a two-hour television special. The on-stage performance was for the first time since The Jacksons Victory Tour seventeen years prior.[17] A CD compilation of hits from the CBS/Epic years, The Essential Jacksons, was released in 2004, as was a separate compilation assembled by Universal/Hip-O, The Jacksons Story.
The Jacksons: A Family Dynasty and reunion attempts[edit source]
Beginning in early 2009, the four oldest brothers (Jackie, Tito, Jermaine and Marlon) filmed a reality television show, documenting their attempts to get the family band back together. In December 2009, the show debuted on the A&E Network under the title The Jacksons: A Family Dynasty. Michael Jackson's attempted comeback and his sudden death happened in the middle of the project. Those events dominated the reality TV show, even though he was never seen on-camera (except in old music videos).[18]



"This Is It"




A sample of Michael and The Jacksons' "This Is It". The song was the first song for The Jacksons to chart on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks since 1970. (The song was later recorded by Michael alone, and served as the title track for his post-humous concert film.)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Problems playing this file? See media help.
In June 2009, following the death of brother Michael, the surviving Jacksons recorded background vocals for a previously unreleased song, "This Is It" (the theme for the movie of the same name), which had originally been a demo.[19] The radio-only single was released in October of that same year. The song did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100, but charted at number nineteen on Billboards Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks.[20] "This Is It" returned The Jacksons to the chart for the first time since 1970, when, billed as the Jackson 5, the group marked its sole previous entry, "I'll Be There", which went on to peak on the chart at number twenty-four.[21] The surviving members of the Jacksons were in talks of planning a reunion concert tour (which was to be served as a tribute to Michael) for 2010, and were in talks in working on their first new studio album in over 20 years.[18][22] However, neither plan was put into action.
In September 2010, Jermaine Jackson held his own "tribute" concert to Michael in Las Vegas. While his brothers and sister Janet attended, none of them joined their brother onstage. As of August 2011, the future of the Jacksons remains uncertain as Jackie Jackson released a solo single to iTunes and both Jermaine and Tito Jackson were planning new solo studio albums, which haven't been released yet. Marlon Jackson retired from the music business in 1989. Randy Jackson hasn't been active in music since the disbanding of Randy & The Gypsys in 1991.
In August 2011, there appeared to be a discord between the brothers concerning a tribute concert dedicated to Michael. While Jackie, Tito and Marlon were present alongside mother Katherine and sister La Toya for a tribute concert that is currently in planning for Cardiff at the Millennium Stadium for a press conference concerning the tour, a couple days after the press conference, both Randy and Jermaine issued a statement denouncing the tribute tour as the date of it occurs around the same time of Conrad Murray's manslaughter trial in relation to Michael's death.
The Jacksons: Unity Tour 2012[edit source]
In April 2012, Jackie, Tito, Jermaine and Marlon announced that they would reunite for several US concerts for their Unity Tour. 38 dates were announced, however, 11 shows in the United States were cancelled. The tour started at Casino Rama in Rama, Canada on June 20 and was scheduled to end on December 9 in Osaka, Japan.[23]
Legacy[edit source]
The singing efforts of Michael and his brothers led to the group's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997 and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999.[24][25] Two of the band's recordings ("ABC" and "I Want You Back") are among The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's "500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll", with the latter track also included in the Grammy Hall of Fame.[24][26] On September 8, 2008, The Jacksons were honored as BMI Icons at the annual BMI Urban Awards.[27]
In 1992, Suzanne de Passe and Jermaine Jackson worked with Motown to produce The Jacksons: An American Dream, a five-hour television miniseries broadcast based on the history of The Jackson family in a two-part special on American Broadcast Company. The script began with Katherine and Joseph Jackson's first meeting in the mid-1940s and ended with the Victory Tour in 1984.
The Jackson 5 was influenced by The Temptations, Supremes, Stevie Wonder, James Brown & The Famous Flames, Little Richard, Ray Charles, The Cadillacs, Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, Jackie Wilson, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, and Berry Gordy. In turn, they served as the inspiration for several generations of boy bands, including New Edition, Menudo, New Kids on the Block, N*SYNC, the Jonas Brothers, Backstreet Boys, and many more. The rise of the Jackson 5 in the 1960s and 1970s coincided with the rise of a very similar band of brothers, the Osmond Brothers. Some considered the Osmonds, who were white, an imitation of the Jacksons. However, the Osmonds actually started a few years before the Jacksons, and were considered an inspiration to them. Joseph Jackson was impressed by the Osmond Brothers' early TV appearances and instructed his own sons to study them closely. Eventually, the members of the two families became friends. Jay Osmond recalled in a June 2009 blog posting that "Michael had a unique sense of humor about him, and told us he was so tired of watching The Osmonds on The Andy Williams Show. He explained this was something their father had them do, and Michael joked he became really tired of it!"[28]
Band members[edit source]
Main article: List of The Jackson 5 band members
Current membersJackie Jackson – vocals, tambourine (1962–1990, 2001, 2012–present)
Tito Jackson – vocals, lead guitar, bass guitar, rhythm guitar, electric guitar (1962–1990, 2001, 2012–present)
Jermaine Jackson – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, bass guitar (1962–1975, 1983–1990, 2001, 2012–present)
Marlon Jackson – vocals, conga, tambourine, percussion (1963–1985, 2001, 2012–present)
 Former membersMichael Jackson – conga, tambourine, backing vocals, lead vocals (1963–1984, 2001; died 2009)
Randy Jackson – vocals, percussion, keyboards (1975–1990, 2001)

Discography[edit source]
Main article: Jackson 5 discography
Motown releases (as The Jackson 5)Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5 (1969)
ABC (1970)
Third Album (1970)
Jackson 5 Christmas Album (1970)
Maybe Tomorrow (1971)
Goin' Back to Indiana (1971)
Lookin' Through the Windows (1972)
Skywriter (1973)
G.I.T.: Get It Together (1973)
Dancing Machine (1974)
Moving Violation (1975)
Joyful Jukebox Music (1976)
 CBS/Epic releases (as The Jacksons)The Jacksons (1976)
Goin' Places (1977)
Destiny (1978)
Triumph (1980)
The Jacksons Live! (1981)
Victory (1984)
2300 Jackson Street (1989)


Live albumsThe Jacksons Live! (1981)
Tours[edit source]
Main article: List of concert tours by Michael Jackson and The Jackson 5
The Jackson 5Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5 Tour (1970) (May 2, 1970 – August 12, 1970) [29]
ABC Tour (1970) (June 19, 1970 – August 12, 1970) [29]
Third Album/The Jackson 5 Christmas Album Tour (1970–1971) (October 9, 1970 – April 4, 1971) [29]
Maybe Tomorrow Tour (1971) (May 28, 1971 – September 26, 1971) [29]
Goin' Back to Indiana Tour (1971–1972) (December 25, 1971 – April 1, 1972) [29]
Lookin' Through the Windows Tour (1972–1973) (June 30, 1972 – March 4, 1973) [29]
Skywriter Tour (1973) (April 27, 1973 – September 2, 1973) [29]
G.I.T.: Get It Together Tour (1973–1974) (October 21, 1973 – September 3, 1974) [29]
Dancing Machine Tour (1974–1975) (September 5, 1974 – March 8, 1975) [29]
Moving Violation Tour (1975–1976) (June 11, 1975 – February 19, 1976) [29]
 The JacksonsThe Jacksons (album) Tour (1977) (May 19, – May 24, 1977) [30]
Goin' Places Tour (1978) (January 22 – May 13, 1978) [31]
Destiny Tour (1979–1980) (January 22, 1979 – September 26, 1980) [32]
Triumph Tour (1981) (July 8 – September 26, 1981) [33]
Victory Tour (1984) (July 6 – December 9, 1984) [16]
Unity Tour (2012) (June 18, 2012 – March 26, 2013)

See also[edit source]
Book icon Book: The Jackson 5

 Wikimedia Commons has media related to: The Jackson 5

Portal icon Indiana portal
Portal icon Biography portal
Portal icon The Jackson Family portal
Portal icon Michael Jackson portal
List of best-selling music artists
List of number-one hits (United States)
List of artists who reached number one on the Hot 100 (U.S.)
List of number-one dance hits (United States)


Notes[edit source]
1.^ Huey, Steve. "The Jackson 5". Macrovision Corp. Retrieved 2008-05-08.
2.^ Gordy, Berry (July 19, 2009). Eulogy for Michael Jackson (Speech). Los Angeles, CA.
3.^ "Valpo resident who named Jackson Five recalls time with Michael". nwitimes.com. Retrieved 2009-12-13.
4.^ Taraborrelli, p. 36–37
5.^ Transcript of interview with Jermaine Jackson. Larry King Live. November 30, 2003. Retrieved from edition.cnn.com on August 20, 2005.
6.^ (August 25, 1970). "The Jackson Five". Look Magazine. Like all Motown-era Jackson 5 articles, Diana Ross is credited with having discovered the act with the help of Gary, Indiana's mayor Richard G. Hatcher, and Johnny Jackson and Ronnie Rancifer are identified as cousins of the Jackson brothers.
7.^ a b c George, p. 22
8.^ "The Jackson 5 - I Want You Back (chanson)". LesCharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
9.^ "The Jackson 5 - I'll Be There (chanson)". LesCharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
10.^ Halaby, Valerie. "Michael Jackson was long-time U.S. Military supporter". Clarity Digital Group LLC. Retrieved 07th August 2013.
11.^ (1997) "The Jackson 5". The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Retrieved from rockhall.com on August 20, 1995.
12.^ White, Jim (12 March 2007). "Michael Jackson's Thriller is old hat". Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 2008-05-10.
13.^ "Music Icon Quincy Jones Kicks-Off New Series in Tribune Newspapers". PR Newswire. 2009-01-16. Retrieved 2010-03-18.
14.^ "Amusements". Miami Herald. 21 September 1984. Retrieved 2010-03-18.
15.^ Halstead, p. 329.
16.^ a b Grant, p. 83
17.^ Tania Branigan (2001-09-08). "Jackson spends £20m to be Invincible". Guardian.co.uk. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 2010-03-18.
18.^ a b Mike Hale (2009-12-11). "No Longer One for All, but Still All From One". NYTimes.com (The New York Times Company). Retrieved 2010-03-06.
19.^ "New Michael Jackson song, 'This Is It', premieres online". Rolling Stones. October 12, 2009. Retrieved March 6, 2010.
20.^ Gary Trust (2009-10-15). "Chart Beat Thursday: Michael Buble, Michael Jackson, Kiss". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2010-03-06.
21.^ Gary Trust (2009-10-21). "Chart Beat Wednesday: Michael Jackson, Taylor Swift, Norah Jones Thomas Garner". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2010-03-06.
22.^ Bill Zwecker (2010-02-24). "J-Lo spins record discord". Suntimes.com. Sun-Times Media, LLC. Retrieved 2010-03-06.
23.^ Stevenson, Jane (2012-06-21). "Casino Rama, Rama Ont. June 20, 2012". Retrieved 2012-07-02.
24.^ a b George, p. 50–51
25.^ "Music muse". Erie Times-News. (May 6, 1999). Retrieved August 25, 2009.
26.^ "500 songs that shaped rock". The Denver Post. (September 3, 1995). Retrieved August 25, 2009.
27.^ "BMI Honors The Jacksons, T-Pain and Many More at Urban Awards in Los Angeles". bmi.com. Retrieved 2010-10-15.
28.^ "Jay Osmond Official Website". Jayosmond.com. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
29.^ a b c d e f g h i j Brooks, p. 80
30.^ Grant, p. 37
31.^ Grant, p. 40
32.^ Grant, p. 42
33.^ Grant, p. 55
References[edit source]
Brooks, Darren (2002). Michael Jackson: An Exceptional Journey. Chrome Dreams. ISBN 1-84240-178-5.
Grant, Adrian (2009). Michael Jackson: The Visual Documentary. Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-1-84938-261-8.
George, Nelson (2004). Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection booklet. Sony BMG.
Bierbaum, Tom (November 18, 1992). Week's Nielsen win easy as ABC[dead link]. Variety.
Cadman, Chris and Craig Halstead. Michael Jackson: the Early Years. Authors Online. ISBN 0-7552-0064-0
Green, Dave (producer/director). (January 29, 2005). VH1 News Presents: Michael Jackson's Secret Childhood [television broadcast]. New York, NY: MTV Networks.
Manning, Steve. The Jacksons. Indianapolis. Bobbs-Merrill. 1976.
Posner, Gerald (2002). Motown : Music, Money, Sex, and Power. New York: Random House. ISBN 0-375-50062-6.
Ward, Ed, Geoffrey Stokes and Ken Tucker (1986). Rock of Ages: The Rolling Stone History of Rock and Roll. Rolling Stone Press. ISBN 0-671-54438-1.
Taraborrelli, J. Randy (2004). The Magic and the Madness. Terra Alta, WV: Headline. ISBN 0-330-42005-4.
Neely, Tim (2000). Goldmine Standard Catalog of American Records 1950-1975 2nd Ed. Iola, WI: Krause. ISBN 0-87341-934-0.
External links[edit source]
 Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: The Jackson 5
Jackson Five documentary on BBC Radio
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame page on The Jackson 5
'Jackson Five' Vocal Group Hall of Fame Page
The Jackson Five Video Archive
Jackson 5 on The Ed Sullivan Show

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Michael Jackson

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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For other people named Michael Jackson, see Michael Jackson (disambiguation).
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Michael Jackson
An African-American man with shoulder length black curly hair wearing a black jacket and pants adorned with buckles singing into a microphone with his eyes closed. He is holding the microphone stand with both hands. Bright stage lights are visible in the background.
Jackson performs on his Bad World Tour in 1988

Background information

Birth name
Michael Joseph Jackson[1][2]
Also known as
Michael Joe Jackson
Born
August 29, 1958
Gary, Indiana, U.S.
Died
June 25, 2009 (aged 50)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres
Pop, rock, soul, R&B, funk, disco, new jack swing
Occupations
Musician, singer-songwriter, arranger, dancer, entertainer, choreographer, music producer, actor, businessman, philanthropist
Instruments
Vocals
Years active
1964–2009
Labels
Motown, Universal, Sony, Epic, Legacy, MJJ Productions
Associated acts
The Jackson 5
Notable instruments


Michael Jackson

Relatives
Joe Jackson (father)
Katherine Jackson (mother)
Rebbie Jackson (sister)
Jackie Jackson (brother)
Tito Jackson (brother)
Jermaine Jackson (brother)
La Toya Jackson (sister)
 Brandon Jackson (brother)
Marlon Jackson (brother)
Randy Jackson (brother)
Janet Jackson (sister)
Signature
Michael Jackson's signature

Michael Joseph Jackson[1][2] (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer-songwriter, dancer, businessman and philanthropist. Often referred to by the honorific nickname "King of Pop", or by his initials MJ,[3] Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records. His contributions to music, dance, and fashion, along with his publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture for over four decades.
The eighth child of the Jackson family, he debuted on the professional music scene along with his brothers as a member of The Jackson 5 in 1964, and began his solo career in 1971. In the early 1980s, Jackson became the dominant figure in popular music. The music videos for his songs, including those of "Beat It," "Billie Jean," and "Thriller," were credited with breaking down racial barriers and transforming the medium into an art form and promotional tool. The popularity of these videos helped to bring the then relatively new television channel MTV to fame. With videos such as "Black or White" and "Scream" he continued to innovate the medium throughout the 1990s, as well as forging a reputation as a touring solo artist. Through stage and video performances, Jackson popularized a number of complicated dance techniques, such as the robot, and the moonwalk, to which he gave the name. His distinctive sound and style has influenced numerous hip hop, post-disco, contemporary R&B, pop, and rock artists.
Jackson's 1982 album Thriller is the best-selling album of all time. His other records, including Off the Wall (1979), Bad (1987), Dangerous (1991), and HIStory (1995), also rank among the world's best-selling. Jackson is one of the few artists to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. He was also inducted into the Dance Hall of Fame as the first and only dancer from pop and rock music. Some of his other achievements include multiple Guinness World Records; 13 Grammy Awards as well as the Grammy Legend Award and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award; 26 American Music Awards, more than any other artist, including the "Artist of the Century" and "Artist of the 1980s"; 13 number-one singles in the United States in his solo career, more than any other male artist in the Hot 100 era; and the estimated sale of over 400 million records worldwide.[4][5][6][Note 1] Jackson has won hundreds of awards, making him the most-awarded recording artist in the history of popular music.[7] In what would have been Jackson's 52nd birthday on August 29, 2010, he became the most downloaded artist of all time.[8][9] Jackson constantly traveled the world attending events honoring his humanitarianism and the 2000 Guinness Book of Records recognized him for supporting 39 charities.[10]
Aspects of Jackson's personal life, including his changing appearance, personal relationships, and behavior, generated controversy. In the mid-1990s, he was accused of child sexual abuse, but the case was settled out of court for about $25 million and no formal charges were brought.[11] In 2005, he was tried and acquitted of further child sexual abuse allegations and several other charges after the jury found him not guilty on all counts.
While preparing for his comeback concert series titled This Is It, Jackson died of acute propofol and benzodiazepine intoxication on June 25, 2009, after suffering from cardiac arrest. The Los Angeles County Coroner ruled his death a homicide, and his personal physician was convicted of involuntary manslaughter. Jackson's death triggered a global outpouring of grief and a live broadcast of his public memorial service was viewed around the world.[12]

Contents
  [hide] 1 Life and career 1.1 1958–75: Early life and The Jackson 5
1.2 1975–81: Move to Epic and Off the Wall
1.3 1982–83: Thriller and Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever
1.4 1984–85: Pepsi, "We Are the World", and business career
1.5 1986–90: Appearance, tabloids, Bad, films, autobiography, and Neverland
1.6 1991–93: Dangerous, Heal the World Foundation, and Super Bowl XXVII
1.7 1993–94: First child sexual abuse allegations and first marriage
1.8 1995–99: HIStory, second marriage, and fatherhood
1.9 2000–03: Label dispute, Invincible, and third child
1.10 2003–05: Second child sexual abuse allegations and acquittal
1.11 2006–09: Closure of Neverland, final years, and This Is It
2 Death and memorial 2.1 Aftermath
3 Artistry 3.1 Influences
3.2 Musical themes and genres
3.3 Vocal style
3.4 Music videos and choreography
4 Legacy and influence
5 Honors and awards
6 Earnings and wealth
7 Discography
8 Filmography
9 Tours
10 See also
11 Notes
12 References 12.1 Citations
12.2 Bibliography
13 Further reading
14 External links

Life and career
1958–75: Early life and The Jackson 5

A house surrounded by yellow colored grass, flowers, trees, and a light blue colored sky can be seen. The house has white walls, two windows, a white door with a black door frame, and a black roof. In front of the house there is a walk way, yellow grass and multiple colored flowers and memorabilia. In the background, there are two tall trees and a light blue colored sky that has multiple clouds.

 Jackson's childhood home in Gary, Indiana, showing floral tributes after his death
Michael Jackson was born on August 29, 1958, in Gary, Indiana. He was the eighth of ten children in an African-American working-class family who lived in a 3-room house in Gary,[13] an industrial city near Chicago. His mother, Katherine Esther Scruse, was a devout Jehovah's Witness, and his father, Joseph Walter "Joe" Jackson, was a steel mill worker who performed with an R&B band called The Falcons. Jackson had three sisters: Rebbie, La Toya, and Janet, and five brothers: Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Randy.[14] A sixth brother, Brandon, who was a twin of older brother Marlon, died shortly after birth.[15]
Jackson had a troubled relationship with his father, Joe.[16][17][18] Joseph acknowledged in 2003 that he regularly whipped Jackson as a boy.[18] Jackson stated that he was physically and emotionally abused during incessant rehearsals, though he also credited his father's strict discipline with playing a large role in his success.[16] Jackson first spoke openly about his childhood abuse in an interview with Oprah Winfrey, broadcast in February 1993. He admitted that he had often cried from loneliness and he would vomit on the sight of his father. Jackson's father was also said to have verbally abused Jackson, saying that he had a fat nose on numerous occasions.[19] In fact, Michael Jackson's deep dissatisfaction with his appearance, his nightmares and chronic sleep problems, his tendency to remain hyper-compliant especially with his father, and to remain childlike throughout his adult life are in many ways consistent with the effects of this chronic maltreatment he endured as a young child.[20]
In an interview with Martin Bashir, later included in the 2003 broadcast of Living with Michael Jackson, Jackson acknowledged that his father hurt him when he was a child, but was nonetheless a "genius", as he admitted his father's strict discipline played a huge role in his success. When Bashir dismissed the positive remark and continued asking about beatings, Jackson put his hand over his face and objected to the questions. He recalled that Joseph sat in a chair with a belt in his hand as he and his siblings rehearsed, and that "if you didn't do it the right way, he would tear you up, really get you".[21][22]



 Jackson (center) as a member of The Jackson 5 in 1972
In 1964, Michael and Marlon joined the Jackson Brothers—a band formed by brothers Jackie, Tito, and Jermaine—as backup musicians playing congas and tambourine. Jackson later began performing backup vocals and dancing. When he was eight, Jackson began sharing the lead vocals with his older brother Jermaine, and the group's name was changed to The Jackson 5.[14] The band toured the Midwest extensively from 1966 to 1968, frequently performing at a string of black clubs known as the "chitlin' circuit", where they often opened stripteases and other adult acts. In 1966, they won a major local talent show with renditions of Motown hits and James Brown's "I Got You (I Feel Good)", led by Michael.[23]
The Jackson 5 recorded several songs, including "Big Boy", for the local record label Steeltown in 1967, before signing with Motown Records in 1968.[14] Rolling Stone magazine later described the young Michael as "a prodigy" with "overwhelming musical gifts," writing that he "quickly emerged as the main draw and lead singer."[24] The group set a chart record when its first four singles ("I Want You Back", "ABC", "The Love You Save", and "I'll Be There") peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100.[14] Between 1972 and 1975, Michael released four solo studio albums with Motown, among them Got to Be There and Ben, released as part of the Jackson 5 franchise, and producing successful singles such as "Got to Be There", "Ben", and a remake of Bobby Day's "Rockin' Robin".
The Jackson 5 "became a cutting-edge example of black crossover artists... five working-class black boys with afros and bell bottoms, and they really didn't have to trade any of that stuff in order to become mainstream stars."[25]
The group's sales began declining in 1973, and the band members chafed under Motown's strict refusal to allow them creative control or input. Although they scored several top 40 hits, including the top 5 disco single "Dancing Machine" and the top 20 hit "I Am Love", the Jackson 5 left Motown in 1975.[26]
1975–81: Move to Epic and Off the Wall
In June 1975, the Jackson 5 signed with Epic Records, a subsidiary of CBS Records[26] and renamed themselves the Jacksons. Younger brother Randy formally joined the band around this time, while Jermaine choose to stay with Motown and pursue a solo career.[27] They continued to tour internationally, releasing six more albums between 1976 and 1984, during which Michael was the lead songwriter, writing hits such as "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)", "This Place Hotel", and "Can You Feel It".[23] In 1978, he starred as the Scarecrow in the musical, The Wiz, a box-office disaster. It was here that he teamed up with Quincy Jones, who was arranging the film's musical score. Jones agreed to produce Jackson's next solo album, Off the Wall.[28] In 1979, Jackson broke his nose during a complex dance routine. His subsequent rhinoplasty was not a complete success; he complained of breathing difficulties that would affect his career. He was referred to Dr. Steven Hoefflin, who performed Jackson's second rhinoplasty and subsequent operations.[29]
Jones and Jackson produced the Off the Wall album together. Songwriters for the album included Jackson, Rod Temperton, Stevie Wonder, and Paul McCartney. Released in 1979, it was the first solo album to generate four U.S. top 10 hits, including the chart-topping singles "Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough" and "Rock with You".[30][31] It reached number three on the Billboard 200 and eventually sold over 20 million copies worldwide.[32] In 1980, Jackson won three awards at the American Music Awards for his solo efforts: Favorite Soul/R&B Album, Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist, and Favorite Soul/R&B Single for "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough".[33][34] That year, he also won Billboard Year-End for Top Black Artist and Top Black Album and a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance, also for "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough".[30] Jackson again won at the American Music Awards in 1981 for Favorite Soul/R&B Album and Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist.[35] Despite its commercial success, Jackson felt Off the Wall should have made a much bigger impact, and was determined to exceed expectations with his next release.[36] In 1980, he secured the highest royalty rate in the music industry: 37 percent of wholesale album profit.[37]
1982–83: Thriller and Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever
In 1982, Jackson contributed the song "Someone In the Dark" to the storybook for the film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial; the record won a Grammy for Best Recording for Children in 1984. In the same year he won another seven Grammys and eight American Music Awards (including the Award of Merit, the youngest artist to win it), making him the most awarded artist in one night for both award shows.[38][39] These awards were thanks to the Thriller album, released in late 1982, which was 1983's best-selling album worldwide[40][41] and became the best-selling album of all time in the United States,[42] as well as the best-selling album of all time worldwide, selling an estimated 65 million copies.[43] The album topped the Billboard 200 chart for 37 weeks and was in the top 10 of the 200 for 80 consecutive weeks. It was the first album to have seven Billboard Hot 100 top 10 singles, including "Billie Jean", "Beat It", and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'".[44] Thriller was certified for 29 million shipments by the RIAA, giving it Double Diamond status in the United States. The album won also another Grammy for Best Engineered Recording – Non Classical in 1984, awarding Bruce Swedien for his work.[45]
Jackson's attorney John Branca noted that Jackson had the highest royalty rate in the music industry at that point: approximately $2 for every album sold. He was also making record-breaking profits from sales of his recordings. The videocassette of the documentary The Making of Michael Jackson's Thriller sold over 350,000 copies in a few months. The era saw the arrival of novelties like dolls modeled after Michael Jackson, which appeared in stores in May 1984 at a price of $12.[46] Biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli writes that, "Thriller stopped selling like a leisure item—like a magazine, a toy, tickets to a hit movie—and started selling like a household staple."[47] In 1985, The Making of Michael Jackson's Thriller won a Grammy for Best Music Video, Longform.[38] In December 2009, the music video for "Thriller" was selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, "Thriller" is the first (and currently only) music video ever to be inducted.[48][49][50]
Time described Jackson's influence at that point as "Star of records, radio, rock video. A one-man rescue team for the music business. A songwriter who sets the beat for a decade. A dancer with the fanciest feet on the street. A singer who cuts across all boundaries of taste and style and color too".[46] The New York Times wrote that, "in the world of pop music, there is Michael Jackson and there is everybody else".[51]
On March 25, 1983, Michael Jackson reunited with his brothers for a legendary live performance which was taped for a Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever television special. The show aired on May 16, 1983, to an audience of 47 million viewers, and featured the Jacksons and a number of other Motown stars. It is best remembered for Jackson's solo performance of "Billie Jean" which gave him his first Emmy nomination.[52] Wearing a distinctive black sequin jacket and golf glove decorated with rhinestones, he debuted his signature dance move, the moonwalk, which former Soul Train dancer and Shalamar member Jeffrey Daniel had taught him three years before. The performance almost did not happen with Jackson originally turning down the invitation to perform, however at Berry Gordy's request, Jackson agreed to do the show. Jackson's performance drew comparisons to Elvis Presley's and The Beatles' appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show.[53] Anna Kisselgoff of The New York Times later wrote, "The moonwalk that he made famous is an apt metaphor for his dance style. How does he do it? As a technician, he is a great illusionist, a genuine mime. His ability to keep one leg straight as he glides while the other bends and seems to walk requires perfect timing."[54] Berry Gordy said of the performance, "from the first beat of Billie Jean, I was mesmerized, and when he did his iconic moonwalk, I was shocked, it was magic, Michael Jackson went into orbit, and never came down."[55]
1984–85: Pepsi, "We Are the World", and business career

A black and white image shows a man standing next to a person dressed in a full dog costume. The man on the left has his left arm around the waist of the other person and is smiling.

 Jackson with a Knott's Berry Farm Snoopy mascot in April 1984
On January 27, 1984, Michael and other members of the Jacksons filmed a Pepsi Cola commercial, overseen by executive Phil Dusenberry,[56] from ad agency BBDO and Pepsi's Worldwide Creative Director, Alan Pottasch at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. In front of a full house of fans during a simulated concert, pyrotechnics accidentally set Jackson's hair on fire. He suffered second-degree burns to his scalp. Jackson underwent treatment to hide the scars on his scalp, and he also had his third rhinoplasty shortly thereafter.[29] Jackson never recovered from this injury. Pepsi settled out of court, and Jackson donated his $1.5 million settlement to the Brotman Medical Center in Culver City, California, which now has a "Michael Jackson Burn Center" in honor of his donation.[57] Dusenberry later recounted the episode in his memoir, Then We Set His Hair on Fire: Insights and Accidents from a Hall of Fame Career in Advertising.
On May 14, 1984, Jackson was invited to the White House to receive an award from President Ronald Reagan for his support of charities that helped people overcome alcohol and drug abuse.[58] Jackson won eight awards during the Grammys that year. Unlike later albums, Thriller did not have an official tour to promote it, but the 1984 Victory Tour, headlined by The Jacksons, showcased much of Jackson's new solo material to more than two million Americans. He donated all the funds (around $8 million) raised from the Victory Tour to charity.[59] He also co-wrote the charity single "We Are the World" in 1985 with Lionel Richie, which was released worldwide to aid the poor in the U.S. and Africa. It became one of the best-selling singles of all time, with nearly 30 million copies sold and millions of dollars donated to famine relief. In 1986, "We Are the World" won four Grammys (one for Jackson for Song of the Year). American Music Award directors removed the charity song from the competition because they felt it would be inappropriate, but recognized it with two special honors: one for the creation of the song and one for the USA for Africa idea. Michael won the award for the creation of the song.[60][61][62][63]

In the center of the photo four people can be seen. To the farthest left a medium skin colored man wearing a black suit with a white shirt can be seen. Second to the left a Caucasian man wearing a black suit with a white shirt and brown tie has his head turned to the right. To the right of the Caucasian male there is an African American man wearing a white shirt with a blue jacket that has a yellow strap across his chest. He is raising his right hand, which is covered with a white glove. To the farthest right, a Caucasian female with short blonde hair, who is wearing a white outfit, can be seen. In the background a cream colored building with an opened green door can be seen.

 Jackson at the White House being presented with an award by President Ronald Reagan and first lady Nancy Reagan, 1984
In 1984, ATV Music Publishing, which had the copyrights to nearly 4000 songs, including the Northern Songs catalog that contained the majority of the Lennon–McCartney compositions recorded by The Beatles, was put up for sale by Robert Holmes à Court.[64] Jackson had become interested in owning music catalogs after working with Paul McCartney in the early 1980s. Jackson had learned McCartney made approximately $40 million a year from other people's songs.[65] In 1981,[66] McCartney was offered the ATV music catalog for £20 million ($40 million).[65][67] According to McCartney, he contacted Yoko Ono about making a joint purchase by splitting the cost equally at £10 million each, but Ono thought they could buy it for £5 million each.[65][67] When they were unable to make the joint purchase, McCartney let the offer fall through, not wanting to be the sole owner of the Beatles' songs.[66][67]
According to a negotiator for Holmes à Court in the 1984 sale, "We had given Paul McCartney first right of refusal but Paul didn't want it at that time."[68] Also, an attorney for McCartney assured Jackson's attorney, John Branca, that McCartney was not interested in bidding: McCartney reportedly said "It's too pricey".[65][66] But there were several other companies and investors bidding. In September 1984, Jackson was first informed about the sale by Branca and sent a bid of $46 million on November 20, 1984.[64] Jackson's agents thought they had a deal several times, but encountered new bidders or new areas of debate.[64] In May 1985, Jackson's team walked away from talks after having spent over $1 million on four months of due diligence and on the negotiations.[64]
In June 1985, Jackson and Branca learned that Charles Koppelman's and Marty Bandier's The Entertainment Co. had made a tentative agreement with Holmes à Court to buy ATV Music for $50 million.[64] But in early August, Holmes à Court's team contacted Jackson and talks resumed. Jackson raised his bid to $47.5 million and it was accepted because he could close the deal more quickly, having already completed due diligence of ATV Music.[64] He also agreed to visit Holmes à Court in Australia, where he would appear on the Channel Seven Perth Telethon.[64][68] Jackson's purchase of ATV Music was finalized August 10, 1985.[64]
1986–90: Appearance, tabloids, Bad, films, autobiography, and Neverland
See also: Michael Jackson's health and appearance
Jackson's skin had been a medium-brown color for the entire duration of his youth, but starting in the mid-1980s, it gradually grew paler. The change gained widespread media coverage, including rumors that he might be bleaching his skin.[69] According to J. Randy Taraborrelli's biography, in 1986, Jackson was diagnosed with vitiligo and lupus; the vitiligo partially lightened his skin, and the lupus was in remission; both illnesses made him sensitive to sunlight. The treatments he used for his condition further lightened his skin tone, and, with the application of pancake makeup to even out blotches, he could appear very pale.[70] Jackson was also diagnosed with vitiligo in his autopsy.[71] By the mid-1990s several surgeons speculated that he had undergone various nasal surgeries, a forehead lift, thinned lips, and cheekbone surgery—although Jackson denied this and insisted that he only had surgery on his nose.[72] Jackson claimed that he had only two rhinoplasties and no other surgery on his face, although at one point he mentioned having a dimple created in his chin.[73] Jackson lost weight in the early 1980s because of a change in diet and a desire for "a dancer's body".[73] Witnesses reported that he was often dizzy and speculated that he was suffering from anorexia nervosa; periods of weight loss would become a recurring problem later in life.[74]
During the course of his treatment, Jackson made two close friends: his dermatologist, Dr. Arnold Klein, and Klein's nurse Debbie Rowe. Rowe eventually became Jackson's second wife and the mother of his two eldest children. He also relied heavily on Klein for medical and business advice.[75]
Jackson became the subject of increasingly sensational reports. In 1986, the tabloids ran a story claiming that Jackson slept in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber to slow the aging process; he was pictured lying down in a glass box. Although the claim was untrue, according to tabloid reports that are widely cited, Jackson had disseminated the fabricated story himself.[76][77] When Jackson bought a chimpanzee called Bubbles from a laboratory, he was reported to be increasingly detached from reality.[78] It was reported that Jackson had offered to buy the bones of Joseph Merrick (the "elephant man") and although untrue, Jackson did not deny the story.[76][77] Although initially he saw these stories as opportunities for publicity, he stopped leaking untruths to the press as they became more sensational. Consequently the media began making up their own stories.[77][79][80] These reports became embedded in the public consciousness, inspiring the nickname "Wacko Jacko", which Jackson came to despise.[81] Responding to the gossip, Jackson remarked to Taraborrelli:

Why not just tell people I'm an alien from Mars? Tell them I eat live chickens and do a voodoo dance at midnight. They'll believe anything you say, because you're a reporter. But if I, Michael Jackson, were to say, "I'm an alien from Mars and I eat live chickens and do a voodoo dance at midnight," people would say, "Oh, man, that Michael Jackson is nuts. He's cracked up. You can't believe a single word that comes out of his mouth."[82]

A black jacket with five round golden medals on its left and right shoulders and a gold band on its left arm sleeve. The jacket has two belt straps on the right bottom sleeve. Underneath the jacket is a golden belt, with a round ornament in its center. There is a red light reflecting on the jacket and belt as well as a gold colored plate on the left side of the jacket and belt.

 Jackson wore a gold-plated military style jacket with belt in the Bad era
Jackson collaborated with George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola on the 17-minute 3-D film Captain EO, which debuted in September 1986 at both the original Disneyland and at EPCOT in Florida, and in March 1987 at Tokyo Disneyland. The $30 million movie was a popular attraction at all three parks. A Captain EO attraction was later featured at Euro Disneyland after that park opened in 1992. All four parks' Captain EO installations stayed open well into the 1990s: the Paris installation was the last one to close, in 1998.[83] The attraction would later return to Disneyland in 2010 after Jackson's death.[84]
In 1987, Jackson disassociated himself from the Jehovah's Witnesses, in response to their disapproval of the Thriller video.[85] With the industry expecting another major hit, Jackson's first album in five years, Bad (1987), was highly anticipated.[86] It did not top Thriller as a commercial or artistic triumph, but Bad was still a substantial success in its own right.
The Bad album spawned seven hit singles in the U.S., five of which ("I Just Can't Stop Loving You", "Bad", "The Way You Make Me Feel", "Man in the Mirror" and "Dirty Diana") reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. This was a record for most number one Hot 100 singles from any one album, including Thriller.[87] Although the title track's video was arguably derivative of the video for the earlier single "Beat It", the "Bad" video still proved to be one of Jackson's iconic moments. It was a gritty but colorful epic set against the backdrop of the New York City Subway system, with costuming and choreography inspired by West Side Story. As of 2012, the album sold between 30 to 45 million copies worldwide.[88][89][90][91][92][93] Thanks to the Bad album, Bruce Swedien and Humberto Gatica won one Grammy in 1988 for Best Engineered Recording – Non Classical and Michael Jackson won one Grammy for Best Music Video, Short Form for "Leave Me Alone" in 1989.[38][45] In the same year, Jackson won an Award of Achievement at the American Music Awards because Bad is the first album ever to generate five number one singles in the U.S., the first album to top in 25 countries and the best-selling album worldwide in 1987 and in 1988.[94][95][96][97] In 1988, "Bad" won an American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Single.[98]
The Bad world tour began on September 12 that year, finishing on January 14, 1989.[99] In Japan alone, the tour had 14 sellouts and drew 570,000 people, nearly tripling the previous record of 200,000 in a single tour.[100] Jackson broke a Guinness World Record when 504,000 people attended seven sold-out shows at Wembley Stadium.[101] He performed a total of 123 concerts to an audience of 4.4 million people.[102][103] The Bad Tour turned out to be the last of Jackson's concert tours to include shows in the continental United States, although later tours did make it to Hawaii.
In 1988, Jackson released his only autobiography, Moonwalk, which took four years to complete and sold 200,000 copies.[104] Jackson wrote about his childhood, The Jackson 5, and the abuse he had suffered.[105] He also wrote about his facial appearance, saying he had had two rhinoplastic surgeries and a dimple created in his chin.[73] He attributed much of the change in the structure of his face to puberty, weight loss, a strict vegetarian diet, a change in hair style, and stage lighting.[73] Moonwalk reached the top position on The New York Times best sellers' list.[106] The musician then released a film called Moonwalker, which featured live footage and short films that starred Jackson and Joe Pesci. The film was originally intended to be released to theaters, but due to financial issues, the film was released direct-to-video. It saw a theatrical release in Germany, though. It debuted atop the Billboard Top Music Video Cassette chart, staying there for 22 weeks. It was eventually knocked off the top spot by Michael Jackson: The Legend Continues.[107]
In March 1988, Jackson purchased land near Santa Ynez, California, to build Neverland Ranch at a cost of $17 million. He installed Ferris wheels, a menagerie, and a movie theater on the 2,700-acre (11 km2) property. A security staff of 40 patrolled the grounds. In 2003, it was valued at approximately $100 million.[108][109] In 1989, his annual earnings from album sales, endorsements, and concerts was estimated at $125 million for that year alone.[110] Shortly afterwards, he became the first Westerner to appear in a television ad in the Soviet Union.[107]
His success resulted in him being dubbed the "King of Pop".[111][112][113][114] The nickname was popularized by Elizabeth Taylor when she presented him with the Soul Train Heritage Award in 1989, proclaiming him "the true king of pop, rock and soul."[115] President George H.W. Bush designated him the White House's "Artist of the Decade".[116] From 1985 to 1990, he donated $500,000 to the United Negro College Fund, and all of the profits from his single "Man in the Mirror" went to charity.[117][118] Jackson's live rendition of "You Were There" at Sammy Davis Jr.'s 60th birthday celebration allowed Jackson to receive his second Emmy nomination.[52][107]
1991–93: Dangerous, Heal the World Foundation, and Super Bowl XXVII
In March 1991, Jackson renewed his contract with Sony for $65 million, a record-breaking deal at the time,[119] displacing Neil Diamond's renewal contract with Columbia Records.[120] He released his eighth album Dangerous in 1991. The Dangerous album was co-produced with Teddy Riley, who convinced Michael to feature a rapper on his album for the first time. As of 2013, the album has shipped seven million copies in the U.S. and has sold approximately 30 million copies worldwide.[121][122][123] In the United States, the album's first single "Black or White" was its biggest hit, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and remaining there for seven weeks, with similar chart performances worldwide.[124] The album's second single "Remember the Time" spent eight weeks in the top five in the United States, peaking at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.[125] At the end of 1992, Dangerous was awarded the best-selling album of the year worldwide and "Black or White" was awarded best-selling single of the year worldwide at the Billboard Music Awards. Additionally, he won an award as best-selling artist of the 1980s.[126] In 1993, Jackson performed the song at the Soul Train Music Awards in a chair, saying he had suffered an injury in rehearsals.[127] In the UK and other parts of Europe, "Heal the World" was the biggest hit from the album; it sold 450,000 copies in the UK and spent five weeks at number two in 1992.[125]
Jackson founded the Heal the World Foundation in 1992. The charity organization brought underprivileged children to Jackson's ranch to enjoy theme park rides that Jackson had built on the property. The foundation also sent millions of dollars around the globe to help children threatened by war, poverty, and disease. In the same year Jackson published his second book, the bestselling collection of poetry, Dancing the Dream. While it was a commercial success and revealed a more intimate side to Jackson's nature, the collection was mostly critically unacclaimed at the time of release. In 2009, the book was republished by Doubleday and was more positively received by some critics in the wake of Jackson's untimely death. The Dangerous World Tour grossed $100 million. The tour began on June 27, 1992, and finished on November 11, 1993. Jackson performed to 3.5 million people in 70 concerts.[125][128] He sold the broadcast rights to his Dangerous world tour to HBO for $20 million, a record-breaking deal that still stands.[129]
Following the illness and death of Ryan White, Jackson helped draw public attention to HIV/AIDS, something that was still controversial at the time. He publicly pleaded with the Clinton Administration at Bill Clinton's Inaugural Gala to give more money to HIV/AIDS charities and research.[130][131] In a high-profile visit to Africa, Jackson visited several countries, among them Gabon and Egypt.[132] His first stop to Gabon was greeted with a sizable and enthusiastic reception of more than 100,000 people, some of them carrying signs that read, "Welcome Home Michael."[132] In his trip to Côte d'Ivoire, Jackson was crowned "King Sani" by a tribal chief.[132] He then thanked the dignitaries in French and English, signed official documents formalizing his kingship and sat on a golden throne while presiding over ceremonial dances.[132]
In January 1993, Jackson made a memorable appearance at the halftime show at Super Bowl XXVII. Because of dwindling interest during halftime in the years before, the NFL decided to seek big-name talent that would keep viewers and ratings high, with Jackson being selected because of his popularity and universal appeal.[133] It was the first Super Bowl where the audience figures increased during the half-time show to more than the game itself. The performance began with Jackson catapulting onto the stage as fireworks went off behind him. As he landed on the canvas, he maintained a motionless "clenched fist, standing statue stance", dressed in a gold and black military outfit and sunglasses; he remained completely motionless for a minute and a half while the crowd cheered. He then slowly removed his sunglasses, threw them away and sang four songs: "Jam", "Billie Jean", "Black or White" and "Heal the World". Jackson's Dangerous album rose 90 places up the album chart.[69] Jackson was given the "Living Legend Award" at the 35th Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. "Black or White" was Grammy-nominated for best vocal performance. "Jam" gained two nominations: Best R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song.[125] The Dangerous album won a Grammy for Best Engineered – Non Classical, awarding the work of Bruce Swedien and Teddy Riley. In the same year, Michael Jackson won three American Music Awards for Favorite Pop/Rock Album (Dangerous), Favorite Soul/R&B Single ("Remember the Time") and was the first to win the International Artist Award, for his global performances and humanitarian concerns. This award will bear his name in the future.[38][45][134]

1993–94: First child sexual abuse allegations and first marriage
Main article: 1993 child sexual abuse accusations against Michael Jackson
Jackson gave a 90-minute interview to Oprah Winfrey on February 10, 1993, his second television interview since 1979. He grimaced when speaking of his childhood abuse at the hands of his father; he believed he had missed out on much of his childhood years, admitting that he often cried from loneliness. He denied tabloid rumors that he had bought the bones of the Elephant Man, slept in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber, or bleached his skin, stating for the first time that he had vitiligo. Dangerous re-entered the album chart in the top 10, more than a year after its original release.[22][69][125]
In the summer of 1993, Jackson was accused of child sexual abuse by a 13-year-old boy named Jordan Chandler and his father, Dr. Evan Chandler, a dentist.[135][136][137] The Chandler family demanded payment from Jackson, and the singer initially refused. Jordan Chandler eventually told the police that Jackson had sexually abused him.[138] Dr. Chandler was tape-recorded discussing his intention to pursue charges, saying, "If I go through with this, I win big-time. There's no way I lose. I will get everything I want and they will be destroyed forever ... Michael's career will be over". Jordan's mother was, however, adamant that there had been no wrongdoing on Jackson's part.[137] Jackson later used the recording to argue that he was the victim of a jealous father whose only goal was to extort money from the singer.[137]
In August 1993, Jackson's home was raided by the police who, according to court documents, found books and photographs in his bedroom featuring young boys with little or no clothing.[139] In Dec 1993, Jackson was strip searched.[140] Jordan Chandler had reportedly given police a description of Jackson's intimate parts, and the strip search revealed that Jordan had correctly claimed Jackson had patchy-coloured buttocks, short pubic hair, and pink and brown marked testicles, but wrongly claimed Jackson was circumcised, and although doctors at the strip search struggled to tell whether Jackson was circumcised[140] his autopsy report confirmed he had not been circumcised and that his foreskin appeared naturally intact and did not appear to have been restored from a circumcision. Reportedly, Jordan had also previously drawn accurate pictures of a dark spot on Jackson's penis only visible when his penis was lifted.[141] This dark spot was corroborated by the sheriff's photographer[142] and the District Attorney in sworn affidavits.[143]
Jackson's friends said he never recovered from the humiliation of the strip search. The investigation was inconclusive and no charges were ever filed.[144] Jackson described the search in an emotional public statement, and proclaimed his innocence.[135][140][145] On January 1, 1994, Jackson's insurance carrier settled with the Chandlers out of court for $22 million. A Santa Barbara County grand jury and a Los Angeles County grand jury disbanded on May 2, 1994 without indicting Jackson,[146] after which time the Chandlers stopped co-operating with the criminal investigation around July 6, 1994.[147][148][149] The out-of-court settlement's documentation specifically stated Jackson admitted no wrongdoing and no liability; the Chandlers and their family lawyer Larry Feldman signed it without contest.[150] Feldman also explicitly stated "nobody bought anybody's silence".[151] A decade after the fact, during the second round of child abuse allegations, Jackson's lawyers would file a memo stating that the 1994 settlement was done without his consent.[148]
In May 1994, Jackson married the daughter of Elvis Presley, Lisa Marie Presley. They had first met in 1975, when a seven-year-old Presley attended one of Jackson's family engagements at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino, and were reconnected through a mutual friend.[152] According to a friend of Presley's, "their adult friendship began in November 1992 in L.A."[153] They stayed in contact every day over the telephone. As the child molestation accusations became public, Jackson became dependent on Presley for emotional support; she was concerned about his faltering health and addiction to drugs.[154] Presley explained, "I believed he didn't do anything wrong and that he was wrongly accused and yes I started falling for him. I wanted to save him. I felt that I could do it."[155] She eventually persuaded him to settle the allegations out of court and go into rehabilitation to recover.[154]
Jackson proposed to Presley over the telephone towards the fall of 1993, saying, "If I asked you to marry me, would you do it?"[154] They married in the Dominican Republic in secrecy, denying it for nearly two months afterwards.[156] The marriage was, in her words, "a married couple's life ... that was sexually active".[157] At the time, the tabloid media speculated that the wedding was a ploy to prop up Jackson's public image.[156] The marriage lasted less than two years and ended with an amicable divorce settlement.[158] In a 2010 interview with Oprah, Presley admitted that they spent four more years after the divorce "getting back together and breaking up", until she decided to stop.[159]
1995–99: HIStory, second marriage, and fatherhood
In 1995, Jackson merged his ATV Music catalog with Sony's music publishing division creating Sony/ATV Music Publishing. Jackson retained half-ownership of the company, earned $95 million upfront as well as the rights to even more songs.[160][161] He then released the double album HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I. The first disc, HIStory Begins, was a 15-track greatest hits album, and was later reissued as Greatest Hits: HIStory, Volume I in 2001, while the second disc, HIStory Continues, contained 13 new songs and 2 cover versions. The album debuted at number one on the charts and has been certified for seven million shipments in the US.[162] It is the best-selling multiple-disc album of all-time, with 20 million copies (40 million units) sold worldwide.[124][163] HIStory received a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year.[164]
"Scream/Childhood". "Scream" was a duet, performed with Jackson's youngest sister Janet. The song fights against the media, mainly for what the media made him out to be during his 1993 child abuse allegations. The single had the highest debut on the Billboard Hot 100 at number five, and received a Grammy nomination for "Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals".[164] "You Are Not Alone" was the second single released from HIStory; it holds the Guinness World Record for the first song ever to debut at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[110] It was seen as a major artistic and commercial success, receiving a Grammy nomination for "Best Pop Vocal Performance".[164] In late 1995, Jackson was rushed to a hospital after collapsing during rehearsals for a televised performance; the incident was caused by a stress-related panic attack.[165] "Earth Song" was the third single released from HIStory, and topped the UK Singles Chart for six weeks over Christmas 1995; it sold a million copies, making it Jackson's most successful single in the UK.[164] The track "They Don't Care About Us" became controversial when the Anti-Defamation League and other groups criticized its allegedly antisemitic lyrics. Jackson quickly put out a revised version of the song without the offending lyrics.[166] In 1996, Jackson won a Grammy for Best Music Video, Short Form for "Scream" and an American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist.[38][167]
The album was promoted with the successful HIStory World Tour. The tour began on September 7, 1996, and finished on October 15, 1997. Jackson performed 82 concerts in 58 cities to over 4.5 million fans, and grossed a total of $165 million. The show, which visited five continents and 35 countries, became Jackson's most successful in terms of audience figures.[99] During the tour, Jackson married his longtime friend Deborah Jeanne Rowe, a dermatology nurse, in an impromptu ceremony in Sydney, Australia. Rowe was approximately six months pregnant with the couple's first child at the time. Originally, Rowe and Jackson had no plans to marry, but Jackson's mother Katherine persuaded them to do so.[168] Michael Joseph Jackson Jr (commonly known as Prince) was born on February 13, 1997; his sister Paris-Michael Katherine Jackson was born a year later on April 3, 1998.[158][169] The couple divorced in 1999, and Jackson got full custody of the children. The divorce was relatively amicable, but a subsequent custody suit was not settled until 2006.[170][171]

A close-up image of a pale skinned man with black hair. He is wearing a black jacket with white designs on it.

 Michael Jackson at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival for the Ghosts music video premier
In 1997, Jackson released Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix, which contained remixes of hit singles from HIStory and five new songs. Worldwide sales stand at 6 million copies, it is the best selling remix album ever released.[172] It reached number one in the UK, as did the title track.[172][173] In the US, the album was certified platinum, but only reached number 24.[121][164] Forbes placed his annual income at $35 million in 1996 and $20 million in 1997.[109] Throughout June 1999, Jackson was involved in a number of charitable events. He joined Luciano Pavarotti for a benefit concert in Modena, Italy. The show was in support of the nonprofit organization War Child, and raised a million dollars for the refugees of Kosovo, FR Yugoslavia, as well as additional funds for the children of Guatemala.[174] Later that month, Jackson organized a set of "Michael Jackson & Friends" benefit concerts in Germany and Korea. Other artists involved included Slash, The Scorpions, Boyz II Men, Luther Vandross, Mariah Carey, A. R. Rahman, Prabhu Deva Sundaram, Shobana, Andrea Bocelli and Luciano Pavarotti. The proceeds went to the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund, the Red Cross and UNESCO.[175] From August 1999 through 2000, he lived in New York City at 4 East 74th Street.[176]
2000–03: Label dispute, Invincible, and third child
At the turn of the century, Jackson won an American Music Award as Artist of the 1980s.[177] Throughout 2000 and 2001, Jackson worked in the studio with Teddy Riley and Rodney Jerkins, as well as other collaborators. These sessions would result in the album Invincible, released in October 2001. Invincible was Jackson's first full-length album in six years, and it would be the last album of new material he released while still alive. The release of the album was preceded by a dispute between Jackson and his record label, Sony Music Entertainment. Jackson had expected the licenses to the masters of his albums to revert to him sometime in the early 2000s. Once he had the licenses, he would be able to promote the material however he pleased and keep all the profits. However, due to various clauses in the contract, the revert date turned out to be many years away. Jackson discovered that the attorney who represented him in the deal was also representing Sony.[173] Jackson was also concerned about the fact that for a number of years, Sony had been pressuring him to sell his share in their music catalog venture. Jackson feared that Sony might have a conflict of interest, since if Jackson's career failed, he would have to sell his share of the catalog at a low price.[178] Jackson sought an early exit from his contract.[173] Just before the release of Invincible, Jackson informed the head of Sony Music Entertainment, Tommy Mottola, that he was leaving Sony.[173] As a result, all singles releases, video shootings and promotions concerning the Invincible album were suspended.
In September 2001, two 30th Anniversary concerts were held at Madison Square Garden to mark the singer's 30th year as a solo artist. Jackson appeared onstage alongside his brothers for the first time since 1984. The show also featured performances by Mýa, Usher, Whitney Houston, 'N Sync, Destiny's Child, Monica, Luther Vandross, and Slash, among other artists.[179] The second of the two shows took place the night before the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.[180] After 9/11, Jackson helped organize the United We Stand: What More Can I Give benefit concert at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. The concert took place on October 21, 2001, and included performances from dozens of major artists, including Jackson, who performed his song "What More Can I Give" as the finale.[178] Jackson's solo performances were omitted from the televised version of the benefit concert, although he could still be seen singing background vocals. This omission happened because of contractual issues related to the earlier 30th Anniversary concerts: those concerts were boiled down into a two-hour TV special titled Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration which debuted in November 2001.
In spite of the events preceding its release, Invincible came out in October 2001 to much anticipation. Invincible proved to be a hit, debuting atop the charts in 13 countries and going on to sell approximately 13 million copies worldwide. It received double-platinum certification in the U.S.[121][124][181] However, the sales for Invincible were lower than those of his previous releases, due in part to a lack of promotion, no supporting world tour and the label dispute. The album also came out at a bad time for the music industry in general.[178] The album cost $30 million to record, not including promotional expenditures.[182] Invincible spawned three singles, "You Rock My World", "Cry" and "Butterflies", the latter without a music video. Jackson alleged in July 2002 that Mottola was a "devil" and a "racist" who did not support his African-American artists, using them merely for his own personal gain.[178] He charged that Mottola had called his colleague Irv Gotti a "fat nigger".[183] Sony refused to renew Jackson's contract, and claimed that a $25 million promotional campaign had failed because Jackson refused to tour in the United States.[182]
In 2002, Michael Jackson won his 22nd American Music Award for Artist of the Century.[184] In the same year, Jackson's third child, Prince Michael Jackson II (nicknamed "Blanket") was born.[185] The mother's identity is unknown, but Jackson has said the child was the result of artificial insemination from a surrogate mother and his own sperm.[170] On November 20 of that year, Jackson brought his infant son onto the balcony of his room at the Hotel Adlon in Berlin, as fans stood below, holding him in his right arm, with a cloth loosely draped over the baby's face. The baby was briefly extended over a railing, four stories above ground level, causing widespread criticism in the media. Jackson later apologized for the incident, calling it "a terrible mistake".[186] Sony released Number Ones, a compilation of Jackson's hits on CD and DVD. In the U.S., the album was certified triple platinum by the RIAA; in the UK it was certified six times platinum for shipments of at least 1.2 million units.[121][187]
2003–05: Second child sexual abuse allegations and acquittal
Further information: Living with Michael Jackson and People v. Jackson



 Jackson in Las Vegas, 2003
Beginning in May 2002, Jackson allowed a documentary film crew, led by British TV personality Martin Bashir, to follow him around just about everywhere he went. Bashir's film crew was with Jackson during the "baby-dangling incident" in Berlin. The program was broadcast in March 2003 as Living with Michael Jackson, and painted an extraordinarily unflattering portrait of the singer.
In a particularly controversial scene, Jackson was seen holding hands and discussing sleeping arrangements with a young boy.[188] As soon as the documentary aired, the Santa Barbara county attorney's office began a criminal investigation. Jackson was arrested in November 2003, and was charged with seven counts of child molestation and two counts of administering an intoxicating agent in relation to the 13-year old boy shown in the film.[188] Jackson denied the allegations, saying the sleepovers were not sexual in nature. The People v. Jackson trial began on January 31, 2005, in Santa Maria, California, and lasted five months, until the end of May. On June 13, 2005, Jackson was acquitted on all counts.[189][190][191] After the trial, in a highly publicized relocation he moved to the Persian Gulf island of Bahrain, as a guest of Sheikh Abdullah.[192] Bahrain was also where the family intended to send Jackson if he was convicted (though Jackson did not know about the plan), according to a statement by Jermaine Jackson printed in The Times of London in September 2011.[193]
2006–09: Closure of Neverland, final years, and This Is It

A group of adults and a child are shown in the photo. An African American female with short brown hair who is wearing a jean jacket and a light wash pair of jeans with a red shirt is seen holding a video camera, which is pointing forward. To the right of the female there is an opened black umbrella that is held above a light-skinned male with long black hair who is wearing all black clothes. In front of the male there is a child with black hair that is wearing a black cap with a blue shirt, a pair of white pants and black shoes. To the farthest right there are two Caucasian males with dark brown hair. In the background, trees, bushes and people can be seen.

 Jackson and his son Prince Michael II in Disneyland Paris, 2006
In March 2006, the main house at the Neverland Ranch was closed as a cost-cutting measure.[194] There were numerous reports around that time that Jackson was having financial problems. Jackson had been delinquent on his repayments of a $270 million loan secured against his music publishing holdings, even though those holdings were reportedly making him as much as $75 million a year.[195] Bank of America sold the debt to Fortress Investments. Sony reportedly proposed a restructuring deal which would give them a future option to buy half of Jackson's stake in their jointly owned publishing company (leaving Jackson with a 25% stake).[161] Jackson agreed to a Sony-backed refinancing deal in April 2006, although the exact details were not made public.[196] Jackson did not have a recording contract in place with Sony or any other major record label at the time.
In early 2006, there was an announcement that Jackson had signed a contract with a Bahrain-based startup called Two Seas Records. However, nothing ever came of that deal, and the CEO of Two Seas, Guy Holmes, later stated that the deal had never been finalized.[197][198] Throughout 2006, Sony repackaged 20 singles from the 1980s and 1990s as the Michael Jackson: Visionary series, which subsequently became a box set. Most of those singles returned to the charts as a result. In September 2006, Jackson and his ex-wife Debbie Rowe confirmed reports that they had settled their long-running child custody suit. The terms were never made public. Jackson continued to be the custodial parent of the couple's two children.[171] In October 2006, Fox News entertainment reporter Roger Friedman said that Jackson had been recording at a studio in rural Westmeath, Ireland. It was not known at the time what Jackson might be working on, or who might be paying for the sessions, since his publicist had recently issued a statement claiming that he had left Two Seas.[198][199]
In November 2006, Jackson invited an Access Hollywood camera crew into the studio in Westmeath, and MSNBC broke the story that he was working on a new album, produced by will.i.am of The Black Eyed Peas.[124] Jackson performed at the World Music Awards, in London on November 15, 2006, and accepted a Diamond Award for selling over 100 million records.[124][200] Jackson returned to the United States after Christmas 2006 to attend James Brown's funeral in Augusta, Georgia. He gave one of the eulogies, saying that "James Brown is my greatest inspiration."[201] In the spring of 2007, Jackson and Sony teamed up to buy yet another music publishing company: Famous Music LLC, formerly owned by Viacom. This deal gave him the rights to songs by Eminem, Shakira and Beck, among others.[202] Jackson recorded extensively during this period in New York with songwriter and producer will.i.am and also in Las Vegas with producers Akon and RedOne.[203][204] In March 2007, Jackson gave a brief interview to the Associated Press in Tokyo, where he said, "I've been in the entertainment industry since I was 6 years old, and as Charles Dickens would say, 'It's been the best of times, the worst of times.' But I would not change my career ... While some have made deliberate attempts to hurt me, I take it in stride because I have a loving family, a strong faith and wonderful friends and fans who have, and continue, to support me."[205]
In March 2007, Jackson visited a U.S. Army post in Japan named Camp Zama to greet 3,000 plus U.S. troops and their families. The hosts presented Jackson with a Certificate of Appreciation for his devotion to U.S. Military troops and their families.[206]
In September 2007, Jackson was reportedly still working with will.i.am, but the album was apparently never completed.[207] However, in 2008, Jackson and Sony released Thriller 25 to mark the 25th anniversary of the original Thriller. This album featured the previously unreleased song "For All Time" (an outtake from the original sessions) as well as remixes, where Jackson collaborated with younger artists who had been inspired by his work.[208] Two of the remixes were released as singles with only modest success: "The Girl Is Mine 2008" (with will.i.am) and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' 2008" (with Akon). The first single was based on an early demo version, without Paul McCartney. The album itself was a hit, however.[208][209][210][211] In anticipation of Jackson's 50th birthday, Sony BMG released a series of greatest-hits albums called King of Pop. Slightly different versions were released in various countries, based on polls of local fans.[212] King of Pop reached the top 10 in most countries where it was issued, and also sold well as an import in other countries (such as the United States.)[213][214]

An aerial view of land that has roads and many rides

 An aerial view of part of Jackson's 2,800-acre (11 km2) Neverland Valley Ranch near Los Olivos, CA showing the many rides
In late 2008, Fortress Investments threatened to foreclose on Neverland Ranch, which Jackson used as collateral for loans running into many tens of millions of dollars. However, Fortress opted to sell Jackson's debts to Colony Capital LLC. In November, Jackson transferred Neverland Ranch's title to Sycamore Valley Ranch Company LLC, which was a joint venture between Jackson and Colony Capital LLC. This deal cleared Jackson's debt, and he reportedly even gained an extra $35 million from the venture. At the time of his death, Jackson still owned a stake in Neverland/Sycamore Valley, but it is unknown how large that stake was.[215][216][217] In September 2008, Jackson entered negotiations with Julien's Auction House to display and auction a large collection of memorabilia amounting to approximately 1,390 lots. The auction was scheduled to take place between April 22 and 25.[218] An exhibition of the lots opened as scheduled on April 14, but the actual auction was eventually cancelled at Jackson's request.[219]
In March 2009, Jackson held a press conference at London's O2 Arena and announced a series of comeback concerts titled This Is It. The shows would be Jackson's first major series of concerts since the HIStory World Tour finished in 1997. Jackson suggested possible retirement after the shows; he said it would be his "final curtain call". The initial plan was for 10 concerts in London, followed by shows in Paris, New York City and Mumbai. Randy Phillips, president and chief executive of AEG Live, stated that the first 10 dates alone would earn the singer approximately £50 million.[220] The London residency was increased to 50 dates after record breaking ticket sales: over one million were sold in less than two hours.[221] Jackson rehearsed in Los Angeles in the weeks leading up to the tour under the direction of choreographer Kenny Ortega. Most of these rehearsals took place at the Staples Center, which was owned by AEG.[222] The concerts would have commenced on July 13, 2009, and finished on March 6, 2010. Less than three weeks before the first show was due to begin in London and with all concerts being sold out, Jackson died after suffering cardiac arrest.[223] Some time before his death, it was widely stated that he was starting a clothing line with Christian Audigier; due to his death, the current status of the label remains unknown.[224][225]
Jackson's first posthumous song released entirely by his Estate was titled "This Is It" which Jackson cowrote in the 1980s with Paul Anka. It was not on the set lists for the concerts, and the recording was based on an old demo tape. The surviving brothers reunited in the studio for the first time since 1989 to record backing vocals. On October 28, 2009, a documentary film about the rehearsals titled Michael Jackson's This Is It was released.[226] Even though it ran for a limited two-week engagement, it became the highest grossing documentary or concert movie of all time, with earnings of more than $260 million worldwide.[227] Jackson's estate received 90% of the profits.[228] The film was accompanied by a compilation album of the same name. Two versions of the new song appear on the album, which also featured original masters of Jackson's hits in the order in which they appear in the movie, along with a bonus disc with previously unreleased versions of more Jackson hits as well as a spoken-word poem titled "Planet Earth".[229] At the 2009 American Music Awards Jackson won four posthumous awards, two for him and two for his album Number Ones, bringing his total American Music Awards to 26.[230][231]
Death and memorial
Main articles: Death of Michael Jackson and Michael Jackson memorial service

Image of Jacksons Star with flowerd and notes on it

 Fans flocked to Jackson's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, adorning it with flowers and notes on the day of his death.
On June 25, 2009, Jackson died while in his bed at his rented mansion at 100 North Carolwood Drive in the Holmby Hills district of Los Angeles. Attempts at resuscitating him by Conrad Murray, his personal physician, were unsuccessful.[232] Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics received a 911 call at 12:22 (PDT, 19:22 UTC), arriving three minutes later at Jackson's location.[233][234] He was reportedly not breathing and CPR was performed.[235] Resuscitation efforts continued en route to the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, and for more than an hour after arriving there at 1:13 (20:13 UTC). He was pronounced dead at 2:26 local time (21:26 UTC).[236][237] Jackson's death triggered a global outpouring of grief.[232]
The news spread quickly online, causing websites to slow down and crash from user overload. Both TMZ and the Los Angeles Times suffered outages.[238] Google initially believed that the input from millions of people searching for "Michael Jackson" meant that the search engine was under DDoS attack, and blocked searches related to Michael Jackson for 30 minutes. Twitter reported a crash, as did Wikipedia at 3:15 pm PDT (22:15 UTC).[239] The Wikimedia Foundation reported nearly a million visitors to Jackson's biography within one hour, probably the most visitors in a one-hour period to any article in Wikipedia's history.[240] AOL Instant Messenger collapsed for 40 minutes. AOL called it a "seminal moment in Internet history", adding, "We've never seen anything like it in terms of scope or depth."[241]
Around 15% of Twitter posts—or 5,000 tweets per minute—reportedly mentioned Jackson after the news broke,[242][243] compared to the 5% recalled as having mentioned the Iranian elections or the flu pandemic that had made headlines earlier in the year.[243] Overall, web traffic ranged from 11% to at least 20% higher than normal.[242][244] MTV and Black Entertainment Television (BET) aired marathons of Jackson's music videos.[245] Jackson specials aired on multiple television stations around the world. The British soap opera EastEnders added a last-minute scene, in which one character tells another about the news, to the June 26 episode.[246] Jackson was the topic of every front-page headline in the daily British tabloid The Sun for about two weeks following his death.[247] During the same period, the three major U.S. networks' evening newscasts—ABC World News, CBS Evening News, and NBC Nightly News—devoted 34% of their broadcast time to him.[248] Magazines including Time published commemorative editions.[249] A scene that had featured Jackson's sister La Toya was cut from the film Brüno out of respect towards Jackson's family.[250]
Jackson's memorial was held on July 7, 2009, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, preceded by a private family service at Forest Lawn Memorial Park's Hall of Liberty. Because of the high demand, organizers of the service fashioned a lottery style distribution method to give out tickets to members of the public. 1.6 million fans applied for tickets to the service over the two-day period that registration was open. 8,750 names were drawn at random to decide who to distribute tickets to, with each recipient receiving two tickets each.[251] Jackson's casket was present during the memorial but no information was released about the final disposition of the body. The memorial service was one of the most watched events in online streaming history.[252] The U.S. audience was estimated by Nielsen to be 31.1 million, an amount comparable to the estimated 35.1 million that watched the 2004 burial of former president Ronald Reagan, and the estimated 33.1 million Americans who watched the 1997 funeral for Princess Diana.[253]
Mariah Carey, Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie, John Mayer, Jennifer Hudson, Usher, Jermaine Jackson, and Shaheen Jafargholi performed at the event. Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson gave eulogies, while Queen Latifah read "We had him", a poem written for the occasion by Maya Angelou.[254] The Reverend Al Sharpton received a standing ovation with cheers when he told Jackson's children, "Wasn't nothing strange about your daddy. It was strange what your daddy had to deal with. But he dealt with it anyway."[255] The memorial is best remembered for when Jackson's 11-year-old daughter, Paris Katherine, speaking publicly for the first time cried as she told the crowd, "Ever since I was born, Daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine ... I just wanted to say I love him ... so much."[180][256] Reverend Lucious Smith provided a closing prayer.[257] On August 24, several news outlets quoted anonymous sources as stating that the Los Angeles coroner had decided to treat Jackson's death as a homicide; this was later confirmed by the coroner on August 28.[258][259] At the time of death, Jackson had been administered propofol, lorazepam and midazolam.[260] Law enforcement officials conducted a manslaughter investigation of his personal physician, Conrad Murray.[261] On February 8, 2010, Murray was charged with involuntary manslaughter by prosecutors in Los Angeles.[262] Jackson was entombed on September 3, 2009, at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.[263]

Portrait tribute, other tribute items, mural and messages from 650 Spanish fans, letters, pictures, teddy bears, sunflowers and other kind of flowers were dropped off by fans from all over the world at Forest Lawn Memorial Park on the first anniversary of Michael Jackson's death.

 Tribute of fans from all over the world in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park on his first anniversary of death
On June 25, 2010, the first anniversary of Jackson's death, fans traveled to Los Angeles to pay their tribute to him. They visited Jackson's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and his family's home, as well as Forest Lawn Memorial Park. Many of the fans were carrying sunflowers and other tribute items to drop off at the sites. Members of the Jackson family and close friends arrived to pay their respects.[264][265] Katherine returned to Gary, Indiana to unveil a granite monument constructed in the front yard of the family home. The memorial continued with a candlelight vigil and a special performance of "We Are the World".[266][267] On June 26, there was a protest march in front of the Los Angeles Police Department's Robbery-Homicide Division at the old Parker Center building and a petition with thousands of signatures demanding justice was delivered.[268][269] The Jackson Family Foundation in conjunction with Voiceplate presented "Forever Michael", an event bringing together Jackson family members, celebrities, fans, supporters and the community to celebrate and honor his legacy. A portion of the proceeds were presented to some of Jackson's favorite charities. Katherine also introduced her new book "Never Can Say Goodbye".[270][271][272]
Aftermath
After his death, Jackson became the best-selling albums artist of 2009. He sold over 8.2 million albums in the United States, and a total of 35 million albums worldwide, in the 12 months that followed his death.[273][274] Jackson became the first artist to sell one million downloads in a week in download history, with a record-breaking 2.6 million downloads of his songs. After his death three of his albums sold more than any new album which was the first time a catalog album has ever scanned more sales than any new album.[275] Jackson also became the first artist in history to have four of the top 20 best selling albums in a single year in the United States.[276] Following this surge in sales, Sony announced that they had extended their relationship with his material. The distribution rights held by Sony Music were due to expire in 2015.[277] On March 16, 2010, Sony Music Entertainment, in a move spearheaded by its Columbia/Epic Label Group division, signed a new deal with the Jackson estate to extend their distribution rights to his back catalogue until at least 2017, as well as to obtain permission to release ten new albums with previously unreleased material and new collections of released work.[278] On November 4, 2010 Sony announced the release of Michael, the first posthumous album set to be released on December 14, with the promotional single released to the radios on November 8, titled "Breaking News".[279] The deal was unprecedented in the music industry as it is the most expensive music contract pertaining to a single artist in history; it reportedly involved Sony Music paying $250 million for the deal, with the Jackson estate getting the full sum as well as its share of royalties for all works released.[277][280] Video game developer Ubisoft announced it would release a new dancing-and-singing game featuring Michael Jackson for the 2010 holiday season. The game titled Michael Jackson: The Experience will be among the first to use Kinect and PlayStation Move, the respective motion-detecting camera systems for Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3 due out later that year.[281]
Michael Jackson was reported to be one of the largest owners of property on the moon. In 2005, he bought a 1,200-acre (4.9 km2) plot in the Lake of Dreams and owned a smaller parcel in the Sea of Vapours. After his death, a crater on the moon was renamed Michael Joseph Jackson by The Lunar Republic Society in Jackson's honor. The crater, officially named Posidonius J, is located on an area of the moon known as the Lake of Dreams, or Lacus Somniorum. The crater is 22 kilometers across and is situated near Jackson's owned land. A spokesman for the society said: "The official designation of a Lunar crater is a singular honour bestowed upon only a select few luminaries. "Among those receiving this rare tribute over the past century are Leonardo da Vinci, Christopher Columbus, Sir Isaac Newton, Julius Caesar and Jules Verne."[282][283]
On November 3, 2010, the theatrical performing company Cirque du Soleil announced that it would launch "Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour" in October 2011 in Montreal, while a permanent show will reside in Las Vegas.[284] The 90-minute US$57M production will combine Jackson's iconic musical oeuvre and choreography with the Cirque's signature artistry, dance and aerial displays involving 65 artists.[285] The tour was written and directed by Jamie King[286] and centers on Jackson's "inspirational Giving Tree – the wellspring of creativity where his love of music and dance, fairy tale and magic, and the fragile beauty of nature are unlocked."[287] On October 3, 2011, the accompanying compilation soundtrack album Immortal was announced to have over 40 Jackson's original recordings re-produced by Kevin Antunes.[288] A second, larger and more theatrical Cirque show entitled Michael Jackson: One set for residency at the Mandalay Bay resort in Las Vegas was announced on February 21, 2013. This show, whose production was written and directed by Jamie King who produced the Immortal show, is scheduled to begin on May 23, 2013 in a newly renovated theater.[289]
In April 2011, Jackson's longtime friend and billionaire businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed, chairman of Fulham Football Club, unveiled a statue of Jackson outside the club's stadium, Craven Cottage.[290] Fulham fans were however bemused by the statue and failed to understand the relevance of Jackson to the club.[291] Al Fayed however defended the statue and told the fans to "go to hell" if they did not appreciate the statue.[292]
In 2012, in an attempt to end family public feuding, Jackson's brother Jermaine Jackson retracted his signature on a letter made public criticizing executors of Michael Jackson's estate and his mother's advisers concerning the legitimacy of his brothers will.[293] T.J. Jackson, son of Tito Jackson, was given co-guardianship of Michael Jackson's children after false reports surfaced of Katherine Jackson going missing.[294]
Artistry
Influences

A silver colored statue of a male. The statue is placed standing up with its arms bent inward and both legs spaced apart. The statue's clothes have wrinkles and it is wearing heeled shoes. In the background, a tree and a light blue sky with multiple clouds can be seen.

 One of many identical statues, positioned throughout Europe to promote HIStory
Jackson's music took root in R&B, pop and soul. He had been influenced by the work of musicians such as Little Richard, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, Diana Ross, Fred Astaire,[295] Sammy Davis, Jr.,[295] Gene Kelly,[296] David Ruffin,[297] The Isley Brothers, the Bee Gees and the West Side Story dancers, to whom he made a tribute in "Beat It" and in the "Bad" video.[298] According to David Winters, who met and befriended Jackson while choreographing the 1971 Diana Ross TV Special "Diana!", (which was also Jackson's first solo debut outside of The Jackson 5), Jackson watched West Side Story almost every week and it was his favorite film.[299][300][301] While Little Richard had a substantial influence on Jackson,[302][303] James Brown was Jackson's greatest inspiration. In reference to Brown, Jackson declared: "Ever since I was a small child, no more than like six years old, my mother would wake me no matter what time it was, if I was sleeping, no matter what I was doing, to watch the television to see the master at work. And when I saw him move, I was mesmerized. I had never seen a performer perform like James Brown, and right then and there I knew that was exactly what I wanted to do for the rest of my life because of James Brown."[304]
The young Michael Jackson owed his vocal technique in large part to Diana Ross. Not only a mother figure to him, she was often observed in rehearsal as an accomplished performer. He later expressed: "I got to know her well. She taught me so much. I used to just sit in the corner and watch the way she moved. She was art in motion. I studied the way she moved, the way she sang – just the way she was." He told her: "I want to be just like you, Diana." She said: "You just be yourself."[305] But Jackson owed part of his enduring style—especially his use of the oooh interjection—to Ross. From a young age, Jackson often punctuated his verses with a sudden exclamation of oooh. Diana Ross had used this effect on many of the songs recorded with The Supremes.[306]
Musical themes and genres
Unlike many artists, Jackson did not write his songs on paper. Instead he would dictate into a sound recorder, and when recording he would sing the lyrics from memory.[307] In most of his songs, such as "Billie Jean", "Who Is It", and "Tabloid Junkie", he would beatbox and imitate the instruments using his voice instead of playing the actual instruments, along with other sounds. Jackson noted that it is easier to sing a drum line, or sing a bass, instead of playing a drum line or a bass with an instrument. Several critics have said that Jackson's distinct voice was able to replace any instrument convincingly. Steve Huey of Allmusic said that, throughout his solo career, Jackson's versatility allowed him to experiment with various themes and genres.[2] As a musician, he ranged from Motown's dance fare and ballads to techno and house-edged new jack swing to work that incorporates both funk rhythms and hard rock guitar.[108][308][309]

A black and white photo of a male holding a microphone singing

 Jackson in 1988, performing live at his record-breaking Bad world tour
According to Huey, Thriller refined the strengths of Off the Wall; the dance and rock tracks were more aggressive, while the pop tunes and ballads were softer and more soulful.[2] Notable tracks included the ballads "The Lady in My Life", "Human Nature" and "The Girl Is Mine"; the funk pieces "Billie Jean" and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'"; and the post-disco set "Baby Be Mine" and "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)".[2][308][309][310][311] With Thriller, Christopher Connelly of Rolling Stone commented that Jackson developed his long association with the subliminal theme of paranoia and darker imagery.[311] Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine noted this is evident on the songs "Billie Jean" and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'".[309] In "Billie Jean", Jackson sings about an obsessive fan who alleges he has fathered a child of hers.[2] In "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" he argues against gossip and the media.[311] "Beat It" decried gang violence in an homage to West Side Story, and was Jackson's first successful rock cross-over piece, according to Huey.[2][108] He also observed that the title track "Thriller" began Jackson's interest with the theme of the supernatural, a topic he revisited in subsequent years.[2] In 1985, Jackson co-wrote the charity anthem "We Are the World"; humanitarian themes later became a recurring theme in his lyrics and public persona.[2]



"Thriller"




One of Jackson's signature pieces, "Thriller", released as a single in 1984, utilizes cinematic sound effects, horror film motifs and vocal trickery to convey a sense of danger.[28]
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"Smooth Criminal"




A single from the album Bad, released 1988, "Smooth Criminal" features digital drum sounds, keyboard-created bass lines and other percussion elements designed to give the impression of a pulsing heart.[312]
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"Black or White"




The lead single from Dangerous, the danceable hard rock song "Black or White" was one of Jackson's most successful recordings.[313][314][315] It contains many features of Jackson's vocal style, including the vocal hiccup he is known for.
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In Bad, Jackson's concept of the predatory lover can be seen on the rock song "Dirty Diana".[316] The lead single "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" is a traditional love ballad, while "Man in the Mirror" is an anthemic ballad of confession and resolution.[86] "Smooth Criminal" was an evocation of bloody assault, rape and likely murder.[86] Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine states that Dangerous presents Jackson as a very paradoxical individual.[317] He comments the album is more diverse than his previous Bad, as it appeals to an urban audience while also attracting the middle class with anthems like "Heal the World".[317] The first half of the record is dedicated to new jack swing, including songs like "Jam" and "Remember the Time".[318] The album is Jackson's first where social ills become a primary theme; "Why You Wanna Trip on Me", for example, protests against world hunger, AIDS, homelessness and drugs.[318] Dangerous contains sexually charged efforts such as the multifaceted love song, "In the Closet".[318] The title track continues the theme of the predatory lover and compulsive desire.[318] The second half includes introspective, pop-gospel anthems such as "Will You Be There", "Heal the World" and "Keep the Faith"; these songs show Jackson opening up about various personal struggles and worries.[318] In the ballad "Gone Too Soon", Jackson gives tribute to his friend Ryan White and the plight of those with AIDS.[319]
HIStory creates an atmosphere of paranoia.[320] Its content focuses on the hardships and public struggles Jackson went through just prior to its production. In the new jack swing-funk-rock efforts "Scream" and "Tabloid Junkie", along with the R&B ballad "You Are Not Alone", Jackson retaliates against the injustice and isolation he feels, and directs much of his anger at the media.[321] In the introspective ballad "Stranger in Moscow", Jackson laments over his "fall from grace", while songs like "Earth Song", "Childhood", "Little Susie" and "Smile" are all operatic pop pieces.[320][321] In the track "D.S.", Jackson launched a verbal attack against Tom Sneddon. He describes Sneddon as an antisocial, white supremacist who wanted to "get my ass, dead or alive". Of the song, Sneddon said, "I have not—shall we say—done him the honor of listening to it, but I've been told that it ends with the sound of a gunshot".[322] Invincible found Jackson working heavily with producer Rodney Jerkins.[2] It is a record made up of urban soul like "Cry" and "The Lost Children", ballads such as "Speechless", "Break of Dawn" and "Butterflies" and mixes hip-hop, pop and R&B in "2000 Watts", "Heartbreaker" and "Invincible".[323][324]
Vocal style
Jackson sang from childhood, and over time his voice and vocal style changed noticeably. Between 1971 and 1975, Jackson's voice descended from boy soprano to high tenor.[325] His vocal range as an adult was F2-E♭6. Jackson first used a technique called the "vocal hiccup" in 1973, starting with the song "It's Too Late to Change the Time" from The Jackson 5's G.I.T.: Get It Together album.[326] Jackson did not use the hiccup technique— somewhat like a gulping for air or gasping— fully until the recording of Off the Wall: it can be seen in full force in the "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)" promotional video.[26] With the arrival of Off the Wall in the late 1970s, Jackson's abilities as a vocalist were well regarded. At the time, Rolling Stone compared his vocals to the "breathless, dreamy stutter" of Stevie Wonder. Their analysis was also that "Jackson's feathery-timbred tenor is extraordinarily beautiful. It slides smoothly into a startling falsetto that's used very daringly".[327][328] 1982 saw the release of Thriller, and Rolling Stone was of the opinion that Jackson was then singing in a "fully adult voice" that was "tinged by sadness".[311]
A distinctive deliberate mispronunciation of "come on", used frequently by Jackson, occasionally spelled "c'mon", "cha'mone" or "shamone", is also a staple in impressions and caricatures of him.[329] The turn of the 1990s saw the release of the introspective album Dangerous. The New York Times noted that on some tracks, "he gulps for breath, his voice quivers with anxiety or drops to a desperate whisper, hissing through clenched teeth" and he had a "wretched tone".[318] When singing of brotherhood or self-esteem the musician would return to "smooth" vocals.[318] When commenting on Invincible, Rolling Stone were of the opinion that—at the age of 43—Jackson still performed "exquisitely voiced rhythm tracks and vibrating vocal harmonies".[330] Nelson George summed up Jackson's vocals by stating "The grace, the aggression, the growling, the natural boyishness, the falsetto, the smoothness—that combination of elements mark him as a major vocalist".[312]
Music videos and choreography

A single whited crystal studded glave

 The iconic crystal rhinestone studded glove worn by Jackson when performing the moonwalk on Motown 25
Jackson has also been referred to as the King of Music Videos,[331] Steve Huey of Allmusic observed how Jackson transformed the music video into an art form and a promotional tool through complex story lines, dance routines, special effects and famous cameo appearances; simultaneously breaking down racial barriers.[2] Before Thriller, Jackson struggled to receive coverage on MTV, allegedly because he was African American.[332] Pressure from CBS Records persuaded MTV to start showing "Billie Jean" and later "Beat It", leading to a lengthy partnership with Jackson, also helping other black music artists gain recognition.[333] MTV employees deny any racism in their coverage, or pressure to change their stance. MTV maintains that they played rock music, regardless of race.[334] The popularity of his videos on MTV helped to put the relatively young channel "on the map"; MTV's focus shifted in favor of pop and R&B.[335][333] His performance on Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever changed the scope of live stage show; "That Jackson lip-synced 'Billie Jean' is, in itself, not extraordinary, but the fact that it did not change the impact of the performance is extraordinary; whether the performance was live or lip-synced made no difference to the audience" thus creating an era in which artists re-create the spectacle of music video imagery on stage.[336] Short films like Thriller largely remained unique to Jackson, while the group dance sequence in "Beat It" has frequently been imitated.[337] The choreography in Thriller has become a part of global pop culture, replicated everywhere from Indian films to prisons in the Philippines.[338] The Thriller short film marked an increase in scale for music videos, and has been named the most successful music video ever by the Guinness World Records.[110]
In the 19-minute music video for "Bad"—directed by Martin Scorsese—Jackson began using sexual imagery and choreography not previously seen in his work. He occasionally grabbed or touched his chest, torso and crotch. When asked by Oprah in the 1993 interview about why he grabbed his crotch, he replied, "I think it happens subliminally" and he described it as something that was not planned, but rather, as something that was compelled by the music. "Bad" garnered a mixed reception from both fans and critics; Time magazine described it as "infamous". The video also featured Wesley Snipes; in the future Jackson's videos would often feature famous cameo roles.[79][339] For the "Smooth Criminal" video, Jackson experimented with an anti-gravity lean where the performer leans forward at a 45 degree angle, beyond the performer's center of gravity. To accomplish this move live, Jackson and designers developed a special shoe that locks the performer's feet to the stage, allowing them to lean forward. They were granted U.S. Patent 5,255,452 for the device.[340] Although the music video for "Leave Me Alone" was not officially released in the US, in 1989, it was nominated for three Billboard Music Video Awards;[341] the same year it won a Golden Lion Award for the quality of the special effects used in its production. In 1990, "Leave Me Alone" won a Grammy for Best Music Video, Short Form.[107]
He received the MTV Video Vanguard Award in 1988 and the MTV Video Vanguard Artist of the Decade Award in 1990 to celebrate his accomplishments in the art form in the 1980s; in 1991 the first award was renamed in his honor.[125] "Black or White" was accompanied by a controversial music video, which, on November 14, 1991, simultaneously premiered in 27 countries with an estimated audience of 500 million people, the largest viewing ever for a music video at that time.[124] It featured scenes construed as having a sexual nature as well as depictions of violence. The offending scenes in the final half of the 14-minute version were edited out to prevent the video from being banned, and Jackson apologized.[342] Along with Jackson, it featured Macaulay Culkin, Peggy Lipton and George Wendt. It helped usher in morphing as an important technology in music videos.[343]
"Remember the Time" was an elaborate production, and became one of his longest videos at over nine minutes. Set in ancient Egypt, it featured groundbreaking visual effects and appearances by Eddie Murphy, Iman and Magic Johnson, along with a distinct complex dance routine.[344] The video for "In the Closet" was Jackson's most sexually provocative piece. It featured supermodel Naomi Campbell in a courtship dance with Jackson. The video was banned in South Africa because of its imagery.[125]
The music video for "Scream", directed by Mark Romanek and production designer Tom Foden, is one of Jackson's most critically acclaimed. In 1995, it gained 11 MTV Video Music Award Nominations—more than any other music video—and won "Best Dance Video", "Best Choreography", and "Best Art Direction".[345] The song and its accompanying video are a response to the backlash Jackson received from the media after being accused of child molestation in 1993.[346] A year later, it won a Grammy for Best Music Video, Short Form; shortly afterwards Guinness World Records listed it as the most expensive music video ever made at a cost of $7 million.[164][347]
"Earth Song" was accompanied by an expensive and well-received music video that gained a Grammy nomination for Best Music Video, Short Form in 1997. The video had an environmental theme, showing images of animal cruelty, deforestation, pollution and war. Using special effects, time is reversed so that life returns, wars end, and the forests re-grow.[164][348] Released in 1997 and premiering at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival, Michael Jackson's Ghosts was a short film written by Jackson and Stephen King and directed by Stan Winston. The video for Ghosts is over 38 minutes long and holds the Guinness World Record as the world's longest music video.[164][173][349][350]
Legacy and influence
See also: Records and achievements of Michael Jackson and List of artists influenced by Michael Jackson

A pink star with a gold colored rim and the writing "Michael Jackson" in its center. The star is indented into the ground and is surrounded by a marble colored floor.

 Jackson's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, set in 1984
The media has commonly referred to Jackson as the "King of Pop" because, throughout his career, he transformed the art of music videos and paved the way for modern pop music. Daily Telegraph writer Tom Utley described Jackson in 2003 as "extremely important" and a "genius".[254] For much of his career, he had an "unparalleled" level of worldwide influence over the younger generation through his musical and humanitarian contributions.[166] Jackson's music and videos, such as Thriller, fostered racial diversity in MTV's roster, helped to put the relatively new channel into public awareness, and steered the channel's focus from rock to pop music and R&B, shaping the channel into a form that proved enduring. Jackson's work continues to influence numerous hip hop, rock, pop and R&B artists. BET described Jackson "as quite simply the greatest entertainer of all time" and someone who "revolutionized the music video and brought dances like the moonwalk to the world. Jackson's sound, style, movement and legacy continues to inspire artists of all genres."[351]
Allmusic's Steve Huey describes Jackson as "an unstoppable juggernaut, possessed of all the skills to dominate the charts seemingly at will: an instantly identifiable voice, eye-popping dance moves, stunning musical versatility and loads of sheer star power".[2] In the mid-1980s, Time magazine's pop music critic, Jay Cocks, noted "Jackson is the biggest thing since The Beatles. He is the hottest single phenomenon since Elvis Presley. He just may be the most popular black singer ever".[46] In 1990, Vanity Fair cited Jackson as the most popular artist in the history of show business.[107] In 2007, Jackson said, "Music has been my outlet, my gift to all of the lovers in this world. Through it, my music, I know I will live forever."[352]
Shortly after Jackson's death, on June 25, 2009, MTV briefly returned to its original music video format to celebrate and pay tribute to his work.[353] The channel aired many hours of Jackson's music videos, accompanied by live news specials featuring reactions from MTV personalities and other celebrities. The temporary shift in MTV's programming culminated the following week in the channel's live coverage of Jackson's memorial service.[354] At the memorial service on July 7, 2009, founder of Motown Records Berry Gordy proclaimed Jackson as "the greatest entertainer that ever lived".[355][356][357]
In 2010, two university librarians found that Jackson's influence extended into academia, and has been mentioned in scholarly literature pertaining to a range of subject matter.[358][359] The two researchers combed through various scholars' writings, and compiled an annotated bibliography of those writings. The bibliography located references to Jackson in research reports concerning music, popular culture, chemistry and an array of other topics.[358][360]
Honors and awards
See also: List of awards received by Michael Jackson



Thriller platinum record on display at the Hard Rock Cafe, Hollywood in Universal City, California
Michael Jackson was inducted onto the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1980 as member of The Jacksons and in 1984 as solo artist. Throughout his career he received numerous honors and awards, including the World Music Awards' Best-Selling Pop Male Artist of the Millennium, the American Music Award's Artist of the Century Award and the Bambi Pop Artist of the Millennium Award.[179][361] He was a double-inductee of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, once as a member of The Jackson 5 in 1997 and later as a solo artist in 2001. Jackson was also inducted in several other hall of fames, including Vocal Group Hall of Fame (as The Jackson 5 member) in 1999 and the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002.[179] In 2010, Jackson was inducted into the Dance Hall of Fame as the first (and currently only) dancer from the world of pop and rock 'n' roll.[362] His awards include many Guinness World Records (eight in 2006 alone),[363] 13 Grammy Awards (as well as the Grammy Legend Award and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award), 26 American Music Awards (including the "Artist of the Century" and "Artist of the 1980s")—more than any artist—, 13 number one singles in the US in his solo career—more than any other male artist in the Hot 100 era[364]—and estimated sales of up to 400 million records worldwide,[4][5][6][Note 1] which makes him one of the best selling artists of all time.[365][366][367][368][369] On December 29, 2009, the American Film Institute recognized Jackson's death as a "moment of significance" saying, "Michael Jackson's sudden death in June at age 50 was notable for the worldwide outpouring of grief and the unprecedented global eulogy of his posthumous concert rehearsal movie This Is It."[370] Michael Jackson also received a Doctor of Humane Letters Degree from the United Negro College Fund[371] and also an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Fisk University.[372]
Earnings and wealth
It is estimated that Michael Jackson earned about $750 million in his lifetime.[373] In the last several decades of his life, sales of his recordings through Sony's music unit have earned him an estimated $300 million in royalties. He may have also earned an additional $400 million from concerts, music publishing (including his share of the Beatles catalog) endorsements, merchandising and music videos. Estimating how much of these earnings Jackson was able to personally pocket is difficult because one has to account for taxes, recording costs and production costs.[374]
There have also been several detailed estimates of Jackson's net worth and these range from negative $285 million to positive $350 million.
Michael Jackson's estimated net-worth over the years
Year Assets Debt Net worth Source
2002 $130 million $415 million -$285 million Forensic accountant in 2005 recalling Jackson's 2002 balance sheet under oath[375]
2003 $550 million ($100 million in properties including Neverland ranch; Encino and Las Vegas homes and other properties and $450 million in music holdings including 50% stake in Sony ATV and other music publishing) $200 million $350 million Forbes magazine, Nov 21, 2003[376]
2007 $567.6 million (includes 50% share of the Sony/ATV catalog valued at $390.6 million, Neverland valued at $33 million, cars, antiques, collectibles and other property valued at $20 million, and $668,215 in cash) $331 million $236 million Michael Jackson's March 2007 statement of financial condition prepared by Washington-based accounting firm Thompson, Cobb, Bazilio & Associates; described by CBS News as the clearest account yet of Jackson's finances.[377]
Discography
Main articles: Michael Jackson albums discography, Michael Jackson singles discography, and Michael Jackson videography
See also: Jackson 5 discography
Got to Be There (1972)
Ben (1972)
Music & Me (1973)
Forever, Michael (1975)
Off the Wall (1979)
Thriller (1982)
Bad (1987)
Dangerous (1991)
HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I (1995)
Invincible (2001)
Filmography
Main article: Michael Jackson videography

Year
Film
Role
Director
Ref

1978 The Wiz Scarecrow Sidney Lumet [378]
1982 Michael Jackson's Thriller Himself/Werecat/Zombie John Landis [379]
1986 Captain EO Captain EO Francis Ford Coppola [380]
1988 Moonwalker Himself Jerry Kramer [381]
1997 Michael Jackson's Ghosts Maestro/Mayor/Ghoul/Skeleton Stan Winston [379]
2002 Men in Black II Agent M (cameo) Barry Sonnenfeld [382]
2004 Miss Cast Away and the Island Girls Agent MJ (cameo) Bryan Michael Stoller [383]
2009 Michael Jackson's This Is It Himself Kenny Ortega [384]
2012 Bad 25 Himself Spike Lee [385]

Tours
Main article: List of concert tours by Michael Jackson and The Jackson 5
Bad (1987–89)
Dangerous World Tour (1992–93)
HIStory World Tour (1996–97)
This Is It (2009–10) (cancelled)
See also
Book icon Book: Michael Jackson

Honorific nicknames in popular music
List of awards received by Michael Jackson
List of cover versions of Michael Jackson songs
List of songs recorded by Michael Jackson
List of unreleased Michael Jackson songs
Michael Jackson-related games
Personal relationships of Michael Jackson
Records and achievements of Michael Jackson

Michael-jackson-vector-2.jpgMichael Jackson portal
 Michael and Janet Jackson collection.jpgThe Jackson Family portal
 AmericaAfrica.pngAfrican American portal
 

Notes
Note 1^
According to The Wall Street Journal and diverse news sites, the 750 million units sold by Michael Jackson is an inflated figure that was initially claimed by Raymone Bain (2006),[386][387] who was the singer's publicist at that time, without any factual evidence and probably in an effort to promote album sales.[4][388][389] From 2006 until present time, several sources such as MTV, Reuters and Billboard have claimed that Michael Jackson has sold 750 million units, however, Adrian Strain, a representative from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) has said that this figure is unreal.
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Ramage, John D.; Bean, John C.; Johnson, June (2001). Writing arguments: a rhetoric with readings. Allyn and Bacon. ISBN 0-205-31745-6.
Taraborrelli, J. Randy (2009). Michael Jackson: The Magic, The Madness, The Whole Story, 1958–2009. Terra Alta, WV: Grand Central Publishing, 2009. ISBN 0-446-56474-5.
Further reading
Dineen, Catherine (1993). Michael Jackson: In His Own Words. Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-3216-6.
Grant, Adrian (1994, 1997, 2002 and 2005). Michael Jackson: The Visual Documentary. Omnibus Press. ISBN 1-84449-432-2.
Giambusso, David (June 25, 2009). "Michael Jackson memorabilia owner recalls turbulent past with musical family". The Star-Ledger (New Jersey).
Jackson, Michael (2006). My World, The Official Photobook, Vol. 1. Triumph International. ISBN 0-9768891-1-0.
Jones, Bob (2005). Michael Jackson: The Man Behind the Mask. Select Books Inc. ISBN 1-59079-072-3.
Jefferson, Margo; Brown (2007). On Michael Jackson. Vintage Books. ISBN 978-0-307-27765-7.
Noonan, Damien (1994). Michael Jackson (Audio book). Carlton Books. ISBN 1-85797-587-1.
External links
Find more about Michael Jackson at Wikipedia's sister projects
 Media from Commons
 News stories from Wikinews
 Quotations from Wikiquote
Official website
Michael Jackson at the Internet Movie Database
Michael Jackson at MTV
FBI file on Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson on Facebook

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Janet Jackson as a gay icon

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Gay icon Janet Jackson
Janet Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American Pop singer-songwriter and actress, who is considered to be a gay icon. Jackson garnered a substantial gay following during 1990s as she gained prominence in popular music. Recognized as a long-term ally of the LGBT community, Jackson received the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Music Album for her Grammy Award-winning sixth studio album The Velvet Rope (1997), which spoke out against homophobia and embraced same-sex love. In 2005, Jackson received the Humanitarian Award from the Human Rights Campaign and AIDS Project Los Angeles in recognition of her involvement in raising funds for AIDS Charities and received the Vanguard Award at the 19th Annual GLAAD Media Awards in 2008. In June 2012, Janet announced she is currently executive producing a documentary on the lives of transgender people around the world titled "Truth", saying she agreed to sign on to help stop discrimination against the transgender community.

Contents
  [hide] 1 The Velvet Rope and AIDS charities
2 LGBT social movements
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

The Velvet Rope and AIDS charities[edit source]
During the recording of Jackson's sixth studio album The Velvet Rope, the singer reportedly suffered from depression, which became a central theme to the album among other subjects including domestic abuse, low self-esteem, sadomasochism, homophobia and sexual orientation. In his review of the album, Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph observed, "[Jackson] even makes a bid for gay icon status, delivering a diva-ish performance reminiscent of Diana Ross on 'Together Again' (a post-Aids pop song), singing a paean to homosexuality on the jazzy 'Free Xone' and climaxing (if that's the right word) with a bizarre lesbian reinterpretation of Rod Stewart's 'Tonight's the Night'."[1] The song "Free Xone" dealt specifically with homophobia and same-sex relationships.[2] Speculation over Jackson's own sexual orientation began circulating after the release of The Velvet Rope—particularly regarding her cover version of Rod Stewart's "Tonight's the Night (Gonna Be Alright)"—however, Jackson denied rumors that she has had sexual relationships with other women.[3]

I don't mind people thinking that I'm gay or calling me gay. People are going to believe whatever they want. Yes, I hang out at gay clubs, but other clubs too. I go where the music is good. I love people regardless of sexual preference, regardless of race. No, I am not bisexual. I have been linked with dancers in our group because we are so close. I grew up in a big family. I love being affectionate. I love intimacy and I am not afraid to show it. We fall asleep in each other's arms. We hug, we kiss, but there is nothing beyond that. Because [ René Elizondo, Jr. ] and I broke up, it's like people need some sort of drama, some sort of gossip.[4]
—Janet Jackson, Ebony
The album's second single "Together Again", a hit in several countries, became an homage to loved ones Jackson has lost to AIDS,[5] as well as an elegy to AIDS victims and their families worldwide.[6] The upbeat dance song was arranged to celebrate the spirit of those who have passed on, rather than mourn their deaths, as Jackson comments.[7] A portion of the single's sales were donated by Jackson to The American Foundation for AIDS Research.[7] On November 17, 1997, Jackson was honored by the National Black Lesbian and Gay Leadership Forum for the album's sexual orientation-related content,[8] in addition to receiving the award for Outstanding Music Album at the 9th Annual GLAAD Media Awards in 1998.[9] In June 2005, Jackson was given the Humanitarian Award by the Human Rights Campaign and AIDS Project Los Angeles in honor of her activism.[9]

What I've learned in these recent months is that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and it's real. It's a beautiful light that both comforts our minds and strengthens our souls. Tonight my heart is filled with gratitude for that light. I'm so grateful that prayers are answered, that faith is rewarded and tolerance is celebrated as a virtue. I'm grateful that God is of unconditional love.
—Janet Jackson, ABC News[10]
She has also been a strong advocate of practicing safe sex as a means of inhibiting the spread of the AIDS virus, criticizing those who act "careless" when it comes to sexual intercourse.[11]
LGBT social movements[edit source]
LGBT social movements, which include the Gay and Lesbian Rights Movement, Gay Liberation, lesbian feminism, and transgender activism, have often garnered celebrity endorsement from many entertainers including Jackson. She has often voiced her support for same-sex marriage, advocating all people have the right to fall in love.[3] In 2008, Jackson appeared in a public service announcement sponsored by the Logo television network and the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) in response to the E.O. Green School shooting. The announcement discusses the murder of fifteen-year-old Lawrence "Larry" King and the safety of LGBT youth in public schools. Jackson states that "none of us are safe, until all of us are safe".[12] On April 26, 2008, fellow gay icon Ellen DeGeneres presented Jackson with the Vanguard Award at the 19th Annual GLAAD Media Awards at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles.

We are delighted to honor Janet Jackson at the 19th Annual GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles as such a visible, welcoming and inclusive ally of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. Ms. Jackson has a tremendous following inside the LGBT community and out, and having her stand with us against the defamation that LGBT people still face in our country is extremely significant.
—GLAAD President Neil G. Giuliano[9]
Jackson spoke with Larry King on CNN, supporting the It Gets Better Project and The Trevor Project, a non-profit organization providing crisis and suicide prevention for LGBT youth, in light of the high profile suicides committed in Fall, 2010.[13] She stated: "(I was) one of those kids... holding everything inside... internalizing everything. And that really can affect you, and feeling helpless and hopeless, and finding that person that you can trust, that adult, like I did later on in life, that I felt comfortable and safe to tell my issues, my worries, my pains, my aches to. This is what the Trevor Project is really all about. And they have a 24-hour hotline... There's someone there that you can speak with 24 hours that will be there for you."[13] She made an official It Gets Better video which was released on December 1, 2010.[14]
Janet is currently producing a documentary on the lives of transgender people around the world titled "Truth", saying she agreed to sign on to help stop discrimination against the transgender community. "All people are very important to me. I've been fortunate to make friends and learn about very different lives," Jackson said in a statement. " 'Truth' is our small chance to ask that you try and understand someone who lives their life in a way that is a little bit different from yours, even though all of our hearts are the same. We want to stop the hate and find understanding." Director Robert Jason, who previously directed the Style Network documentary "Style Exposed: Born Male, Living Female," about four transgender New Yorkers, said Jackson will play a prominent part in the finished product. "Janet Jackson will take us on a visually innovative, cerebral journey through the turbulent lives of transgendered people of all ages around the world and their epic struggle for equality," he said in a statement announcing the project. "This film will highlight landmark mainstream stories and provide a glimpse at others that will change the gender landscape of the world forever. Just as it is hard to believe that there ever was a time when different components of society were required to use separate drinking fountains, it is as incredible that one's gender expression remains just such a target for discrimination." Janet is working behind-the-scenes on the movie and will also take part in some of the on-camera interviews as well.[15][16]
See also[edit source]
Judy Garland as gay icon
Madonna as a gay icon
References[edit source]
1.^ McCormick, Neil (1997-10-18). "The Arts: Give her enough rope ... Reviews Rock CDs". The Daily Telegraph. p. 11
2.^ "Janet Jackson's "Free Xone" lyrics on Yahoo! Music". Yahoo! Music. Retrieved 2008-04-06.[dead link]
3.^ a b Naff, Kevin (September 29, 2006). "We're 'So Excited'". Washington Blade. Archived from the original on March 19, 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-07.
4.^ Norment, Lynn (2001-11-01). "The 56 most intriguing Blacks of 2001: Janet". Ebony 57. p. 102. ISSN 00129011.
5.^ Bronson, Fred (October 1, 2003). The Billboard Book of Number 1 Hits. Billboard Books. p. 1008. ISBN 0-8230-7677-6.
6.^ Huey, Steve. "Janet Jackson > Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved 2008-04-25.
7.^ a b Halstead, Craig; Halstead, Craig; Cadman, Chris (October 28, 2003). Jacksons Number Ones. Authors On Line. p. 196. ISBN 0-7552-0098-5.
8.^ "Gay News From 365Gay.com". 365Gay.com. November 17, 1997. Archived from the original on March 12, 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-07.
9.^ a b c McCarthy, Marc (April 1, 2008). "Janet Jackson to be Honored at 19th Annual GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles". GLAAD. Archived from the original on April 9, 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-01.
10.^ "ABC News: Janet Jackson". ABC News. June 18, 2005. Retrieved 2008-04-09.[dead link]
11.^ "Janet Jackson Takes Aim At 'Careless' Gay Youths". starpulse.com. 2008-04-23. Retrieved 2011-06-12
12.^ "GLSEN Partners with LOGO to Launch PSA in Wake of Lawrence King Tragedy". GLSEN. 2008-03-10. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
13.^ a b "Janet Jackson Advises Bullied Teens To Seek Help". starpulse.com. 2010-11-05. Retrieved 2010-11-08
14.^ "Janet Jackson PSA for The Trevor Project - It Gets Better". YouTube. 2010-12-01. Retrieved 2010-12-01.
15.^ "Janet Jackson To Produce 'Truth' Documentary About Transgender Lives Around The World". Huffington Post. 2012-06-05. Retrieved 2013-08-07.
16.^ "Janet Jackson Producing Documentary On Transgender Community". MTV. 2012-06-05. Retrieved 2013-07-08.
External links[edit source]
Janet Jackson's official website
Public service announcement sponsored by Logo and GLSEN
Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation
Human Rights Campaign
AIDS Project Los Angeles

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Janet Jackson

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For her self-titled album, see Janet Jackson (album).
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Janet Jackson

Birth name
Janet Damita Jo Jackson
Born
May 16, 1966 (age 47)
Gary, Indiana, U.S.
Genres
Pop·
 R&B·
 new jack swing·
 dance·
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Occupations
Singer-songwriter·
 dancer·
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Instruments
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Years active
1973–present
Labels
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Website
janetjackson.com
Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American recording artist and actress. Known for a series of sonically innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows, television appearances, and film roles, she has been a prominent figure in popular culture since the early 1970s. The youngest child of the Jackson family, she began her career appearing on the variety television series The Jacksons in 1976 and went on to appear on other television shows throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, including Good Times and Fame.
After signing a recording contract with A&M in 1982, she came to prominence following the release of her third studio album Control (1986). Her collaborations with record producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis incorporated elements of pop, rhythm and blues, funk, disco, rap, and industrial beats, which led to crossover appeal in popular music. In addition to receiving recognition for the innovation in her records, choreography, music videos, and prominence on radio airplay and MTV, she was acknowledged as a role model for her socially conscious lyrics.
In 1991, she signed the first of two record-breaking, multi-million dollar contracts with Virgin Records, establishing her as one of the highest paid artists in the industry. Her debut album under the label, Janet (1993), saw her develop a public image as a sex symbol as she began to explore sexuality in her work. That same year, she appeared in her first starring film role in Poetic Justice; since then she has continued to act in feature films. By the end of the 1990s, Billboard named her the second most successful recording artist of the decade, following Mariah Carey. She has amassed an extensive catalog of hits, with singles such as "Nasty", "Rhythm Nation", "That's the Way Love Goes", "Together Again", and "All for You" her most iconic.
Having sold over 150 million records, she is ranked as one of the best-selling artists in the history of contemporary music.[1][2] The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) lists her as the eleventh best-selling female artist in the United States, with 26 million certified albums.[3] In 2008, Billboard magazine released its list of the Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists, ranking her at number seven. In 2010, the magazine announced the "Top 50 R&B / Hip-Hop Artists of the Past 25 Years", ranking her at number five. One of the world's most awarded artists, her longevity, records and achievements reflect her influence in shaping and redefining the scope of popular music. She has been cited as an inspiration among numerous performers.

Contents
  [hide] 1 Life and career 1.1 1966–82: Childhood and television work
1.2 1982–92: Early recordings, Control and Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814
1.3 1993–96: Janet, Poetic Justice and Design of a Decade 1986/1996
1.4 1997–03: The Velvet Rope, Nutty Professor II: The Klumps and All for You
1.5 2004–05: Super Bowl XXXVIII controversy, Damita Jo, and television appearances
1.6 2006–10: 20 Y.O., Why Did I Get Married? Discipline and Number Ones
1.7 2010–present: Film projects, True You and Number Ones: Up Close and Personal
2 Artistry 2.1 Music and voice
2.2 Videos and stage
2.3 Influences
3 Legacy
4 Discography
5 Tours
6 Filmography
7 Books
8 See also
9 References
10 Bibliography
11 Further reading
12 External links

Life and career
1966–82: Childhood and television work



 Jackson (bottom row) in a 1976 CBS photo on the set of The Jacksons
Janet Jackson was born in Gary, Indiana, the youngest of ten children, to Katherine Esther (née Scruse) and Joseph Walter Jackson.[4] The Jacksons were lower-middle class and devout Jehovah's Witnesses; Jackson stated that although she was raised as a Jehovah's Witness, she eventually stopped practicing organized religion and views her relationship with God as "one-on-one".[5] By the time Jackson was a toddler, her older brothers—Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Michael—were performing music at nightclubs and theaters as The Jackson 5. In March 1969, the group signed a record deal with Motown, and by the end of the year they had recorded the first of four consecutive number one singles. The Jackson 5's success allowed the family to move to the Encino neighborhood of Los Angeles in 1971, where they settled in a gated mansion called Hayvenhurst.[4] Although born into a family of professional musicians, Jackson, whose love of horses resulted in a desire to become a race-horse jockey, had no aspiration to become an entertainer. Despite this, her father planned for her to pursue a career in entertainment. She once commented, "No one ever asked me if I wanted to go into show business ... it was expected."[4]
In 1973, at the age of seven, Jackson appeared on stage in Las Vegas Strip with her siblings in a routine show at the MGM Casino.[4] Jane Cornwell documented in her biography of the singer, Janet Jackson (2002), that at age eight, her father Joseph told her not to call him "Dad" anymore since he was her manager; he told her she would henceforth address him as "Joseph".[4] She began her career as an actress with the debut of the CBS variety show The Jacksons (1976), in which she appeared with her siblings Tito, Rebbie, Randy, Michael, Marlon, La Toya and Jackie.[4] In 1977, she was selected by producer Norman Lear to play a recurring role as Penny Gordon Woods in the sitcom Good Times.[4] In 1978, Jackson's first recording was released, "Long Song for Kids", a duet with brother Randy Jackson, which appeared on the b-side of his debut single "How Can I Be Sure".[6] From 1979 to 1980, she starred in A New Kind of Family as Jojo Ashton, and then joined the cast of Diff'rent Strokes, portraying Charlene Duprey from 1981 to 1982.[4] During this time, black teenage girls adopted her layered hair style and wore hooped earrings in a similar fashion as she did, which made her a role model for black youth at a time when the television industry appealed overwhelmingly to white audiences.[7] She played a recurring role during the fourth season of the television series Fame as Cleo Hewitt, though she later commented that the series was not a project she enjoyed working on.[8][9]
1982–92: Early recordings, Control and Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814
Although Jackson was initially apprehensive about starting a music career, she agreed to participate in recording sessions with her family. The first of these, a duet with her brother Randy titled "Love Song for Kids", took place in 1978. When she was sixteen, her father arranged a contract for her with A&M Records.[4] Her debut album, Janet Jackson, produced by soul singers Angela Winbush, René Moore and Leon F. Sylvers III, was released in 1982, the entire production of which was overseen by her father Joseph.[4] It peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot R&B albums chart.[10]
Jackson's second album, Dream Street, was released two years later. Her father recruited her brothers to help produce the album: Marlon co-wrote two of the album's tracks, while Tito, Jackie and Michael provided background vocals.[4] Dream Street reached number nineteen on the R&B albums chart; its sales were less than that of her debut album.[10] The album's only hit, "Don't Stand Another Chance", peaked at number nine on Billboard's R&B singles chart.[11] In late 1984, Jackson eloped with childhood friend and fellow R&B singer James DeBarge. They divorced shortly afterwards, and the marriage was annulled in mid-1985.[12] In 1985 Jackson joined her sister, La Toya, as a chorist under La Toya's number "Baby Sister" at the Yamaha Music Festival where they ended up with a silver medallion and an "Outstanding Song Award".



"Nasty" (1986)




"Nasty" was written as a response to an incident of sexual harassment Jackson faced during the recording of Control. The song features a triplet swing beat.
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Following the release of Dream Street, Jackson decided to separate her business affairs from her family. She later commented, "I just wanted to get out of the house, get out from under my father, which was one of the most difficult things that I had to do, telling him that I didn't want to work with him again."[9] A&M Records executive John McClain hired producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis to work with her. Within six weeks, Jackson, Jam and Lewis crafted her third studio album, Control.[13] Jackson recalled that during the recording of the album, she was threatened by a group of men outside of her hotel in Minneapolis. She stated that "[t]he danger hit home when a couple of guys started stalking me on the street ... Instead of running to Jimmy or Terry for protection, I took a stand. I backed them down. That's how songs like 'Nasty' and 'What Have You Done for Me Lately' were born, out of a sense of self-defense."[14]
Though Jam and Lewis were concerned with achieving cross-over appeal, their primary goal was to create a strong following for the singer within the African American community first.[15] Jam commented, "[w]e wanted to do an album that would be in every black home in America ... we were going for the black album of all time."[15] Released in February 1986, the album peaked at number one on the Billboard 200, with over 200,000 copies sold in one week.[10][16] Los Angeles Times critic Connie Johnson wrote: "Though still a teen-ager, this singer's stance is remarkably nervy and mature. She has a snotty sort of assurance that permeates several cuts, plus the musical muscle to back it up."[17] The Newsweek review of Control noted that the album was "an alternative to the sentimental balladry and opulent arrangements of Patti LaBelle and Whitney Houston."[18] Rob Hoerburger of Rolling Stone asserted, "Control is a better album than Diana Ross has made in five years and puts Janet in a position similar to the young Donna Summer's—unwilling to accept novelty status and taking her own steps to rise above it."[19] Five of the album's singles—"What Have You Done for Me Lately", "Nasty", "When I Think of You", "Control", and "Let's Wait Awhile"—peaked within the top 5 of the Billboard Hot 100.[20] "When I Think of You" became Jackson's first single to peak at number one. "The Pleasure Principle" became a top 20 hit, peaking at number fourteen.[20] Most of the Control music videos were choreographed by a then-unknown Paula Abdul. Jonathan Cohen of Billboard magazine commented "[Jackson's] accessible sound and spectacularly choreographed videos were irresistible to MTV, and helped the channel evolve from rock programming to a broader, beat-driven musical mix."[13]
Control was certified five times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, and has sold over fourteen million copies worldwide.[2][21] It won four American Music Awards, from twelve nominations—a record that has yet to be broken—and was nominated for Album of the Year at the 1987 Grammy Awards.[22][23][24] Musicologist Richard J. Ripani Ph.D., author of The New Blue Music: Changes in Rhythm & Blues, 1950–1999 (2006), observed that the album was one of the first successful records to influence the rise of new jack swing by creating a fusion of R&B, rap, funk, disco and synthesized percussion.[25] The success of Control, according to Ripani, bridged the gap between R&B and rap music.[25]



"Rhythm Nation" (1989)




"Rhythm Nation" encompasses the full range of new jack swing genre. The use of sample loop and triplet swing are present, while vocals for the song are alternatively sung in octaves or rapped in spoken verse.
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In September 1989, Jackson released her fourth album, Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814. Though executives at A&M wanted an album similar to Control, she was determined to imbue her music with a socially conscious message that complimented her songs about love and relationships.[26] She stated, "I'm not naive—I know an album or a song can't change the world. I just want my music and my dance to catch the audience's attention, and to hold it long enough for them to listen to the lyrics and what we're saying."[27] Producer Jimmy Jam told The Boston Globe, "We would always have a TV turned on, usually to CNN ... And I think the social slant of songs like Rhythm Nation, State of the World and The Knowledge came from that."[28] Rolling Stone magazine's Vince Aletti observed Jackson shifted from "personal freedom to more universal concerns—injustice, illiteracy, crime, drugs—without missing a beat."[29]
Peaking at number one on the Billboard 200, the album was later certified six times platinum and eventually sold over fourteen million copies worldwide.[2][10][21] The release became the only album in history to produce number one hits on the Billboard Hot 100 in three separate calendar years—"Miss You Much" in 1989, "Escapade" and "Black Cat" in 1990, and "Love Will Never Do (Without You)" in 1991—and the only album in the history of the Hot 100 to have seven top 5 hit singles.[30][31] The corresponding music video for "Rhythm Nation" won the 1989 Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Video.[32] Billboard named Rhythm Nation 1814 the number-one selling album of the year in 1990, winning a record 15 Billboard music awards.[33][34][35] The Rhythm Nation World Tour, Jackson's first world tour in support of a studio album, became the most successful debut tour by any recording artist[36] and also set a record for the fastest sell out in the history of Tokyo Dome in Japan.[37] As Jackson began her tour, she was acknowledged for the cultural impact of her music. Joel Selvin of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote "the 23-year-old has been making smash hit records for four years, becoming a fixture on MTV and a major role model to teenage girls across the country", and William Allen, then-executive vice president of the United Negro College Fund, told the Los Angeles Times, "Jackson is a role model for all young people to emulate and the message she has gotten to the young people of this country through the lyrics of 'Rhythm Nation 1814' is having positive effects."[38][39] She established the "Rhythm Nation Scholarship" as a joint venture with the United Negro College Fund, as well as donating funds from her concert tour to other educational programs, raising over $1/2 million dollars to fund educational projects.[40][41] Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women: Global Women's Issues and Knowledge (2000) documented that Jackson's success during this time period placed her on par with several other recording artists, including her older brother Michael Jackson, Madonna and Tina Turner.[42]
With the release of Rhythm Nation 1814, Jackson fulfilled her contract with A&M Records. In 1991, after being approached personally by Virgin Records owner Richard Branson, she signed a highly publicized multi-million dollar contract with the label.[43][44][45] The contract value, estimated between $32–50 million, made her the highest paid recording artist in contemporary music, until her brother Michael signed a $65 million dollar contract with Sony only a few days later.[46] Ebony reported: "No individual or group has impacted the world of entertainment as have Michael and Janet Jackson, who both signed multimillion dollar contracts in recent months ... There are many imitators, but few can match Michael and Janet's stunning style and dexterity."[46] Her reputation as a fashion icon also garnered recognition, in that "[a]s Janet was entertaining 2 million fans during her triumphant Rhythm Nation tour, hoards of teen girls were imitating her distinctive look—black quasi-military long jackets, black tight-tight pants, and big white shirts."[46] That same year, she secretly entered into her second marriage with long-term friend—dancer, songwriter and director René Elizondo, Jr.[47] In early 1992, Jackson recorded a song entitled "The Best Things in Life Are Free" with Luther Vandross, featuring Bell Biv DeVoe and Ralph Tresvant, for the Mo' Money film soundtrack.[48]
1993–96: Janet, Poetic Justice and Design of a Decade 1986/1996



 Janet Jackson featured on a 1993 cover of Rolling Stone with the hands of her then-unknown husband René Elizondo, Jr. cupping her breasts.
In August 1992, after completing work on Poetic Justice, Jackson set out to plan on recording her first album for Virgin Records. Recording sessions for the album began in September 1992, commencing in the first quarter of 1993. In May 1993, Jackson's fifth studio album Janet, was released and debuted at number one on the Billboard 200.[10] She commented, "[c]ertain people feel I'm just riding on my last name ... That's why I just put my first name on janet. and why I never asked my brothers to write or produce music for me."[49] Billboard magazine's Larry Flick noted she "also broadens her musical scope on 'janet.' by layering deep house, swing jazz, hip hop, rock, and Caribbean elements on top of a radio-minded jack/funk foundation."[50] Rolling Stone wrote: "As princess of America's black royal family, everything Janet Jackson does is important. Whether proclaiming herself in charge of her life, as she did on Control (1986), or commander in chief of a rhythm army dancing to fight society's problems (Rhythm Nation 1814, from 1989), she's influential. And when she announces her sexual maturity, as she does on her new album, Janet., it's a cultural moment."[51] The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004) commented that the album's number one hit single "That's the Way Love Goes"—winner of the 1994 Grammy Award for Best R&B Song—and the top 10 singles "If", "Because of Love", "You Want This", and "Any Time, Any Place", all contained "grown-up desires".[32][52] Janet was certified six times platinum by the RIAA, with worldwide sales exceeding twenty million copies.[21][53] It is the fourth best selling R&B album of the Nielsen SoundScan era as well as the best-selling by a female solo artist, scanning 7,035,000 units in the United States.[54]
In July 1993, Jackson made her film debut in Poetic Justice. Rolling Stone described her performance as "a beguiling film debut" despite her inexperience, while The Washington Post considered her "believably eccentric".[55][56] Several reviews were also negative, as Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly noted she "isn't an inept actress, yet there are no more edges to her personality than there are to her plastic Kewpie-doll visage."[57] Jackson's ballad "Again" was featured in the film, and she received her first Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations for Best Original Song.[58][59] In September 1993, Jackson appeared topless on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine with the hands of her then-husband René Elizondo, Jr. covering her breasts. The photograph is the original full-length version of the cropped image used on the cover of the Janet album, shot by Patrick Demarchelier.[60] Sonia Murray of The Vancouver Sun later reported, "Jackson, 27, remains clearly established as both role model and sex symbol; the Rolling Stone photo of Jackson ... became one of the most recognizable, and most lampooned, magazine covers of the year."[61] David Ritz likened her transformation to Marvin Gaye, stating "[j]ust as Gaye moved from What's Going On to Let's Get It On, from the austere to the ecstatic, Janet, every bit as serious-minded as Marvin, moved from Rhythm Nation to janet., her statement of sexual liberation."[14] Her second world tour—the Janet World Tour—garnered critical acclaim as Michael Snyder of the San Francisco Chronicle described Jackson's stage performance as erasing the line between "stadium-size pop music concerts and full-scale theatrical extravaganzas."[62]
During this time period, her brother Michael was immersed in a child sex abuse scandal, of which he denied any wrongdoing.[63] She gave moral support to her brother, and denied allegations made by her sister La Toya in her book La Toya: Growing Up in the Jackson Family (1991) that their parents had abused her and her siblings as children.[44] In an interview with Lynn Norment of Ebony, she commented on her sister's then-estrangement from the family, stating, "her [husband Jack Gordon] has ... brainwashed her so much she keeps herself away from us."[64] In addition, she criticized her brother Jermaine for attacking Michael in his 1991 single "Word to the Badd".[64] In December 1994, she collaborated with her brother Michael on "Scream", the lead single from his 1995 album HIStory, which was written by both siblings as a response to the media scrutiny he suffered from being accused of child sexual abuse.[65] The song debuted at number five on the Hot 100 singles chart, becoming the first song ever to debut in the top 5. "Scream" is featured in the Guinness Book of Records as the "Most Expensive Music Video Ever Made" at a cost of $7 million, which was filmed in May 1995. Jackson and her brother won the 1995 Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video for "Scream".[32]
In October 1995, Jackson's first compilation album, Design of a Decade 1986/1996, was released via A&M Records. It debuted at number four and peaked at number three on the Billboard 200.[10] The lead single "Runaway" became the first song by a female artist to debut within the top ten of the Hot 100, which eventually peaked at number three.[66][67] Design of a Decade 1986/1996 was certified two times platinum by the RIAA and sold over four million copies worldwide.[21][68] Jackson's influence in popular music continued to garner recognition, as Steve Morse of The Boston Globe remarked: "If you're talking about the female power elite in pop, you can't get much higher than Janet Jackson, Bonnie Raitt, Madonna and Yoko Ono. Their collective influence ... is beyond measure. And who could dispute that Janet Jackson now has more credibility than brother Michael?"[69] In January 1996, Jackson renewed her contract with Virgin Records for a reported $80 million.[70] The contract established her as the then-highest paid recording artist in contemporary music, surpassing the recording industry's then-unparalleled $60 million dollar contracts earned by her brother, Michael Jackson, and Madonna.[71][72][73]
1997–03: The Velvet Rope, Nutty Professor II: The Klumps and All for You
During the two-year period prior to the release of her sixth studio album, The Velvet Rope, Jackson reportedly suffered from depression and anxiety.[9] Michael Saunders of The Boston Globe considered the album to be an introspective look into her bout with depression, describing it as a "critical self-examination and an audio journal of a woman's road to self-discovery."[9] The Velvet Rope also introduced sadomasochism into Jackson's music. Eric Henderson of Slant Magazine wrote, "The Velvet Rope is a richly dark masterwork that illustrates that, amid the whips and chains, there is nothing sexier than emotional nakedness."[74] Larry Flick of Billboard called The Velvet Rope "[t]he best American album of the year and the most empowering of her last five."[75] Released in October 1997, The Velvet Rope debuted at number one on the Billboard 200.[10] In August, 1997 the album's lead single, "Got 'til It's Gone", was released to radio, peaking at number 12 on the Billboard Rhythmic Airplay Chart.[76] The single sampled the Joni Mitchell song "Big Yellow Taxi", and featured a cameo appearance by rapper Q-Tip. "Got 'til It's Gone" won the 1997 Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video.[32] The album's second single "Together Again", became her eighth number one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, and placing her on par with Elton John, Diana Ross, and The Rolling Stones.[77] The single spent a record 46 weeks on the Hot 100, as well as spending 19 weeks on the UK singles chart.[77] "I Get Lonely" peaked at number three on the Hot 100.[20] and received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. "I Get Lonely" became Janet's eighteenth consecutive top ten hit on the Hot 100, setting a record for her as the only female artist to achieve that feat, surpassed only by Elvis Presley and The Beatles.[78] The Velvet Rope sold over ten million albums worldwide and was certified three times platinum by the RIAA.[2][21]
Jackson donated a portion of the proceeds earned from "Together Again" to the American Foundation for AIDS Research.[77] Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph observed, "[Jackson] even makes a bid for gay icon status, delivering a diva-ish performance reminiscent of Diana Ross on 'Together Again' (a post-Aids pop song), singing a paean to homosexuality on the jazzy 'Free Xone' and climaxing (if that's the right word) with a bizarre lesbian reinterpretation of Rod Stewart's 'Tonight's the Night'."[79] Rolling Stone regarded "Free Xone" as the album's "best song", describing it as an "anti-homophobia track [which] shifts moods and tempos on a dime, segueing from a Prince-like jam to a masterful sample from Archie Bell and the Drells' 'Tighten Up'."[80] The Velvet Rope was honored by the National Black Lesbian and Gay Leadership Forum, and received the award for Outstanding Music Album at the 9th Annual GLAAD Media Awards.[81]
In 1998, Jackson began The Velvet Rope World Tour, an international trek that included Europe, North America, Africa, Asia, New Zealand and Australia. Robert Hilburn of The Los Angeles Times reported, "[t]here is so much of the ambition and glamour of a Broadway musical in Janet Jackson's new Velvet Rope tour that it's only fitting that the concert program credits her as the show's 'creator and director'."[82] Her HBO special, The Velvet Rope: Live in Madison Square Garden, was watched by more than fifteen million viewers. The two-hour concert beat the ratings of all four major networks in homes that were subscribed to HBO.[83] The HBO concert special was awarded four Emmy nominations including one win.[84] Jackson donated a portion of her concert ticket sales to America's Promise, a non-profit organization designed by Colin Powell to assist disenfranchised youth.[85]
The following month, Jackson separated from Elizondo Jr.[86] As her world tour came to a close in 1999, Jackson lent guest vocals to a number of songs by other artists, including Shaggy's "Luv Me, Luv Me", for the soundtrack to How Stella Got Her Groove Back, "God's Stepchild" from the Down on the Delta soundtrack, "Girlfriend/Boyfriend" with BLACKstreet, and "What's It Gonna Be?!" with Busta Rhymes. Both "Girlfriend/Boyfriend" and "What's It Gonna Be?!" are among the most expensive music videos ever made, and the latter became a #1 hit on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks, Hot Rap Tracks charts and reached the Top 3 of the Billboard Hot 100. She also recorded a duet with Elton John for the song "I Know the Truth", which appeared on Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida soundtrack. At the 1999 World Music Awards, Jackson received the Legend Award alongside Cher for "outstanding contribution to the pop industry."[87] As 1999 ended, Billboard magazine ranked Jackson as the second most successful artist of the decade, behind Mariah Carey.[88]
In July 2000, Jackson appeared in her second film, Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, as Professor Denise Gaines, opposite Eddie Murphy. The film became her second to open at number one at the box office, grossing an estimated $42.7 million in its opening weekend and an estimated $166,339,890 in total worldwide.[89][90] Her contribution to the film's soundtrack, "Doesn't Really Matter", became her ninth number one Billboard Hot 100 single and reached the Top 5 in the UK. In the same year, Jackson's husband filed for divorce. Jeff Gordinier of Entertainment Weekly reported that for eight of the thirteen years she and Elizondo had known one another, "[they] were married—a fact they managed to hide not only from the international press but from Jackson's own father."[47] Elizondo filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against her, estimated between $10–25 million; they did not reach a settlement until 2003.[47][91]
Jackson was awarded the American Music Awards' Award of Merit in March 2001 for "her finely crafted, critically acclaimed and socially conscious, multi-platinum albums."[92] She became the inaugural honoree of the first "mtvICON" ceremony, "an annual recognition of artists who have made significant contributions to music, music video and pop culture while tremendously impacting the MTV generation." The event served as a tribute to Jackson and featured performances and commentary from Britney Spears, 'N Sync, Destiny's Child, Pink, Usher, Jennifer Lopez, Buckcherry, Outkast and Aaliyah.[93] Jackson's seventh album, All for You, was released in April 2001, debuting at number one on the Billboard 200.[10] Selling 605,000 copies, All for You had the highest first-week sales total of her career.[94] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic stated "[Jackson's] created a record that's luxurious and sensual, spreading leisurely over its 70 minutes, luring you in even when you know better", and Jon Pareles of The New York Times commented, "[a]s other rhythm and blues strips down to match the angularity of hip-hop, Ms. Jackson luxuriates in textures as dizzying as a new infatuation."[95][96]



"All for You" (2001)




The disco inspired "All for You" features an uptempo dance beat and samples "The Glow of Love" originally performed by Change
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The album's title-track, "All for You", debuted on the Hot 100 at number fourteen, the highest debut ever for a single that was not commercially available.[97] Teri VanHorn of MTV dubbed Jackson "Queen of Radio" as the single made radio airplay history, "[being] added to every pop, rhythmic and urban radio station that reports to the national trade magazine Radio & Records" in its first week.[97] The song broke the overall airplay debut record with a first week audience of 70 million and debuted at number nine on the Radio Songs chart.[98] The single peaked at number one, where it topped the Hot 100 for seven weeks and reached the Top 10 in eleven countries.[99] It received the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording.[32] The second single, "Someone to Call My Lover", which contained a heavy guitar loop of America's "Ventura Highway", peaked at number three on the Hot 100 and became a Top 20 hit in five countries.[100] All for You was certified double platinum by the RIAA and sold more than nine million copies worldwide.[21][101]
Jackson's All for You Tour began in July, 2001. Los Angeles Times' pop music critic Robert Hilburn gave a negative review of the concert tour, comparing it unfavorably to Madonna's Drowned World Tour and Britney Spears' Dream Within a Dream Tour. Hilburn remarked: "At 35, Jackson is only eight years younger than Madonna, but her presentation feels more akin to Britney Spears'. Madonna knows how to dig beneath the surface; Jackson lives on it."[102] Hilburns' review sparked backlash from those who felt Jackson gave the superior performance. David Massey commented that "Janet outdid the Material Girl by a mile ... And the gall to bring Britney Spears' name into the picture by saying Janet's show is like Britney's? Hello, it's the other way around!"[103] Similarly, Rudy Scalese complimented Jackson's performance, stating: "Janet Jackson hasn't skipped a beat. She is still the Queen of Pop."[103] Jackson donated a portion of the proceeds from the tour's ticket sales to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, with President Roxanne Spillett stating, "[t]he increased awareness she will bring to our cause, along with her generous financial contribution, will help us reach an even greater number of young people in search of hope and opportunity."[104]
In 2002, Jackson collaborated with reggae singer Beenie Man on the song "Feel It Boy". She later admitted regret over the collaboration after discovering Beenie Man's music often contained homophobic lyrics, and soon issued an apology to her gay fans in an article published in The Voice.[105] Jackson also began her relationship with record producer Jermaine Dupri that same year. Janet recorded a duet with Justin Timberlake titled "(And She Said) Take Me Now" for his debut solo album "Justified."[106]
2004–05: Super Bowl XXXVIII controversy, Damita Jo, and television appearances
Main article: Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy



 Jackson and Justin Timberlake at the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show in February 2004.
For the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show in February 2004, Jackson performed a medley of her singles "All for You" and "Rhythm Nation"; she then performed alongside Justin Timberlake. As Timberlake sang the lyric "gonna have you naked by the end of this song" from his single "Rock Your Body", he tore open her top, exposing her right breast. After the performance, Jackson apologized, calling it an accident, and said that Timberlake was supposed to pull away the bustier and leave the red-lace bra intact.[107] She further commented, "I am really sorry if I offended anyone. That was truly not my intention ... MTV, CBS, the NFL had no knowledge of this whatsoever, and unfortunately, the whole thing went wrong in the end."[108] Timberlake also issued an apology, calling the accident a "wardrobe malfunction".[107] TIME reported that the incident became the most replayed moment in TiVo history and a company representative stated "The audience measurement guys have never seen anything like it. The audience reaction charts looked like an electrocardiogram."[109] Monte Burke of Forbes magazine reported "[t]he fleeting moment enticed an estimated 35,000 new [TiVo] subscribers to sign up."[110][111] Jackson was later listed in the 2007 edition of Guinness World Records as "Most Searched in Internet History" and the "Most Searched for News Item".[112] The Super Bowl incident is widely considered to be one of the most controversial television events in history. Youtube creator Jawed Karim revealed the inspiration for YouTube came from Janet's infamous Super Bowl incident, when her breast was accidentally exposed by Timberlake during the halftime show. Karim could not easily find the video clip online, which lead to its creation.[113] Following the incident, 'Janet Jackson' became the most searched term, event and image in Internet history[114][115] and also broke the record for “most searched event over one day”.[116] 'Janet Jackson' also became the most searched internet term for 2004 and also the following year.[117][118] The event also cointed the phrase "wardrobe malfunction", which was later added to the dictionary in 2008.[119] CBS, the NFL, and MTV (CBS's sister network, which produced the halftime show), denied any knowledge of, and all responsibility for, the incident. Still, the Federal Communications Commission continued an investigation, ultimately losing its appeal for a $550,000 fine against CBS.[120]
As a result of the incident, CBS allowed Timberlake to appear during the 46th Grammy Awards ceremony but banned Jackson from attending the event.[121] Jermaine Dupri resigned from his position on the Grammy Awards committee as a result.[122] The controversy halted plans for Jackson to star in a made-for-TV biopic on the life on singer Lena Horne for ABC-TV. Though Horne was reportedly displeased by the Super Bowl incident and insisted that ABC pull Jackson from the project, according to Jackson's representatives, she withdrew from the project willingly.[123] Additionally, many radio formats and music channels such as MTV blacklisted Janet's singles and music videos from receiving airplay due to legalities surrounding the incident.[124][125]
In March 2004, Jackson's eighth studio album, Damita Jo (Jackson's middle name), was released debuting at number two on the Billboard 200.[10][126] Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine referred to the album as "the aural equivalent of hardcore pornography—it leaves nothing to the imagination and it's endlessly repetitive."[127] Alternatively, a review by Ann Powers of Blender magazine asserted: "Artfully structured, unapologetically explicit, Damita Jo is erotica at its friendliest and most well-balanced. This hour-plus of Tantric flow even erases the memory of Jackson’s clunky Super Bowl breast-baring."[128] By the end of the month it was certified platinum by the RIAA, and eventually sold over three million albums worldwide.[21][129] The album's performance was largely affected by backlash from the public and blacklisting from music channels and radio due to the Super Bowl incident. Although the album debuted at number two, its four singles all failed to become top 40 hits although "I Want You" managed to be certified Platinum[130] and "Just a Little While" reached the Top 10 in some areas internationally, peaking at #1 in Japan. Keith Caulfield of Billboard commented, "[f]or a singles artist like Jackson, who has racked up 27 top 10 Hot 100 singles in her career, including 10 No. 1s, this could probably be considered a disappointment."[126] Billboard's Clover Hope reported Damita Jo "was largely overshadowed by the Super Bowl fiasco" and that Jermaine Dupri, the then-president of the urban music department at Virgin Records, expressed "sentiments of nonsupport from the label."[131]
Jackson appeared as a host of Saturday Night Live on April 10, 2004 and also appeared as a guest star on the television sitcom Will & Grace portraying herself.[132] In November 2004, Jackson was honored as an African-American role model by 100 Black Men of America, Inc., who presented her with the "organization's Artistic Achievement Award saluting 'a career that has gone from success to greater success'."[133] Though the New York Amsterdam News reported "[t]here were a number of attendees who expressed dismay over presenting an award to the 38-year-old performer" because of the Super Bowl incident, the organization's President Paul Williams responded, "[a]n individual's worth can't be judged by a single moment in that person's life."[134][135] Janet also received the Legend Award at the 2004 Radio Music Awards.[136] In June 2005, she was honored with a Humanitarian Award by the Human Rights Campaign and AIDS Project Los Angeles, in recognition of her work and involvement in raising money for AIDS charities.[137]
2006–10: 20 Y.O., Why Did I Get Married? Discipline and Number Ones



 Jackson with the winners of the "Design Me" contest held for her ninth studio album, 20 Y.O.
To promote her ninth studio album, 20 Y.O., Jackson appeared on the cover of Us Weekly in June 2006, which became one of the magazine's best-selling issues.[138] Virgin Records released 20 Y.O. in September 2006, which debuted at number two on the Billboard 200.[10] Janine Coveney of Billboard reported the album title, 20 Years Old, represents "a celebration of the joyful liberation and history-making musical style of her 1986 breakthrough album, Control."[139] Rolling Stone magazine's Evan Serpick remarked "[t]he title of Janet Jackson's latest album refers to the two decades since she released her breakthrough, Control, with hits like 'Nasty' and 'What Have You Done for Me Lately.' If we were her, we wouldn't make the comparison."[140] However, Glenn Gamboa of Newsday gave the album a positive rating, stating that "[o]n '20 Y.O.' she skips all that drama of breaking free and asserting herself. She also keeps most of the tie-me-up, tie-me-down sexual raunch of her recent albums in the closet. This album is all about dancing and returning to her R&B roots."[141]
The album's lead single "Call on Me", a duet with rapper Nelly, peaked at number twenty-five on the Hot 100 and at number one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[20] 20 Y.O. was certified platinum by the RIAA and sold 679,000 copies in the U.S. and 1.2 million worldwide, and also received a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary R&B album.[21][142][143] Billboard magazine reported the release of 20 Y.O. satisfied Jackson's contract with Virgin Records; Jermaine Dupri, who co-produced 20 Y.O., left his position as head of urban music at Virgin following the "disappointing performance" of Jackson's album.[144]
In January 2007, Jackson was ranked the seventh richest woman in the entertainment business by Forbes magazine, having amassed a fortune of over $150 million.[145] Later that year, she starred opposite Tyler Perry as a psychotherapist named Patrica in the feature film Why Did I Get Married?. It became her third consecutive film to open at number one at the box office, grossing $21.4 million in its first week.[146] Variety magazine's Ronnie Scheib described Jackson's performance as charming, yet bland, while Wesley Morris of The Boston Globe commented that Jackson portrayed her character with "soft authority".[147][148] In February 2008, Jackson won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture for her role.[149]



 Jackson Live in Concert on the Rock Witchu Tour at GM Place, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on September 10, 2008.
In July 2007, Jackson changed labels and signed a record contract with Island Records. Her tenth studio album, Discipline, was released in February 2008, debuting on the Billboard 200 at number one.[10] Margeaux Watson of Entertainment Weekly remarked, "her boy-crazy lyrics—which often sound like the cheesy text messages of a lovesick adolescent—certainly lack the flavor needed to put this once-celebrated pop star back on top of critics' lists."[150] Andy Kellman of Allmusic expressed: "Janet probably won't hit that late-'80s peak again, but that is no excuse to write her off."[151] Her single, "Feedback", peaked at number nineteen on the Hot 100 and became her highest charting single since "Someone to Call My Lover".[20] In April 2008, Jackson received the Vanguard Award at the 19th Annual GLAAD Media Awards, honoring her contributions in promoting equal rights for LGBT people.[81] GLAAD President Neil G. Giuliano commented, "Ms. Jackson has a tremendous following inside the LGBT community and out, and having her stand with us against the defamation that LGBT people still face in our country is extremely significant."[81] Jackson's fifth concert tour—the Rock Witchu Tour—began in September 2008.[152] That same month, she and her record label parted ways through mutual agreement. Rodney 'Darkchild' Jerkins, who produced the album expressed, "I felt like it wasn't pushed correctly ... She just didn't get her just-do as an artist of that magnitude."[153] In the fourteen months she was associated with Island, her record had sold 449,000 copies and did not receive RIAA certification. Billboard reported that because of Jackson's dissatisfaction with her album's promotion, "the label agreed to dissolve their relationship with the artist at her request."[154][155]
In June 2009, Jackson's brother Michael died at age 50. At the 2009 BET Awards, she spoke publicly for the first time concerning his death, stating "I'd just like to say, to you, Michael is an icon, to us, Michael is family. And he will forever live in all of our hearts. On behalf of my family and myself, thank you for all of your love, thank you for all of your support. We miss him so much."[156] In an exclusive interview with Harper's Bazaar, she revealed she had first learned of her brother's death while filming on location in Atlanta for Why Did I Get Married Too?. Amidst the public and private mourning with her family, she focused on work to deal with the grief, avoiding any news coverage of her sibling's death; she stated "[i]t's still important to face reality, and not that I'm running, but sometimes you just need to get away for a second."[157] During this time, she also ended her seven-year relationship with Jermaine Dupri.[157] In September 2009, she performed "Scream" at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards as part of a tribute to Michael.[158] MTV General Manager Stephen Friedman stated: "We felt there was no one better than Janet to anchor it and send a really powerful message."[159] She worked with several world renowned choreographers, with her personal creative director, Gil Duldulao, coordinating the performance.[159] It was lauded by several critics and Michael Slezak of Entertainment Weekly commented, "[s]he worked that stage harder than an underpaid assistant doin’ overtime, and as tributes go, this was as energetic as it was heartfelt."[160]
Her single, "Make Me", was released following the VMA performance initially as an audio stream on her official web site, and was later made available for digital download.[161] Soon after its release, the single became Jackson's 19th number one Hot Dance Club Songs chart and made her the first artist to earn number one singles across four decades and the second most successful artist on the chart.[162] Later that month, Jackson chaired the inaugural benefit of amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, held in Milan in conjunction with fashion week. CEO Kevin Robert Frost commented, "[w]e are profoundly grateful to Janet Jackson for joining amfAR as a chair of its first event in Milan ... She brings incomparable grace and a history of dedication to the fight against AIDS."[163] One of the signature pieces sold for the auction was a pair of crystal-studded boots her brother Michael had intended to wear for the This Is It concert tour, which sold for $14,650. The event raised a total of $1.1 million for the nonprofit organization. She stated, "I'd just like to thank everyone here in the global fashion community who've done so much to help amfAR and to support HIV/AIDS research."[164] Her second greatest hits compilation, Number Ones—titled The Best outside of the United States—was released in November, 2009 as a joint venture between Universal Music Enterprises (UMe) and EMI Music.[165] It debuted at number twenty-two on the Billboard 200, selling 37,000 copies in its first week of release.[10][166] She performed as the opening act for the 37th annual American Music Awards and as one of the performing acts of the Capital FM December 2009 Jingle Bell Ball at the London O2 arena.[167][168]
2010–present: Film projects, True You and Number Ones: Up Close and Personal
In April 2010, Jackson reprised her role in Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married? sequel, Why Did I Get Married Too?. The film earned $30 million at the box office in its opening week, reaching number two.[169] Hale of The New York Times referred to her performance as "invigorating and oddly funny" while Jackie K. Cooper of The Huffington Post comments "[s]he is very impressive at times and less so at others. She does show a willingness to be seen at her most disheveled."[170][171] Her performance earned a nomination for the 2011 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture.[172] She recorded the lead single for the film's soundtrack entitled, "Nothing".[173] In May, she appeared on the season finale of American Idol, where she performed "Again", "Nothing" and "Nasty".[174] In July, Jackson became a spokeswoman for fur label American Legend Cooperative's Blackglama "What Becomes a Legend Most?" campaign, previously endorsed by celebrities such as Lena Horne, Elizabeth Taylor, Lauren Bacall and Diana Ross.[175] In August, UMe released her third greatest hits collection, Icon: Number Ones, as part of the debut of the Icon album series; according to the press release, the series features "the greatest hits, signature tunes and fan favorites of the most popular artists in music history."[176]
In November, Blackglama announced that Jackson launched a collection of coats, jackets, vests, scarves, gloves and other accessories under their Janet Jackson Blackglama Collection. The art of fashion is one of Jackson’s great passions and she was personally involved in the design process. The line was priced for the luxury market and was retailed in the Fur Salon, at select Saks Fifth Avenue and the Maximilian Fur Salon at select Bloomingdales.[177] According to the company's press release, she was selected as the campaign's latest "Legend" because she "is an icon in the world of music and entertainment, a true legend. She represents everything that this storied campaign embodies. Janet is to entertainment what Blackglama is to luxury."[175] Her endorsement sparked outrage from animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) as well as activist Pamela Anderson.[175] Anderson and PETA senior vice president, Dan Mathews, found Jackson's decision hypocritical, as she has declined to endorse the wearing of fur in the past.[178] Also in November 2010, she starred as Joanna in the drama For Colored Girls, Tyler Perry's film adaptation of Ntozake Shange's play For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf (1975). Christopher John Farley of The Wall Street Journal complimented her performance, stating that "[she] recites verses written by Ntozake Shange, the author of the play that inspired the film ... But instead of offering up a mannered coffeehouse reading of the lines, Jackson makes the words sound like ordinary—though very eloquent—speech."[179] A number of critics have compared her portrayal of Jo to Meryl Streep's Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada.[180][181][182] Her performance earned her nominations for the 2011 Black Reel Awards in the categories for Outstanding Supporting Actress and Outstanding Ensemble.[183]



 Jackson performing during her Number Ones, Up Close and Personal tour.
On November 18, in an exclusive interview with AOL Music's '"The Boombox", Jackson announced plans to go on her "largest ever world tour" in 2011, supporting her second greatest hits collection, Number Ones.[184] The tour, entitled Number Ones, Up Close and Personal, will hold concerts in 35 global cities.[184] The cities will be picked by fans who can submit suggestions on her official website.[184] During the tour, she will perform her 35 number one hits and dedicate a song to each city.[184] Jackson partnered with Mattel to release a limited-edition Barbie bearing her resemblance. Titled "Divinely Janet", the doll was auctioned for $15,000 with proceeds being donated to Project Angel Food.[185] Janet was also offered a judging role on the second season of The X Factor USA but declined.[186][187]
February saw the release of Jackson's book, co-written by David Ritz, True You: A Journey to Finding and Loving Yourself. It topped The New York Times Best Seller list the following month.[188] The hardcover chronicles Jackson’s struggles with weight loss, self-esteem and living a happier life. Jackson candidly opens up to readers about her journey to self-love and why she chose to write the book. Jackson reveals in True You her vulnerable and emotional nature and challenges in her career. The self-help book explains her early struggles with body image when Good Times wardrobe staff forced then 10-year-old Jackson to bind her breasts to make them appear smaller; starting her early body image issues.[189] [190] In March, she signed a film production contract with Lionsgate "to select, develop and produce a feature film for the independent studio."[191] Lionsgate president of motion picture production and development Mike Paseornek stated: "She is a powerful on-screen presence, with a vast audience, and we believe she will be an equally powerful presence behind the scenes ... We are honored to be able to provide a home for her ideas, passion and immense talent."[191] Jackson became the first female pop star to perform at the I. M. Pei glass pyramid at the Louvre Museum. To raise contributions for the restoration of iconic works of art, she performed "in conjunction with the museum's biannual fundraising event, 'Liaisons au Louvre,' on Tuesday, June 14."[192] Louvre President-Director Henri Loyrette stated: "Janet Jackson is one of the world’s greatest artistic treasures ... Accordingly, we are profoundly honored, and believe it most fitting, that her performance in the Louvre Museum will be yet another masterpiece captured under our glorious glass pyramid."[193] In August, 2011, she was announced as the first celebrity to be featured in the Blackglama "What Makes A Legend Most?" campaign for two consecutive years. Blackglama CEO Joe Morelli stated: "It became clear in our discussions of who the Legend should be this year, that continuing the momentum with Janet made complete sense ... She embodies glamour, luxury, and sophistication, everything that Blackglama stands for."[194] In November 2011, Jackson partnered with the label to release a 15-piece collection of luxury fur products, to be carried by Saks Fifth Avenue and Bloomingdale's.[195]
Having struggled with weight in the past, Jackson became Nutrisystem's spokesperson in 2012, specifically endorsing their "success" weight-loss program.[196] With Nutrisystem, she donated meals to the hungry worth $10 million in contributions.[196] After her brother’s passing in 2009, rumors circulated that her weight gain was the result of emotional eating and was affirmed in her diet and self-esteem book, True You. Jackson admits that being down or stressed causes overeating for comfort and that she is an emotional eater. Jackson attended the amFAR Cinema Against AIDS annual ball at Cannes in a white Pucci by Peter Dundas gown that showed off her slim, toned figure.[197][198][199][200] In July, the online tabloid TMZ had falsely reported that Jackson slapped and verbally abused her niece Paris Jackson; they retracted their statements. Two weeks later, TMZ reported another false story about Jackson's Las Vegas home needing mortgage payments from the Michael Jackson Estate; it was retracted, as Jackson hadn't a mortgage.[201][202][203] In February 2013, Jackson announced that she was married to her third husband, Qatari billionaire Wissam Al Mana, during a private ceremony in 2012,[204] who came into news because he fired Marte Deborah Dalelv for "misconduct and breach of your employment duties, effective immediately", after she reported rape to the UAE police.
Artistry
Music and voice
Jackson has a mezzo-soprano 3 octave vocal range.[205] Many critics have observed she has never been considered a strong vocalist, noting her voice is often enveloped by the production of her music. Biographer David Ritz commented, "[h]er wispy voice was a pale echo of Michael's, but on Janet's albums—and in her videos and live performances, which revealed a crisp, athletic dance technique not unlike her brother's—singing wasn't the point", commenting that importance was instead placed on "[h]er slamming beats, infectious hooks, and impeccable production values."[48] Music critic J. D. Considine noted that "[o]n albums, Jackson's sound isn't defined by her voice so much as by the way her voice is framed by the lush, propulsive production of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis."[206] Her voice has also been praised on occasion. Eric Henderson of Slant magazine claimed critics who judged Jackson harshly for her thin voice "somehow missed the explosive 'gimme a beat' vocal pyrotechnics she unleashes all over 'Nasty' ... Or that they completely dismissed how perfect her tremulous hesitance fits into the abstinence anthem 'Let's Wait Awhile'."[207] Classical composer Louis Andriessen has also praised Jackson for her "rubato, sense of rhythm, sensitivity, and the childlike quality of her strangely erotic voice."[208]



"Black Cat" (1989)




Written by Jackson and produced by Jellybean Johnson, "Black Cat" was recorded using a mixture of Rockman and Marshall amplifier to give it a heavy metal sound. The song's lyrics convey a stance against substance abuse.
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Jackson's music has encompassed a broad range of genres, including R&B, soul, disco, hip hop, rap, pop, rock, and dance music. Qadree EI-Amin, Jackson's former personal manager, commented, "[s]he's bigger than Barbra Streisand because Streisand can't appeal to the street crowd, as Janet does. But Streisand's rich, elite crowd loves Janet Jackson."[209] Her records from the 1980s have been described as being heavily influenced by Prince, as her producers are ex-members of The Time.[210] Sal Cinquemani wrote that in addition to defining Top 40 radio, she "gave Prince's Minneapolis sound a distinctly feminine—and, with songs like 'What Have You Done for Me Lately?,' 'Nasty,' 'Control,' and 'Let's Wait Awhile,' a distinctly feminist—spin."[211] Richard J. Ripani documented that when record producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis collaborated with Jackson on her 1986 album Control, the trio "crafted a new sound that fuses the rhythmic elements of funk and disco, along with heavy doses of synthesizers, percussion, sound effects, and a rap music sensibility."[25] Rickey Vincent stated in his book Funk: The Music, The People, and The Rhythm of The One (1996) that she has often been credited for redefining the standard of popular music with the industrial-strength beats of the album.[212] Richard Rischar in "A Vision of Love: An Etiquette of Vocal Ornamentation in African-American Popular Ballads of the Early 1990s" notes that "[t]he black pop ballad of the mid-1980s had been dominated by the vocal and production style that was smooth and polished, led by singers Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, and James Ingram."[213] She continued her musical development by blending contemporary urban sound with hip hop in the 1990s. This included a softer representation of R&B, articulated by lush soulful ballads and up-tempo dance beats.[214] She has been described as "an artist who has reshaped the sound and image of rhythm and blues" within the first decade of her career.[215] Critic Karla Peterson remarked that "[s]he is a sharp dancer, an appealing performer, and as 'That's the Way Love Goes' proves—an ace pop-song writer."[216] Her material from the 2000s decade has been viewed less favorably, as Sal Cinquemani comments that "[e]xcept for maybe R.E.M., no other former superstar act has been as prolific with such diminishing commercial and creative returns."[211]
Jackson has changed her lyrical focus over the years, becoming the subject of analysis in musicology, African American studies, and gender studies.[217][218] David Ritz compares Jackson's musical style to that of Marvin Gaye, stating, "[l]ike Marvin, autobiography seemed the sole source of her music. Her art, also like Marvin's, floated over a reservoir of secret pain."[219] Much of her success has been attributed to "a series of powerful, metallic grooves; her chirpy, multi-tracked vocals; and a lyrical philosophy built on pride and self-knowledge."[220] Ritz has also stated: "The mystery is the low flame that burns around the perimeters of Janet Jackson's soul. The flame feeds off the most highly combustible elements: survival and ambition, caution and creativity, supreme confidence and dark fear."[219] During the 1980s, her lyrics embodied self-actualization, feminist principles and politically driven ideology.[218][221] Gillian G. Gaar, author of She's a Rebel: The History of Women in Rock & Roll (2002), described Control as "an autobiographical tale about her life with her parents, her first marriage, and breaking free."[15] In Encyclopedia of African American Popular Culture (2010) author Jessie Carney Smith wrote, "[w]ith that album, she asserted her independence, individuality, and personal power. She challenged audiences to see her as a transformed person, from an ingénue to a grow-up, multi-talented celebrity."[7] Referring to Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 as an embodiment of hope, Timothy E. Scheurer, author of Born in the USA: The Myth of America in Popular Music from Colonial Times to the Present (2007) wrote: "It may remind some of Sly Stone prior to There's a Riot Going On and other African-American artists of the 1970s in its tacit assumption that the world imagined by Dr. King is still possible, that the American Dream is a dream for all people."[222]
On Janet, Jackson began to deal primarily with sexual themes. Shayne Lee, author of Erotic Revolutionaries: Black Women, Sexuality, and Popular Culture (2010), wrote that her music over the following decade "brand[ed] her as one of the most sexually stimulating vocalists of the 1990s."[223] In You've Come A Long Way, Baby: Women, Politics, and Popular Culture (1996), Lilly J. Goren observed that "Jackson's evolution from politically aware musician to sexy diva marked the direction that society and the music industry were encouraging the dance-rock divas to pursue."[221] Joshua Klein wrote in The Washington Post that Jackson's public image over the course of her career had shifted "from innocence to experience, inspiring such carnal albums as 1993's 'Janet' and 1997's 'The Velvet Rope', the latter of which explored the bonds—figuratively and literally—of love and lust."[224] The song "Free Xone" from The Velvet Rope, which portrays same-sex relationships in a positive light, is described by sociologist Shayne Lee as "a rare incident in which a popular black vocalist explores romantic or sensual energy outside the contours of heteronormativity, making it a significant song in black sexual politics."[223] Jackson explained the recurring themes on her later albums by saying, "I love love and I love sex."[225] She stated during promotion for Janet, "I love feeling deeply sexual—and don't mind letting the world know. For me, sex has become a celebration, a joyful part of the creative process."[14] The sexual explicit content of her latter albums have drawn mixed reactions—ranging from acclaim to abhorrence—often in juxtaposition to Madonna, who is seen as her counterpart.[226] Stephen Thomas Erlewine comments "[w]hile sex indisputably fuels much great pop music, it isn't an inherently fascinating topic for pop music—as with anything, it all depends on the artist."[127]
Videos and stage
Jackson drew her inspiration for her music videos and performances from the musicals she watched in her youth, and was heavily influenced by the choreography of Fred Astaire and Michael Kidd, among others.[227] Throughout her career, she has worked with numerous professional choreographers such as Paula Abdul, Michael Kidd, and Tina Landon. Landon also took part in the choreography for Michael and Janet Jackson's 1995 music video Scream.[228] Janine Coveney of Billboard observed that "Jackson's musical declaration of independence [Control] launched a string of hits, an indelible production sound, and an enduring image cemented by groundbreaking video choreography and imagery that pop vocalists still emulate."[139] Qadree EI-Amin remarked that artists such as "Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera pattern their performances after Janet's proven dance-diva persona."[209]



 Jackson (center) performing in the music video for "Rhythm Nation" surrounded by male and female dancers in militant unisex attire.
Beretta E. Smith-Shomade, author of Shaded Lives: African-American Women and Television (2002) wrote that "Jackson's impact on the music video sphere came largely through music sales successes, which afforded her more visual liberties and control. This assuming of control directly impacted the look and content of her music videos, giving Jackson an agency not assumed by many other artists—male or female, Black or White."[229] Parallel Lines: Media Representations of Dance (1993) documents that her videos have been often been reminiscent of live concerts or elaborate musical theater.[230] Many of her videos from Control, Including "Nasty" and "When I Think of You", were choreographed using influences from Broadway theatre.[230] Multiculturalism has also been a cornerstone of the imagery represented in Jackson's music videos.[231] The militant iconography of her 1989 video for "Rhythm Nation" signifies a need for both racial and gender equality; she and her dancers perform in identical uniforms while Jackson herself "is performing asexually and almost anonymously in front of, but as one of the members of the group."[232] In the 1990s, her videos such as 1993's "If"—which "[exudes a] 'Last Emperor' lust and mystery"—and 1995's "Runaway" drew cultural influences from the orient.[233][234] Others, such as 1997's "Got 'til It's Gone" and "Together Again" explore African roots and the serengeti.[235][236] Jackson's music videos have also found rapport within the gay community; the dramatic imagery in "Rhythm Nation" led to reenactments of the video in gay clubs, while her 1990 video for "Love Will Never Do (Without You)" is said to explore the aesthetic of the male body from both the heterosexual female and gay male perspective.[237][238] She received the MTV Video Vanguard Award in 1990 for her contributions to the art form, and in 2001 became the first recipient of the mtvICON award, celebrating her impact on the music industry as a whole. In 2003, Slant Magazine named the videos for "Rhythm Nation" and "Got 'til It's Gone" as two of the 100 Greatest Music Videos of all time, ranked at number 87 and number 10 respectively.[239][240] In 2011, the "Rhythm Nation" music video was voted the tenth best music video of the 1980s by Billboard.[241]
Her music videos have contributed to a higher degree of sexual freedom among young women, as Jean M. Twenge, author of Generation Me: Why Today's Young Americans are More Confident, Assertive, Entitled—and More Miserable Than Ever Before (2007) wrote: "In Alfred Kinsey's studies in the 1950s, only 3% of the young women had received oral sex from a man. By the mid-1990s, however, 75% of women aged 18-24 had experienced cunnilingus. Music videos by female artists have contributed to the trend, with both Mary J. Blige and Janet Jackson heavily implying male-on-female oral sex in music videos by pushing down on a man's head until he's in exactly the right position."[242] Similarly, Paula Kamen in Her Way: Young Women Remake the Sexual Revolution (2000) states that "[i]n the early to mid-1990s, oral sex even reached mainstream music as politically charged demand of truly liberated women," citing TLC, Mary J. Blige and Janet Jackson as examples of females artist simulating cunnilingus in their videos.[243] However, accusations of cosmetic surgery, skin lightening and increasingly hypersexual imagery have led to her being viewed as conforming to a white, male-dominated view of sexuality, rather than liberating herself or others.[229]
Jet magazine reported "Janet's innovative stage performances during her world tours have won her a reputation as a world-class performer."[244] Chris Willman of Los Angeles Times stated the "enthralling" choreography of Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 Tour "represents the pinnacle of what can be done in the popping 'n' locking style—a rapid-fire mixture of rigidly jerky and gracefully fluid movements."[245] The Independent writer Nicholas Barber commented in his review for The Velvet Rope Tour that "Janet's concerts are the pop equivalent of a summer blockbuster movie, with all the explosions, special effects, ersatz sentimentality, gratuitous cleavage and emphasis on spectacle over coherence that the term implies."[246] When Los Angeles Times reporter Robert Hilburn asked Jackson "[d]o you understand it when people talk about [The Velvet Rope Tour] in terms of Broadway?", she responded, "I'm crazy about Broadway ... That's what I grew up on."[82] Her Number Ones: Up Close and Personal tour deviated from the full-scale theatricality found in her previous concert arena settings in favor of smaller venues. Critics noted being scaled down did not affect the impact of her showmanship, and in some cases, enhanced it. Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune wrote: "In past tours, Jackson's thin voice was often swallowed up by the sheer size of her production ... In the more scaled-down setting, Jackson brought a warmth and a passion that wasn't always evident in stadiums ... the best Janet Jackson performance I've covered in 20-plus years."[247]
Thor Christensen of The Dallas Morning News reported that Jackson lip syncs in concert; he wrote, "Janet Jackson—one of pop's most notorious onstage lip-syncers—conceded ... she uses 'some' taped vocals to augment her live vocals. But she refused to say what percentage of her concert 'voice' is taped and how much is live."[248] Richard Harrington of The Washington Post observed, "[s]ince the advent of MTV and the proliferation of dance-oriented singers like Milli Vanilli, Madonna, Paula Abdul, Janet Jackson, George Michael, MC Hammer, Michael Jackson and the New Kids on the Block, audience expectations have been drastically redefined" noting that few entertainers are capable of recreating the spectacle of elaborately choreographed music videos while delivering studio precision vocals.[249] Michael MacCambridge of the Austin American-Statesman, who reviewed Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 Tour, described lip-syncing as a "moot point", stating, "Jackson was frequently singing along with her own pre-recorded vocals, to achieve a sound closer to radio versions of singles."[250] MacCambridge also observed "[i]t seemed unlikely that anyone—even a prized member of the First Family of Soul Music—could dance like she did for 90 minutes and still provide the sort of powerful vocals that the '90s super concerts are expected to achieve."[250] Similarly, Chris Willman commented, "[e]ven a classically trained vocalist would be hard-pressed to maintain any sort of level of volume—or, more appropriately, 'Control'—while bounding up and down stairs and whipping limbs in unnatural directions at impeccable, breakneck speed."[245] Critics observed that in the smaller scale of her Number Ones: Up Close and Personal tour, she forewent lip-syncing.[251] Chris Richards of The Washington Post stated "even at its breathiest, that delicate voice hasn’t lost the laserlike precision that seems to be a part of the Jackson family DNA."[252] He complemented her physically strenuous performance, stating "[g]o on, Janet. Let ’em see you sweat. Because in a 21st-century popscape where concerts are driven by spectacle, we need to know that beneath all of the sci-fi costumes, strobe lights and Auto-Tune, we’re still witnessing a performance by the living, breathing, profusely sweating human being whose name is stamped on the tickets we just emptied our wallets for."[252]
Influences
Jackson has credited her older brothers Michael and Jermaine as her primary musical influences.[219] She describes actress/singer Lena Horne as a profound inspiration, not only in her own career, but for black entertainers across multiple generations. Upon Horne's death in 2010, she stated "[Horne] brought much joy into everyone's lives—even the younger generations, younger than myself. She was such a great talent. She opened up such doors for artists like myself."[253] Similarly, she considers Dorothy Dandridge to be one of her idols.[254] Describing herself as "a very big Joni Mitchell fan", she explained: "As a kid I was drawn to Joni Mitchell records ... Along with Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder, Joni's songs spoke to me in an intimate, personal way."[255][256] She holds reverence for Tina Turner, stating: "Tina has become a heroic figure for many people, especially women, because of her tremendous strength. Personally, Tina doesn't seem to have a beginning or an end in my life. I felt her music was always there, and I feel like it always will be."[257] She has also named other socially conscious acts, such as Tracy Chapman, Sly and the Family Stone and U2 as sources of inspiration.[15][258] Other artists attributed as influences on Jackson's music according to Rolling Stone are The Ronettes, Dionne Warwick, Tammi Terrell and Diana Ross.[259]
Legacy
See also: List of awards and nominations received by Janet Jackson and Janet Jackson as gay icon
The baby sister of the "precious Jackson clan",[260] Janet Jackson has striven to distance her professional career from that of her older brother Michael and the rest of the Jackson family. Steve Dollar of Newsday wrote that "[s]he projects that home girl-next-door quality that belies her place as the youngest sibling in a family whose inner and outer lives have been as poked at, gossiped about, docudramatized and hard-copied as the Kennedys."[261] Phillip McCarthy of The Sydney Morning Herald noted that throughout her recording career, one of her common conditions for interviewers has been that there would be no mention of Michael.[262] Joshua Klein wrote, "[f]or the first half of her recording career, Janet Jackson sounded like an artist with something to prove. Emerging in 1982 just as big brother Michael was casting his longest shadow, Jackson filled her albums not so much with songs as with declarations, from 'The Pleasure Principle' to the radical-sounding 'Rhythm Nation' to the telling statement of purpose, 'Control'."[224] Steve Huey of Allmusic asserted that despite being born into a family of entertainers, Janet Jackson has managed to emerge a "superstar" in her own right, rivaling not only several female recording artists including Madonna and Whitney Houston, but also her brother, while "successfully [shifting] her image from a strong, independent young woman to a sexy, mature adult."[263] By forging her own unique identity through her artistry and her business ventures, she has been esteemed as the "Queen of Pop".[264][265] Klein argued that "stardom was not too hard to predict, but few could have foreseen that Janet—Miss Jackson, if you're nasty—would one day replace Michael as true heir to the Jackson family legacy."[224]



 Jackson performing during her Rock Witchu Tour in 2008.
She has also been recognized for playing a pivotal role in crossing racial boundaries in the recording industry, where black artists were once considered to be substandard.[266] In Right to Rock: The Black Rock Coalition and the Cultural Politics of Race (2004), author Maureen Mahon states: "In the 1980s, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, and Prince were among the African American artists who crossed over ... When black artists cross over into pop success they cease to be black in the industry sense of the word. They get promoted from racialized black music to universal pop music in an economically driven process of racial transcendence."[267] Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women: Global Women's Issues and Knowledge (2000) documented that Jackson, along with other prominent African-American women, had achieved financial breakthroughs in mainstream popular music, receiving "superstar status" in the process.[42] She, alongside her contemporaries "offered viable creative, intellectual, and business paths for establishing and maintaining agency, lyrical potency, marketing and ownership."[268] Her business savvy has been compared to that of Madonna, gaining a level of autonomy which enables "creative latitude and access to financial resources and mass-market distribution."[269][270] A model of reinvention, author Jessie Carney Smith wrote that "Janet has continued to test the limits of her transformative power", receiving accolades in music, film and concert tours throughout the course of her career.[7]
Musicologist Richard J. Ripani identified Jackson as a leader in the development of contemporary R&B, as her 1986 album Control and its successor Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 created a unique blend of genre and sound effects, that ushered in the use of rap vocals into mainstream R&B.[25] Ripani also argues that the popularity of Jackson's signature song "Nasty" influenced the new jack swing genre developed by Teddy Riley.[25] Leon McDermott of the Sunday Herald wrote: "Her million-selling albums in the 1980s helped invent contemporary R&B through Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis's muscular, lean production; the sinuous grooves threaded through 1986's Control and 1989's Rhythm Nation 1814 are the foundation upon which today's hot shot producers and singers rely."[271] Jim Cullen observed in Popular Culture in American History (2001) that although it was Michael Jackson's Thriller that originally synchronized music video with album sales, Janet Jackson was also among the first generation of artists that saw the visualization of their music elevate them to the status of a pop culture icon.[272] In July, 1999, she placed at number 77 on VH1's "100 Greatest Women of Rock and Roll".[273] She also placed at number 134 on their list of the "200 Greatest Pop Culture Icons of All Time",[274] number seven on the "100 Greatest Women In Music",[275] and at number two on the "50 Greatest Women of the Video Era", behind Madonna.[276] In March 2008, Business Wire reported "Janet Jackson is one of the top ten selling artists in the history of contemporary music; ranked by Billboard magazine as the ninth most successful act in rock and roll history, and the second most successful female artist in pop music history."[277] She is the only female artist in the history of the Hot 100 to have 18 consecutive top ten hit singles, from "Miss You Much" (1989) to "I Get Lonely" (1998).[278] The magazine ranked her at number seven on their Hot 100 50th Anniversary "Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists", making her the third most successful female artist in the history of the chart, following Madonna and Mariah Carey.[279] In November 2010, Billboard released its "Top 50 R&B / Hip-Hop Artists of the Past 25 Years" list and ranked her at number five.[280] She ranks as the top artist on the chart with 15 number ones in the past twenty-five years, garnering 27 top ten hits between 1985 and 2001, and 33 consecutive top 40 hits from 1985 through 2004.[280] The most awarded artist in the history of the Billboard Music Awards with 33 wins, she is one an elite group of musical acts, such as Madonna, Aerosmith, Garth Brooks and Eric Clapton, whom Billboard credits for "redefining the landscape of popular music."[278][281]
Den Berry, Virgin Records CEO and Chairman stated: "Janet is the very embodiment of a global superstar. Her artistic brilliance and personal appeal transcend geographic, cultural and generational boundaries."[282] Similarly, Virgin Records executive Lee Trink expressed: "Janet is an icon and historic figure in our culture. She's one of those gifted artists that people look up to, that people emulate, that people want to believe in ... there's not that many superstars that stand the test of time."[139] Her musical style and choreography have influenced and inspired a younger generation of recording artists. Sarah Rodman of the Boston Herald remarked: "For every hand-fluttering, overwrought, melisma addict out there aping Mariah's dog calls, there's an equal number trying to match Jackson's bubbling grooves and fancy footwork, including Britney, Aaliyah and Destiny's Child."[283] 'N Sync and Usher, who performed as two of the opening acts for The Velvet Rope World Tour, credit her for teaching them how to develop stage show into theatrical performance.[284][285] Pop music critic Gene Stout commented she "has so broadly influenced a younger generation of performers, from Jennifer Lopez ... to Britney Spears, who has copied so many of Jackson's dance moves."[286] Artists such as Beyoncé Knowles,[287] Britney Spears,[288] Rihanna,[289] Lady Gaga,[290] Kendrick Lamar,[291] Justin Timberlake,[292] Jennifer Lopez,[293][294] Aaliyah,[295] Selena Gomez, ,[296][297] Pink,[298] Nicki Minaj,[299] Christina Aguilera,[300] Toni Braxton,[301] Crystal Kay,[302] JoJo,[303] Ciara[304] and Kelly Rowland,[305] have all named Jackson as one of the biggest inspirations of their careers, while others such as Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas of TLC,[306] Cassie,[307] Nicki Minaj,[308] Keri Hilson,[309] and DJ/singer Havana Brown,[310] have all expressed desire to emulate her, as well as Britney Spears, saying she's "always been majorly inspired by Janet and everything that she does" and would like to be "a legend like Janet",.[311][312][313] Elysa Gardner of USA Today wrote: "Jackson claims not to be bothered by the brigade of barely post-adolescent baby divas who have been inspired by—and, in some cases, have flagrantly aped—the sharp, animated choreography and girlish but decidedly post-feminist feistiness that have long been hallmarks of her performance style."[314] Those who are considered to have followed in her footsteps, including Spears and Ciara, have been referred to as "Janet-come-lately's."[315][316] Other artists who have drawn comparison to her include Mýa,[317] Brandy,[318] Tatyana Ali,[319] Christina Milian,[320] Lady Gaga,[321] Namie Amuro,[322] and BoA.[323] Of those who have been measured against her, sociologist Shayne Lee commented that "[a]s Janet enters the twilight of her reign as erotic Queen of Pop, Beyoncé Knowles emerges as her likely successor."[223] Joan Morgan of Essence magazine remarked: "Jackson's Control, Rhythm Nation 1814 and janet. established the singer-dancer imprimatur standard in pop culture we now take for granted. So when you're thinking of asking Miss Jackson, 'What have you done for me lately?' remember that Britney, Ciara and Beyoncé live in the house that Janet built."[324]
Discography
Main articles: Janet Jackson discography and Janet Jackson videography
Janet Jackson (1982)
Dream Street (1984)
Control (1986)
Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 (1989)
janet. (1993)
The Velvet Rope (1997)
All for You (2001)
Damita Jo (2004)
20 Y.O. (2006)
Discipline (2008)
Tours
Rhythm Nation World Tour (1990)
Janet World Tour (1993–95)
The Velvet Rope World Tour (1998–99)
All for You Tour (2001–02)
Rock Witchu Tour (2008)
Number Ones, Up Close and Personal (2011)
Filmography
List of television and films credits

Year
Title
Role
Notes

1976—1977 The Jacksons Herself 
1977—1979 Good Times Millicent "Penny" Gordon Woods Main Cast (Seasons 5—6); 48 episodes
1979 A New Kind of Family Jojo Ashton 3 episodes; "Thank You for a Lovely Evening", "Is There a Gun in the House?", "Fair Weather Friend"
1980—1984 Diff'rent Strokes Charlene DuPrey Recurring (Seasons 3—6); 10 episodes
1984—1985 Fame Cleo Hewitt Recurring (Season 4); 24 episodes
1985 The Love Boat Delia Parks 2 episodes:
1993 Poetic Justice Justice Film Debut
MTV Movie Award for Best Performance
MTV Movie Award for Most Desirable Female
Golden Raspberry Award for Worst New Star
ASCAP Award for Most Performed Songs from Motion Pictures
 Nominated—Academy Award for Best Music, Original Song
 Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song
 Nominated—Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress
2000 Nutty Professor II: The Klumps Denise BMI Film & Television Awards for Most Performed Song from a Film
 Nominated—Black Reel Award for Best Original or Adapted Song
 Nominated—Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actress - Comedy
 Nominated—Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Song from a Movie
 Nominated—Kids' Choice Awards for Favorite Movie Actress
2001 You Rock My World Dancer (uncredited) TV Short
2007 Why Did I Get Married? Patricia NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture
2010 Why Did I Get Married Too? Patricia Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture
2010 For Colored Girls Jo / Red Black Reel Award for Best Ensemble
 Nominated—Black Reel Award for Best Supporting Actress

Books
True You: A Journey to Finding and Loving Yourself (2011)
See also
Book icon Book: Janet Jackson


Portal icon Janet Jackson portal
Portal icon The Jackson Family portal
Honorific nicknames in popular music
List of best-selling music artists
List of best-selling music artists in the United States
List of artists who reached number one in the United States


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297.^ "Selena Gomez: 'New tour inspired by Britney Spears, Janet Jackson'". Digital Spy. 2013-05-10. Retrieved 2013-06-18.
298.^ "P!nk Music Influences". MTV. Retrieved 2013-06-18.
299.^ Jessica Herndon (December 6, 2010). "Nicki Minaj's Top 5 Style Idols". People 74 (21). p. 58. ISSN 00937673.
300.^ Dominguez, Pier (2003), Christina Aguilera: A Star is Made : The Unauthorized Biography, Amber Books Publishing, p. 26, ISBN 978-0-9702224-5-9
301.^ Michael A. Gonzales (July 1997), "Toni's Secret", Vibe 5 (5): 92, ISSN 1070-4701
302.^ "Now Hear This Yokohama-based teen pop singer among the promising", Asahi Evening News, 2003-01-01: 1, ISSN 0025-2816
303.^ "Gimme Five: JoJo's Essential Pop Albums - Billboard". Billboard. 2013-05-02. Retrieved 2013-06-18.
304.^ "Ciara - Biography - Billboard". Billboard. 2004. Retrieved 2013-06-18.
305.^ "Five Minutes With: Kelly Rowland", Lincolnshire Echo, 2010-07-01: 11
306.^ Sonia Murray (1999-07-12), "TLC: Struggling in the Spotlightnot", Austin American-Statesman: E.1
307.^ Bobbin, Jay (2006-08-09), "Imitation nation ; World of pop music filled with copycats", Chicago Tribune: 54, ISSN 1085-6706
308.^ Jessica Herndon (2010-12-06), "Nicki Minaj's Top 5 Style Idols", People 74 (21): 58, ISSN 00937673
309.^ Keri Hilson - Keri Hilson Respects Tlc's Image, Contactmusic.com, 2011-06-06, retrieved 2011-06-06
310.^ Lauren Alpe (2011-06-13), Interview - Havana Brown, MTV News, retrieved 2011-06-13
311.^ "Britney Spears Wishes Janet Jackson "Happy Birthday"". 2013-05-16. Retrieved 2013-06-18.
312.^ "Britney Spears - Interview". Hip Online. 2001-12-05. Retrieved 2013-06-18.
313.^ "Britney Spears News". AOL. Retrieved 2013-06-18.
314.^ Elysa Gardner (2000-07-28), "Luscious Jackson", USA Today: 1.E, ISSN 0734-7456
315.^ While her vocal skills are at least as decent as Britney Spears and the other Janet-come-latelys, it's Jackson's skills as an entertainer—and commanding stage presence—that make her so deserving of the spotlight. Gemma Tarlach (2001-10-17), "Janet Jackson takes her place as Queen of Pop", Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: 12.B
316.^ Most disappointing was crunk princess Ciara. The Janet-come-lately and her octet of dance-floor acrobats moved with ferocious elegance to tracks like 'Goodies,' but the singer had glaring microphone problems when she spoke—tediously, about the 'importance' of her upcoming sophomore album. Sarah Rodman (2006-10-31), "MonsterJam Lacks Star Power", Boston Globe: E.7, ISSN 0743-1791
317.^ Chuck Taylor (2000-11-18), "Mya: For Free", Billboard 112 (47): 1, ISSN 0006-2510
318.^ Afrodisiac > Overview, Allmusic, 2006, retrieved 2009-02-22
319.^ Kiss the Sky > Overview, Allmusic, 2006, retrieved 2009-02-22
320.^ Barry Walters (July, 2004), "It's About Time", Rolling Stone: 120, ISSN 0035-791X
321.^ Kyle Anderson (2010-09-10), Lady Gaga Just Like 'Madonna And Janet Jackson,' Says Mark Ronson, MTV, retrieved 2011-06-08
322.^ Kishin Shinoyama (Oct 2000), "Tokyo glamorama", Harper's Bazaar: 312
323.^ "Korean Pop Star BoA Prepares U.S. Takeover", Rap-Up, retrieved 2011-04-19
324.^ Joan Morgan (August 2010), "Before Sunset", Essence: 106
Bibliography
Brackett, Nathan. Hoard, Christian David. The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster, 2004. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8
Cornwell, Jane. Janet Jackson. Carlton Books, 2002. ISBN 1-84222-464-6
Cullen, Jim. Popular Culture in American History. Blackwell Publishing, 2001. ISBN 0-631-21958-7
Cutcher, Jenai. Feel the Beat: Dancing in Music Videos. The Rosen Publishing Group, 2003. ISBN 0-8239-4558-8
Dean, Maury. Rock-N-Roll Gold Rush. Algora Publishing, 2003. ISBN 0-87586-207-1
DeCurtis, Anthony. Present tense: rock & roll and culture. Duke University Press, 1992. ISBN 978-0-8223-1265-9
Gaar, Gillian G. She's a rebel: the history of women in rock & roll. Seal Press, 2002. ISBN 1-58005-078-6
Gates, Henry Louis. Appiah, Anthony. Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American. Basic Civitas Books, 1999. ISBN 0-465-00071-1
Goren, Lilly. You've Come A Long Way, Baby: Women, Politics, and Popular Culture. University Press of Kentucky, 2009. ISBN 978-0-8131-2544-2
Halstead, Craig. Cadman, Chris. Jacksons Number Ones. Authors On Line, 2003. ISBN 0-7552-0098-5
Jaynes, Gerald David. Encyclopedia of African American Society. Sage Publications, 2005. ISBN 0-7619-2764-6
Jordan, Emma. Harris, Angela. When Markets Fail: Race And Economics : Cases And Materials. Foundation Press, 2006. ISBN 978-1-58778-955-7
Kramarae, Cheris. Spender, Dale. Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women: Global Women's Issues and Knowledge. Routledge, 2000. ISBN 0-415-92091-4
Mitoma, Judy. Mitoma, Judith. Zimmer, Elizabeth. Stieber, Dale Ann. Heinonen, Nelli. Shaw, Norah Zuniga. Envisioning dance on film and video. Routledge, 2002. ISBN 0-415-94171-7
Reynolds, Simon. Press, Joy. The Sex Revolts: Gender, Rebellion, and Rock 'n' Roll. Harvard University Press, 1996. ISBN 978-0-674-80273-5
Ripani, Richard J. The New Blue Music: Changes in Rhythm & Blues, 1950–1999 University Press of Mississippi, 2006. ISBN 1-57806-862-2
Smith, Jessie Carney. Notable Black American Women, Volume 2. Gale, 1996. ISBN 978-0-8103-9177-2
Starr, Larry. Waterman, Christopher Alan. American Popular Music : The Rock Years. Oxford University Press, 2006. ISBN 978-0-19-530052-9
Strong, Martin Charles. The Great Rock Discography: Complete Discographies Listing Every Track Recorded by More Than 1200 Artists. Canongate U.S., 2004. ISBN 1-84195-615-5
Vincent, Rickey. Clinton, George. Funk: The Music, The People, and The Rhythm of The One. Macmillan, 1996. ISBN 0-312-13499-1
Further reading
Bronson, Fred. The Billboard Book of Number One Hits. Billboard Books, 2003. ISBN 0-8230-7677-6
Hyatt, Wesley. The Billboard Book of Number One Adult Contemporary Hits. Billboard Books, 1999. ISBN 0-8230-7693-8
Warner, Jay. On this Day in Black Music History. Hal Leonard, 2006. ISBN 0-634-09926-4
External links
 Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Janet Jackson
Official website
Janet Jackson at the Internet Movie Database
Janet Jackson at AllMusic

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La Toya Jackson

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

  (Redirected from LaToya Jackson)
Jump to: navigation, search

For other uses, see La Toya (disambiguation).

La Toya Jackson
La Toya Jackson cropped.jpg
Jackson in 2010.

Background information

Birth name
La Toya Yvonne Jackson
Also known as
Toy
Born
May 29, 1956 (age 57)
Gary, Indiana, United States
Genres
Pop, R&B, dance
Occupations
Singer-songwriter, musician, actress, model, author, celebrity, businesswoman
Years active
1972–present
Labels
Polydor Records (1980–82)
Epic (1983–87)
 Teldec / RCA (1987–88)
 Teldec (1989)
 BCM (1990)
 Pump / Dino (1991–92)
 Mar-Gor (1993)
 CMC (1994 – 95)
 Ja-Tail / Bungalo (2002–present)
Associated acts
The Jackson 5, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Rebbie Jackson, USA for Africa
Website
Official Site
La Toya Yvonne Jackson (born May 29, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, television personality, actress, businesswoman, philanthropist, activist and former model. She is the fifth child of the Jackson family. She maintained a career as a singer throughout the 1980s and 1990s, and returned to music in 2004 with her Billboard charting songs "Just Wanna Dance" and "Free the World". An EP called Starting Over was released on June 21, 2011.

Contents
  [hide] 1 Life and career 1.1 1956–79: Early life and The Jacksons
1.2 1980–83: Beginning of solo career
1.3 1984–87: Heart Don't Lie and international success
1.4 1988–89: Departure from the Jackson family and Playboy
1.5 1989-96: Public notoriety, abuse, and exile from the Jackson family
1.6 1996–2002: Escape and seclusion
1.7 2003–06: Re-emergence and return to music
1.8 2007–09: Reality television
1.9 2010–present: Reality television and Starting Over
2 Vocal style and influences
3 Discography 3.1 Studio albums
3.2 Extended plays
3.3 Stage recordings
4 Awards and other achievements
5 Vegetarianism
6 See also
7 References
8 External links

Life and career[edit source]
1956–79: Early life and The Jacksons[edit source]
Born on her sister Rebbie's 6th birthday on May 29, 1956, in Gary, Indiana, La Toya Jackson is the fifth of ten children born to Joseph Jackson and Katherine Jackson and the middle female child between Rebbie and Janet. Growing up, La Toya was a shy homebody. After her mother became a member of the Jehovah's Witnesses in 1965, La Toya, along with the rest of her siblings followed. She would spend some of her time (alongside her mother) preaching door-to-door. "Every morning, Michael and I witnessed, knocking on doors around Los Angeles, spreading the word of Jehovah."[1] By 1972, at sixteen, La Toya joined her brothers in the spotlight with a tap dancing routine when her father arranged for them to perform shows in Las Vegas, among other cities.[2] Jackson aspired to be an attorney specializing in business law. She attended college for a short time before her father insisted that she pursue a career in show business like the rest of the family. According to E! True Hollywood Story (1997) it was also reported that she was thinking about becoming a nurse.
In 1976 and 1977, La Toya and her sisters Rebbie and Janet appeared in all twelve episodes of The Jacksons—a CBS-TV variety program, with their brothers Jackie, Tito, Marlon, Michael, and Randy. Along with their brothers (minus Jermaine), La Toya and her sisters sang, danced and performed skits. In 1978 during the filming of The Wiz, La Toya traveled with her brother to New York. Sharing an apartment, it was the first time either of them had lived elsewhere as adults. Close siblings, Michael and La Toya, would not move out of the family's Encino, Los Angeles, California home until they were 30 and 31 respectively. Gentleman callers during this period included Diana Ross' brother Chico, Prince, and a young David Gest.[3] Jackson also dated Bobby DeBarge and was the inspiration for Switch's 1979 hit "I Call Your Name".[4]
Under Joe Jackson's tutelage Rebbie, La Toya and Janet formed a short-lived musical group. However, they never performed live and soon separated because of creative differences about the act's future direction. Consequently, no related material was ever released by the trio.[5] The next year, La Toya began work on her first solo album.
1980–83: Beginning of solo career[edit source]
In 1980, Jackson released her self-titled debut album. In order to distinguish herself from her famous brothers, The Jacksons, La Toya only wanted her first name on the album. "I begged just to have it 'La Toya'. But my father said, 'It's your last name. You got to use it.' But I wanted to see what I could do as an individual."[6] The first single "If You Feel the Funk", became a modest hit, climbing into the Top 40 of the US R&B chart. Her second single, "Night Time Lover", was produced by younger brother Michael, who provided backing vocals. In turn, she provided the opening scream on her brothers', The Jacksons, 1980 hit, "This Place Hotel" as well as backing vocals on brother Michael's 1984 solo hit "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)".
The La Toya Jackson album peaked at #116 on the US Billboard 200, #26 on the Billboard R&B album chart, and #178 on the UK Top 200, making it her highest placing album.
In 1982, Jackson released a follow-up album, My Special Love, which generated two singles, "Stay the Night" and "I Don't Want You to Go".
1984–87: Heart Don't Lie and international success[edit source]
1984 saw the release of Jackson's critically acclaimed album Heart Don't Lie. Jackson scored her biggest Billboard Hot 100 hit with the titular track "Heart Don't Lie", which peaked at number 56. Other singles from this album were "Bet'cha Gonna Need My Lovin'", "Hot Potato", and a cover of Prince's "Private Joy." Jackson and Amir Bayyan co-wrote "Reggae Nights" for Heart Don't Lie but the track did not make the cut. Jimmy Cliff's recording of the song was a hit and was nominated for a Grammy. Cliff commissioned Jackson to write two more songs: "Brown Eyes" and "American Sweet."
In 1984 Jackson capitalized on her rising popularity by licensing her name to a fashion line; "David Laurenz for La Toya." [7] According to her three-year contract with the suede and leather-maker Jackson agreed to only wear David Laurenz items during her public appearances. Apparel in the collection included Jackson's signature leather headbands.[8][9] Jackson starred in adverts for Nikon cameras and the following year she become the spokesmodel for cosmetics firm Mahogany Image and launched her own eponymous fragrance, La Toya.[10]
In 1985 Jackson participated on the single "We Are the World", an appeal for famine relief in Ethiopia. That same year Jackson featured in anti-drug music video "Stop the Madness".



"Baby Sister"




A sample from "Baby Sister", a single by La Toya Jackson.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Problems playing this file? See media help.
Her 1985 single "Baby Sister" was a notable success, as it received one of five Outstanding Song Awards at the sixteenth annual World Popular Song Festival in Japan. "Baby Sister" was included on the 1986 album Imagination, released just before Jackson's record label, Private-I, went bankrupt resulting in poor promotion.[11] Jackson went on to record two duets; "Oops, Oh No!" with Cerrone, and "Yes, I'm Ready" with artist Jed. In 1987 Jackson was featured as a special guest at Minako Honda's DISPA (Disco Party) concert, joining in for the song, "Funkytown".
1988–89: Departure from the Jackson family and Playboy[edit source]



 Jackson on the cover of Playboy.
In 1987, Jack Gordon was hired to co-manage La Toya by her father, Joseph. He later took over her management completely. Under Gordon's management, Jackson's public image became increasingly sexier. Katherine Jackson recalled her shock seeing La Toya dance in a suggestive manner in 1988 for the first time in her autobiography My Family, The Jacksons, "she'd been so conservative that she'd once dropped a friend who had begun wearing low-cut tops and skirts with slits in them." Katherine believed that Gordon was distancing La Toya from her family so he could "become the dominating influence in her life."[12] Around this time Jackson was disfellowshipped by the Jehovah's Witnesses. Defying her father, Jackson made a stormy exit from the family's Encino compound to take up residence in New York City.[13] In late 1988, Jackson released the album La Toya, which featured the singles, "You're Gonna Get Rocked!" and "(Ain't Nobody Loves You) Like I Do". The album also included a track titled "Just Say No", which was written for the Reagan administration's anti-drug campaign.[14] The album included four tracks produced by Full Force, and three by Stock Aitken Waterman. The album is notable for being the first one Jackson released after changing her management.[15]
In March 1989, Jackson posed topless for Playboy magazine. Jackson saw the pictorial as a declaration of independence from her conservative upbringing and "to show my parents they couldn't dictate to me any more—that I control my life." [16] The cover and layout was one of the most successful issues in Playboy's history, turning Jackson into an overnight sex symbol.[17] At its time of release, it sold over 8 million copies, going on to become the fourteenth best selling issue of the magazine ever. She posed again in Playboy in November 1991 to promote her autobiography and subsequently acted in a 1994 video for the magazine, becoming one of the first celebrities to have a Playboy video released. She later said that she initially refused to pose for the second spread and for the video, however, Gordon beat her into submission.[18][19][20] In 1989, Jackson began recording her sixth album Bad Girl. That year Jackson staged a live pay-per-view concert, A Sizzling Spectacular!, from Bally's theatre in Reno. Jackson's set list included songs from La Toya and Bad Girl. The show featured special guest star Edgar Winter.[21]
1989-96: Public notoriety, abuse, and exile from the Jackson family[edit source]
On September 5, 1989, after her Sizzling Spectacular concert in Nevada, Gordon forcibly married Jackson, claiming it was for her own protection against kidnapping by her family. La Toya Jackson states that this was both unplanned and against her wishes. According to Jackson; "I told him, 'No way, Jack! I can't marry you. You know what marriage means to me. I've never been in love; I don't even date.... It's not right. I don't love you. I don't have feelings for you.'"[16] Jackson tried to run out of the chapel three times but bodyguard Antonio Rossi grabbed her saying, "There's some things you have to do. Even if you don't want to."[22][23] Jackson told Ebony magazine the marriage was "strictly in name only. It has never been consummated."[16] Six months into the marriage, Jackson asked Gordon for an annulment when in Rome, Italy. In response, Gordon repeatedly bashed her head against the corner of the hotel room table saying that he would never let her go. Paparazzi subsequently photographed Jackson with black eyes, which Gordon claimed was caused by an intruder.[20][22][24][25] From this point forward, Jackson lost all contact with her family and wrote an autobiography, La Toya: Growing Up in the Jackson Family, which accused her father of physical abuse.[26] The book stayed a top of the The New York Times Best Seller list for eight weeks weeks and broke media records. [2]
For roughly the next decade Gordon controlled Jackson with threats, lies, and routine violence. According to Jackson, "When he hit me, the first time I was in shock, I just recalled my ear ringing, just ringing so hard."[20] Gordon confiscated Jackson's passport, transferred her bank accounts into his name, hired bodyguards to watch La Toya constantly and banned her from speaking to or seeing her family, monitoring her every phone call.[20] La Toya's father Joseph stated in his book The Jacksons that he believed Gordon brainwashed La Toya and made her fearful of her own family.[5] Katherine also believed that La Toya had been brainwashed while Gordon claimed that Katherine had tried to kill her daughter.[27] Sister Janet concurred with her parents saying at the time, "I think this guy who is with her has brainwashed her and made her like this... He keeps her away from the family, and now he's brainwashed her so much she keeps herself away from us."[18][28]
In 1990 Jackson participated in the Sanremo Music Festival, entering "You and Me" an English-language version of "Verso l'ignoto" by siblings Marcella and Gianni Bella. While "You and Me" did not win Best Song, it entered Italy's hit parade, peaking at number twenty-eight. That year Jackson signed on with German-based BCM Records and released the single "Why Don't You Want My Love?" Jackson recorded other material with BCM, but the label went bankrupt and album plans were scrapped. Jackson signed with Dino Records quickly thereafter. 1991 saw the release of No Relations, an album with strong house and funk influences. This album featured Jackson's top twenty-five Netherlands hit "Sexbox".
In 1992 Jackson signed a contract with the Moulin Rouge in Paris to star in her own revue, Formidable. Jackson was to perform two shows a night, six nights a week. Jackson was highest paid performer in the cabaret's history earning a reported $5 million. Though Formidable was successful, selling out on most nights, Jackson departed half-way into her year-long contract owing the nightclub $550,000 in damages.[16][29]
In October 1992 while taping an Exotic Club Tour in Minneapolis Jackson approached sister Janet Jackson, also in town recording her fifth studio album with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, to ask for help in escaping Gordon. Janet struck La Toya, accusing her elder sister of recording their conversation.[30][31] In 1993 in their New York home, Gordon beat Jackson repeatedly with a heavy brass dining room chair, leaving Jackson with black eyes, swollen lip and chin "the size of a clenched fist," cuts requiring 12 mouth stitches and contusions on her face, arms, legs and back.[32][33] Jackson lost consciousness during the beating, leading Gordon to believe she was dead. She recalled, "He called his friends and said, 'She's dead. I killed her,' because I was lying in a puddle of blood and I was out."[34] Gordon was arrested but then released, claiming he beat Jackson in self-defense.[35] In December 1993 Gordon hastily arranged a press conference in Tel Aviv, where he had Jackson read a statement claiming to believe the sensational sex abuse allegation against her younger brother Michael might be true.[36][37] This was an abrupt reversal of her previous defense of Michael against the charges.[38] Gordon claimed La Toya had proof which she was prepared to disclose for a fee of $500,000. A bidding war between US and UK tabloids began, but fell through when they realized that her revelations were not what she had claimed them to be.[39] According to La Toya, Gordon threatened to have siblings Michael and Janet killed if she didn't follow his orders.[34][40]
Under Gordon's management, Jackson's career declined with his booking of disreputable jobs such as spokesperson for the Psychic Friends Network. Because of Gordon's steady stream of publicity stunts and her media portrayal as the Jackson family "black sheep" La Toya had become a hate figure of sorts.[41] By the mid-1990s Jackson's finances were in disarray and she was forced to file for bankruptcy in order to stave off claims of $650,000 in damages to the Moulin Rouge for ending her contract early.[42] In 1993 Jackson held a concert at Poland's Sopot International Song Festival and released a step aerobics exercise video, Step-Up Workout. In 1994, Jackson again worked for Playboy Entertainment, becoming one the very first celebrities to have a Celebrity Centerfold video. Playboy Celebrity Centerfold: La Toya Jackson was released in the first quarter of 1994 and sold roughly 50,000 copies. Jackson later released two albums, one of country music, From Nashville to You, and another of Motown hits, Stop in the Name of Love, in the mid-1990s.
1996–2002: Escape and seclusion[edit source]
Further information: Gordon v. Gordon
When Jackson became aware that Gordon was planning to feature her in a pornographic film she decided she'd had enough. Jackson phoned brother Randy who flew to New York to help her escape while Gordon was out.[20][43] Only days later, La Toya filed for divorce from Las Vegas and sued Gordon in civil court for years of abuse under the Violence Against Women Act.[18]
La Toya Jackson ended her estrangement with the entire Jackson family and returned home to Hayvenhurst. Jackson forgave her parents for her stifled upbringing reasoning, "I've come to realize that as we get older, we grow and learn a lot more. And I think that my father and my mother, they raised children the best way they know how."[19] According to La Toya, Michael knew that she was forced to attack him in the press against her will and he did not blame her.[44] "He never held any of that against me, I remember when I'd got away from this total hell I'd been through where I'd been beaten, abused, controlled and forced to say those terrible things about Michael, which I didn't for a moment believe, he held out his arms and just hugged me. I was crying saying: 'I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry.' He just held me tight and said: 'I am your brother, I always knew it wasn't you saying those words." [45]
Jackson's last single of the 1990s was "Don't Break My Heart."
After separating from Gordon, Jackson cloistered herself in her home and lived alone for the first time—the first six months she stated she never actually left her house due to being terrified of Gordon seeing her. Weary after her years of public scorn, she didn't know what to do with her life and was afraid to perform again.[44] Jackson struggled to rebuild her confidence but was plagued with self-doubt, explaining, "I got to the point, [...] where—well, you know in the media they say things like, 'Oh, she can't sing. She has no talent. She can't dance.' I started believing that, and I was thinking, 'Oh my God'. And I started thinking, 'Oh gee, how could this happen to me?' How could I start believing this?".[19] After this time she started to perform in Europe and South America occasionally to start making money to pay off the huge debts which Gordon had accumulated in her name while they were married. In the wake of the September 11 attacks Jackson was moved to compose "Free the World". She performed the song for friends to a positive reception. This spurred on Jackson to write more songs, ending up with a full album, Startin' Over.
2003–06: Re-emergence and return to music[edit source]
Jackson publicly re-emerged on Larry King Live on March 9, 2003. Her appearance caused CNN's phone lines to stay busy for hours and was King's highest-rated show in three years.[46] Jackson announced her first musical project in six years, Startin' Over.[19] Startin' Over's lead single was 2004's "Just Wanna Dance", released independently under her pseudonymous nickname "Toy" in order to avoid any prejudices DJs might hold against La Toya Jackson's name. The plan worked, with "Just Wanna Dance" reaching #13 on the US Billboard Hot Dance chart. "Free the World" was released later that year to similar success. Jackson's label, Ja-Tail Records secured a deal with Universal Music Group to distribute the album, which was delayed several times due to extenuating circumstances. The 2003 promotional copy of Startin' Over leaked online in 2006, however Jackson's management revealed that the entire album was being re-recorded with an all-new track list and updated sound. That year Jackson became the spokeswoman for Australian malt beverage Star Ice's US launch.[47][48]
After Jack Gordon's death in 2005, Jackson was free to speak more openly about the control he exerted over her life. She sent a security expert to eyewitness that Gordon had not faked his death a second time.[49] In 2005 she appeared on ABC News to recant her previous allegations and defend brother Michael against new charges of child abuse.[20] VH1 described Jackson as a role model having weathered various successes and setbacks.[46] The perception of Jackson as an underdog and her support for LGBT rights has led her to be declared a gay icon.[41]
2007–09: Reality television[edit source]



"I Don't Play That"




A sample from "I Don't Play That", a single by La Toya Jackson.
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Problems playing this file? See media help.
On January 10, 2007, the reality TV show Armed & Famous premiered on CBS starring Jackson and other celebrities. The program documented Jackson's basic training and service as a reserve police officer with the Muncie Police Department. Jackson maintains her badge by continuing to volunteer as a deputy.[50] The show was eventually removed from the CBS lineup, due to its inability to compete with American Idol. VH1 subsequently aired the remaining episodes. On the show, Jackson demonstrated her phobia of cats, after she began hysterically screaming and locked herself in a squad car. This fear, she revealed, was caused by a childhood memory in which a relative was attacked by a cat. She underwent on-screen therapy to try to relieve her of this phobia. A single called "Armed and Famous" was planned but the title was changed to "I Don't Play That" shortly before it was sent to radio stations, where it failed to take off, on January 29, 2007, due to CBS' cancellation of the show.
In January 2009, Jackson was paid £103,000 to appear as a contestant on the British television program Celebrity Big Brother. She was the second member of the Jackson family to be on the show, the first being her brother Jermaine in 2007.[51][52] Jackson's goal in participating in show was to get over her shyness and "mix with people who I'd never normally meet."[45] She was the fourth person evicted from the house, and was the first evictee of the series to be cheered on her exit.
The final version of Startin' Over was completed in late 2008, just before Jackson joined the cast of Celebrity Big Brother. A new lead single, "Love, Honor, and Obey", planned for a summer 2009 release, was put on hold because of the death of La Toya's younger brother Michael. Instead, "Home" was released on 28 July 2009 in Michael's memory with all proceeds going to AIDS Project Los Angeles, one of his favorite charities.[53][54] La Toya Jackson was one of the first siblings present at Reagan-UCLA Medical Center on June 25, 2009, after brother Michael Jackson was pronounced dead after suffering cardiac arrest. She was named as the informant on her brother's death certificate. Jackson requested a second autopsy to be carried out after noting suspicious medical paraphernalia in Michael's rented house, evasive behavior by his doctors, and discovering that $2 million in cash and jewels had gone missing. On July 13, an interview was published in News of the World and the Daily Mail wherein Jackson went public with her conclusion that Michael was murdered.[50] The Los Angeles County Coroner ruled Jackson's death a homicide weeks later.[55]
2010–present: Reality television and Starting Over[edit source]



 La Toya Jackson on October 18, 2009 at an AIDS Walk in Los Angeles
In 2010, Jackson launched Dream Cream, a hand cream for German cosmetics firm Alessandro International, and named Teddy Riley head of Ja-Tail Records' music division.[56][57][58] Jackson took part in NBC's Celebrity Apprentice, which aired from March through May 2011 and raised $65,000 for her chosen charity, AIDS Project Los Angeles. La Toya was "fired" from Celebrity Apprentice in episode 8 during season 11, which aired on April 24, 2011 on NBC. In an Apprentice first, Jackson was rehired in the following episode, as she felt she couldn't defend her case. La Toya was fired for the second time on May 8, 2011 and became the first person in history to be fired from The Apprentice twice within the same season. She was also the first guest judge to appear in two episodes of season three of RuPaul's Drag Race.[59] She also served as guest judge on the 17th season of America's Next Top Model. Jackson's second memoir, Starting Over, was released in the United States on June 21, 2011 through Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. The book reached The NY times best seller list on July 2, 2011, making La Toya a two-time best selling author. [3] [60] An EP, also called Starting Over,was released the same day via digital outlets.[61]
In 2013, Jackson will appear in her own reality series called Life With La Toya which is planned to premiere on Oprah Winfrey's OWN in 2013.[62] Also in 2013, Jackson rejoined the newest cast for The All-Star Celebrity Apprentice. Jackson lasted until the 3rd episode of the season, when she was fired on an episode titled "I'm Being Punked By A Jackson". Jackson volunteered to be the project manager on a task that saw the cast creating a Soap Opera themed commercial for Crystal Light. Jackson's team lost the task and she subsequently was fired by Donald Trump. Unlike her first appearance on the show, Trump specifically stated that he would not allow Jackson to return to the show after being fired.
Vocal style and influences[edit source]
La Toya Jackson has a three-octave voice and possess the vocal range of a light-lyric soprano which soars to a high D#6 in her single, "Bet'cha Gonna Need My Lovin'." [63] The Evening Independent says that she has an "attractive, pleasant voice that is matured and controlled."[64] Andrew Hamilton of Allmusic describes her voice as a light, wispy "sexy whisper".[65] Like her siblings, Michael and Janet, she is mainly a pop, R&B and dance music performer but she has also dabbled in rock as heard in her song, "No More Drama", reggae in her signature song "Heart Don't Lie, and jazz in "I Don't Want You to Go."
Like many other Jacksons, she cites James Brown as a "major influence".[66] When Jackson headlined the Moulin Rouge she paid homage to La Goulue and cited Josephine Baker as an influence. L'Express hailed Jackson as "the new Josephine Baker."[29] According to academic Bennetta Jules-Rosette, "Through careful planning, she was able to model a successful part of her career abroad on the master tropes of a Baker-like image. Jackson exemplifies Baudrillard's notion that neither the message nor the content count as much as the referentiality of the signifier in postmodern performative discourse." [67]
Discography[edit source]
Main article: La Toya Jackson discography
Studio albums[edit source]
La Toya Jackson (1980)
My Special Love (1981)
Heart Don't Lie (1984)
Imagination (1986)
La Toya (1988)
Bad Girl (1991)
No Relations (1991)
From Nashville to You (1994)
Stop in the Name of Love (1995)
Compilations AlbumsHeart Don't Lie/Imagination (2013)
Extended plays[edit source]
Starting Over (2011)
Stage recordings[edit source]
Formidable (1992)
Awards and other achievements[edit source]
Jackson co-wrote "Reggae Nights" for reggae artist Jimmy Cliff, which received a Grammy nomination for Best Reggae Recording.[46] She later recorded the song for her album No Relations.
Jackson was honored as a writer, arranger, and producer of Cliff Hanger, which won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in 1986.[68]
She was one of the recipients of a Grammy Award for Record of the Year as a vocalist for "We Are the World".[69]
She won one of five Outstanding Song Awards at the 1985 World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, for her song "Baby Sister" [11]
Jackson received a US Congressional Tribute for her participation in a "Beat It" rally and Stay In School Campaign[70]
Jackson's foot prints were immortalized on Rotterdam's Star Boulevard Walk of Fame on 19 December 1991, originally located in Scheveningen.
She has a namesake dessert at Millions of Milkshakes in West Hollywood. The "La Toya Jackson Shake" consists of strawberries, raspberries, caramel, topped with whipped cream and a Cadbury flake.[71]
Vegetarianism[edit source]
LaToya Jackson is a known vegetarian. [72] [73]
See also[edit source]

Portal icon The Jackson Family portal


References[edit source]
1.^ Jackson, La Toya; Patricia Romanowski (1991). La Toya: Growing Up in the Jackson Family. Dutton Publishing. p. 54. ISBN 0-451-17415-1.
2.^ Jackson, La Toya; Patricia Romanowski (1991). La Toya: Growing Up in the Jackson Family. Dutton Publishing. p. 65. ISBN 0-451-17415-1.
3.^ Randolph, Laura B. 'My first love': celebrities recall the first time they were hit by Cupid's arrow. Ebony magazine February 01, 1989
4.^ Michael A. Gonzales, Vibe Magazine 'The Rise and Fall of the Debarge Family', September 10, 2007.
5.^ a b Jackson, Joseph (September 2004). The Jacksons. Random House Entertainment. p. 115. ISBN 3-8090-3028-7.
6.^ "Waiting for the day when she's not just 'his sister'" Spokane Daily Chronicle, June 18, 1985
7.^ Lebow, Joan [1] Daily News Record May 17, 1984
8.^ David Laurenz, Latoya Jackson sign 3-year pact., Women's Wear Daily, April 24, 1984
9.^ By Peter Carlson, Roger Wolmuth 'The Jacksons Continue to Gear Up for the Pop Cultural Event of the Year at a Pace—Slow—That Is Driving Fans and Potential Business Partners into a Frenzy' PEOPLE May 07, 1984 Vol. 21 No. 18
10.^ Britton, A.G.La Roya a hit for Mahogany Image (La Toya Jackson) (Holiday Fragrance supplement) Women's Wear Daily September 13, 1985
11.^ a b "'16th World Popular Song Festival'". Users.telenet.be. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
12.^ Jackson, Katherine. Everything you always wanted to know about Michael, Janet and LaToya: mother of Jackson family tells all - excerpt from Katherine Jackson's 'My Family, The Jacksons' Ebony, October, 1990
13.^ 'La Toya off on her own', Chicago Sun-Times May 2, 1988
14.^ Jackson, La Toya; Patricia Romanowski (1991). La Toya: Growing Up in the Jackson Family. Dutton Publishing. pp. 205–206. ISBN 0-451-17415-1.
15.^ Jackson, La Toya; Patricia Romanowski (1991). La Toya: Growing Up in the Jackson Family. Dutton Publishing. p. 207. ISBN 0-451-17415-1.
16.^ a b c d Randolph, Laura B. 'LaToya Jackson on: fame, family and her future in Paris', July, 1992
17.^ "Cherry Pop Records". Cherryred.co.uk. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
18.^ a b c "'La Toya Jackson files gender-based violence suit against husband.', Jet Magazine, July 15, 1996.
19.^ a b c d "CNN.com - Transcripts". Transcripts.cnn.com. 2003-03-04. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
20.^ a b c d e f "LaToya Jackson Defends Michael". Jan. 20, 2005. ABC News.
21.^ "Lexington Herald-Leader (KY) - September 5, 1989". Nl.newsbank.com. 1989-09-05. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
22.^ a b Lloyd, Jimmy. 'La Toya's forced wedding hell', The Sun, 06 Jan 2009.
23.^ 'WEDDING BELLS WERE A HOAX, LA TOYA SAYS', Deseret News, Friday, Sept. 8, 1989.
24.^ Lloyd, Jimmy. 'Shaken ... La Toya opens up about suffering domestic abuse' The Sun, 04 Jan 2009.
25.^ 'LaToya Jackson Beaten in Rome' Los Angeles Times, June 15, 1990.
26.^ Jackson, La Toya; Patricia Romanowski (1991). La Toya: Growing Up in the Jackson Family. New American Library. p. 261. ISBN 0-451-17415-1.
27.^ Lavin, Cheryl. 'Brawl in the family La Toya Jackson's book heats up the tug of war between her family and her manager', Chicago Tribune Aug 11, 1991.
28.^ Norment, Lynn. 'Grown-up Janet Jackson talks about racism, sensuality and the Jackson family' Ebony, Sept 1993.
29.^ a b Cohen, Roger. 'Paris Journal; Today's Lament: Where's Yesteryear's Gay Paree?' The New York Times, January 29, 1993.
30.^ 'Currents' The Beaver County Times Feb 7, 1993
31.^ ""Janet Jackson"". E! True Hollywood Story. Season 8. Oct 19, 2003. E!.
32.^ 'Latoya Jackson's Marriage Becomes a Danger Zone' People Magazine, May 03, 1993 Vol. 39 No. 17.
33.^ DOMINGUEZ, ROBERT. 'MORE LA TOYA STORIES THE GRANDE DAME OF DYSFUNCTION WILL REVEAL 'FAMILY SECRETS' ON HER NEW 900-LINE' New York Daily News Wednesday, January 10th, 1996, 1:95AM.
34.^ a b 'La Toya Jacksons Ex Threatened To Kill Michael and Janet', femalefirst.co.uk, 25-01-2005.
35.^ 'Self-defense claim' Chicago Tribune, April 23, 1993.
36.^ Weinraub, Robert. 'The Jackson Family Reunited, Sort Of', The New York Times, February 21, 1994.
37.^ 'La Toya: Charges Are True; Family Says Jackson Never Molested Kids' The Washington Post, December 9, 1993.
38.^ 'Jacksons refute LaToya's charge Michael kept boys with him at family home.' Jet Magazine, December 27, 1993 "...charges against him have come from sister LaToya, who several weeks ago, ironically, defended him on national television. "
39.^ Taraborrelli, J. Randy (2004). The Magic and the Madness. Terra Alta, WV: Headline. ISBN 0-330-42005-4. p. 534-540.
40.^ ""S8E1"". "The Frank Skinner Show". Season 8. 14 October 2004. BBC One.“” (2007-08-12). "YouTube - La Toya Jackson on Frank Skinner". Au.youtube.com. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
41.^ a b Pratt, Paul E. 'La Toya Jackson Learns Life’s Lessons', gaywired.com, 06.13.05.
42.^ BENZA, A.J. & LEWITTES, MICHAEL. 'LA TOYA'S FRANC ADMISSION', New York Daily News, Thursday, July 20th, 1995, 1:14AM.
43.^ "Jensen!". 14 May 2008. RTL 5.“”. "La Toya on escaping Jack Gordon". YouTube. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
44.^ a b Montgomery, James. 'LaToya Jackson Tries New Career As 'Toy,' Says 'Michael Knows My Heart' ' MTV, Sep 1 2004 8:35 PM EDT
45.^ a b Louise Gannon 'Michael was too good for this world' News of the World 20/06/2010
46.^ a b c "VH1 La Toya Jackson biography". VH1. Viacom. Archived from the original on 2008-03-10. Retrieved 2010-03-25.
47.^ NORM : A dual celebration for Guy Laliberte, Las Vegas Review-Journal, June 28, 2006
48.^ eurweb.com, September 15, 2006
49.^ 'LA TOYA'S STILL HAUNTED BY HER VIOLENT EX-HUSBAND' National Enquirer, 2005
50.^ a b Graham, Caroline. 'La Toya Jackson: Michael was murdered... I felt it from the start', Daily Mail, 13th July 2009
51.^ Singh, Anita. 'Celebrity Big Brother begins', The Daily Telegraph, 8:20PM GMT 02 Jan 2009
52.^ 'Jackson's diva demands on Big Brother', The Times of India, January 2009, 03:28pm IST
53.^ "Bungalo Records". Bungalo Records. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
54.^ 'LaToya song re-released as Jackson tribute', Associated Press, July 17, 2009.
55.^ 'Coroner rules Jackson’s death a homicide', MSNBC, Mon., Aug 24, 2009.
56.^ Stone, Susan. La Toya Jackson Poses for Alessandro Cream Ad ,Women's Wear Daily ,March 31, 2010
57.^ Odell, Amy. La Toya Jackson Now Fronts a $227 Hand Cream With Diamond Dust, New York Magazine, 3/31/10
58.^ "Music". JaTail. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
59.^ "Press Release - La Toya Jackson to Guest Judge on "RuPaul's Drag Race"". 24-7pressrelease.com. Retrieved 2013-04-07.
60.^ Find Out What S&S Authors Are Doing Right Now. "La Toya Jackson | Official Publisher Page". Authors.simonandschuster.com. Retrieved 2011-10-09.
61.^ "La Toya Jackson Starting Over Promo". YouTube. 2011-06-21. Retrieved 2011-10-09.
62.^ Levine, Stuart (Aug. 1, 2012). "OWN orders La Toya Jackson reality series". Variety. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
63.^ Emrick, Matt (1 December 2007). "Church of La Toya Exclusive: Tommy Martin Speaks to Church of La Toya". Church of La Toya. Archived from the original on Oct 26 2010. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
64.^ "La Toya Jackson (Polydor)". Evening Independent. pp. 10–B. Retrieved 22 December 2011.
65.^ "Bad Girl - La Toya Jackson". Retrieved 2012-07-08.
66.^ "Interview: LaToya Jackson". AskMen. AskMen. Retrieved 14 October 2012.
67.^ Jules-Rosette, Bennetta (2007). "8". Josephine Baker in Art and Life: The Icon and the Image (1 ed.). University of Illinois Press. p. 259. ISBN 0252074122.
68.^ Jackson, La Toya (13 Apr 2012). "Twitter / @latoyajackson". Twitter. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
69.^ "LaToya Jackson Grammy Certificate, 1985". Liveauctioneers.com. 2007-05-30. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
70.^ US Congressional Tribute to La Toya Jackson "La Toya Jackson participated in a 'Beat It' rally and the Stay in School Campaign, and this letter recognizes her contribution of time and leadership. Louis Stokes, Congressman for the 21st District, signed this tribute letter, written on US Congress letterhead."
71.^ "La Toya Jackson Serves Milkshakes on Halloween To Raise Funds for Aids Project LA" November 01, 2009
72.^ "Topics: Famous Vegetarians".
73.^ "Vegetarian Celebrities".
External links[edit source]
 Wikimedia Commons has media related to: La Toya Jackson
Official site
Official Facebook Page
La Toya Jackson at the Internet Movie Database
Church of La Toya—officially endorsed fan site

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