Via Scoop.it – Today’s Transmedia Woman
WCNTV Commentary: Today’s Transmedia Woman is Karyn Parson Founder and President of Sweet Blackberry. There hasn’t been a week that I have been a FB Friend that I have not learned something new about Black History. With United Nations Resolution 64/169 celebrating THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR FOR PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT we lift up the work fo the SWEET BLACKBERRY.ORG for keeping our history Alive. When considering which organizations to donate to this year. Don’t forget how all year long this organization is feeding potentially 800 Million Facebook Users who need only know Sweet Blackberry Exists and the incredible service they are performing for Kids. Thanks Karyn We love you work.
Karyn Parsons (Founder and President) is best known as the character “Hilary Banks” on the long-running television show, “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air.” Karyn created the Sweet Blackberry foundation after being inspired by the true tale of a determined slave and the remarkable lengths he travelled to find his freedom. While growing up, Karyn’s mother, a librarian in the Black Resource Center of a library in South Central Los Angeles, would share stories of African-American accomplishment with her daughter.
A mother and activist, Karyn created Sweet Blackberry to use the power of stories to inspire youth. About Mission Statement: Our mission at Sweet Blackberry is to bring little known stories of African American achievement to children everywhere. Unfortunately, our schools often lack the time and resources to teach our children more than a handful of stories of African Americans in history.
These triumphant stories of individuals surmounting the odds and making invaluable contributions to our society are inspirational and empowering, illustrating for our children the concept that tremendous obstacles are actually opportunities for greatness. In addition to gaining historical knowledge and perspective, children of all races and ethnicities will feel a sense of shared history. Sweet Blackberry launched to critical acclaim in February 2005 with its first DVD release, “The Journey of Henry ‘Box’ Brown.”
Narrated by Emmy award-winning actress, Alfre Woodard, “The Journey of Henry ‘Box’ Brown” brings to life for young children an extremely important chapter in American History, telling an extraordinary tale of human courage about a man who shipped himself, in a box, from Virginia to Philadelphia to freedom. Sweet Blackberry’s second film, “Garrett’s Gift,” was narrated by award-winning actress, Queen Latifah.
It tells the story of young Garrett Morgan, a creative-minded child who was finally able to focus his talents and energies and become one of the country’s most highly regarded inventors. Sweet Blackberry’s films, “The Journey of Henry ‘Box’ Brown,” and “Garett’s Gift,” have both enjoyed a long run on HBO and HBO Family, and have both garnered several awards, including the Parent’s Choice Award. Pulling from a deep tradition of storytelling through both words and music, Sweet Blackberry brings a wealth of talent to the screen. Sweet Blackberry’s stories are narrated by actors from film and television, and the narration is complemented by vibrant, eclectic music.
Sweet Blackberry’s plans are to create content that works across multiple media platforms, leveraging the power of stories to teach and reach young children wherever they may be. Sweet Blackberry was founded by actor/writer, Karyn Parsons (The Fresh Prince of Bel Air). As a new mom, Parsons was motivated by a strong desire to instill a sense of culture and heritage to her daughter. Inspired by her own mother and upbringing, Parsons created Sweet Blackberry—delivering to all children, stories that need to be told and heard. This culture is American culture; this history is American History. Via sweetblackberry.org
WCN Transmedia Group Music Showcase “STAY”. Tyrese is back with his first Independent Project and my brother has Laid it OUT. Tyrese is a unique Soulful Singer and STAY take you back to the day when Music was Music. Had meaning…..Open Invitation is a Heart Project and means a lot to the singer who was dissed by his record label.
People we got to support this Album and Independent Artists who go beyond traditional commercialism and put their own money where their mouth is. WCN is excited about this album and the chemistry between Taraji P. Henson and Tyrese is electric. Looking forward to Baby Boy 11 and getting my groove on with this new release OPEN INVITATION. Lets take this album Triple Platinum. VISIT AND SUPPORT VOLTRON RECORDZ – http://www.TyreseOnline.com
Tyrese Darnell Gibson (born December 30, 1978),[1] also known simply as Tyrese, is an American R&B singer, rapper, actor, author, former fashion model and MTV VJ. After releasing several albums, he transitioned into films, with lead roles in several Hollywood releases.
Early life
Gibson was born in Los Angeles, California, growing up in the Watts neighborhood. His mother, Priscilla Murray Gibson (née Durham), raised him and his three older siblings as a single parent after Gibson’s father, Tyrone Gibson, left.[2][3] Gibson’s career began when he was discovered on a bus. An appearance in a 1994 Coca-Cola advertisement, singing the phrase “Always Coca-Cola“,[4] led to bigger fame.
He appeared in the 2007 action film Transformers. The film’s director, Michael Bay, had Gibson in mind for the role before he was cast, and thus Gibson did not have to audition for the part.[5] Gibson may also star in a film version of the superhero Luke Cage; as of 2006, the script was being re-formatted.[5] Gibson also appeared in action thriller Death Race.
In 2009, he reprised his role as Air Force Chief Master Sergeant Robert Epps in the movieTransformers: Revenge of the Fallen, as well as, “Transformers: Dark of The Moon”. Gibson appeared in Fast Five (2011), reprising his role as Roman Pierce in this film series. Gibson also portrayed Kyle Williams in the Sony Screen Gems production Legion.[6]
Gibson has been attached to an R&B supergroup called TGT with Ginuwine and Tank. He is quoted as saying “With all the support our fans have given us individually over the years for our distinct signature styles, collectively we felt our fans deserved to hear great music in a way that they could never have imagined. I’ve known these guys for years and they truly are like brothers, so it only felt right to come together as a trio to make history”. The group was first featured on Tank’s remix to the song “Please Don’t Go”.[7]
He has also created a three-issue mini-series called Mayhem!, to be published by Image Comics,[8] one of which is available as an iTunes LP.[9] He has also released a duet with Jewel entitled “Make It Last”. This was intended to be on Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen soundtrack but was instead used for the promotion of his Mayhem! comic.[10]
Representación de Miss & PROPIO inspira la creación de la Transmedia Consejo de Mujeres en Linkedin
Publicado: 22 de octubre de 2011 por wcntransmedia de moda, el cine / TV, Quiero lanzar una marca global, IPTV, EQUIPO KIVA PRÉSTAMOS, música, noticias, SOCIAL TV / cine, deportes, Transmedia Proyecto del Genoma Humano, Vigin Unite, INITATIVES WCN VERDE, WCN SOCIAL MEDIA AWARDS
Tags: Radiodifusión, Linkedin, Música, Nueva York, Oprah Winfrey, Patricia Robinson, San Francisco Bay Area, la red de televisión
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Representación de Miss & PROPIO inspira la creación de la Transmedia Consejo de Mujeres de LinkedIn para ayudar a formar WCN es la programación de las políticas de la Mujer.
La semana pasada, después de la clase de Oprah Representación vida de la señorita salió al aire por su cuenta. Ser papá Primero, entonces un ejecutivo de medios llamé a una de mis hijas y le pidió que para ver el especial. La otra hija tiene la edad suficiente para leer este mensaje y unirse a la organización para crear una plataforma que las mujeres sí pueden apoyar.
Quiero agradecer a las siguientes mujeres para responder hasta ahora a mi invitación porque, como hombre que soy fatalmente defectuosa cuando se trata de mujeres y la comprensión en lugar de darse por vencido, que levantar las manos que iba a facilitar los medios para su discusión.
Como yo estaba peinado a través de mi red de LinkedIn para los ejecutivos de las mujeres. en los medios de comunicación, pude ver que había muchos más hombres que es lo que el documental, dijo de manera muy eficaz.
Todo el mundo sabe que la primera de Oprah Winfrey y que está haciendo la televisión a su manera, por lo que PROPIO debe vivir a pesar de los críticos y detractores, ya que sin no hubiera visto el documental más probable es que ni se acerca Blogging ahora pidiendo orientación sobre cómo dar forma a Moda WCN, Música, Deportes y las políticas de programación
Todos sabemos que T & A vende y para mantener las luces encendidas es una ruta fácil para el éxito de las redes de varones 18 a 35. Creo que soy lo suficientemente inteligente como para saber que con la tecnología de Brandcasting Transmedia con la visualización de Libre Comercio que es el contenido que atraerá y mantendrá a los televidentes. Y por supuesto la posibilidad de comprar al instante lo que se ve se atraen más a las mujeres que controlan las finanzas del hogar (nunca mejor dicho).
Esta es la pregunta? ¿Qué las mujeres desean de una sola red de televisión que podría ser un ejemplo para todos de toda la industria MEDIOS DE COMUNICACIÓN?
Por favor, únase Consejo de la Mujer Transmedia en LinkedIn y me dan sus comentarios. Quiero agradecer a las siguientes mujeres para unirse a la medida.
CLICK PARA UNIRSE A CONSEJO DE LA MUJER TRASNEMDIA
Maya Zuckerman
Transmedia productor, empresario, estratega visual San Francisco Bay Area de Producción de Medios
Patricia Robinson, PHR
Director de Personal y Administración de Emmis Communications Greater New York City Area Audiovisual
Sheila Hardy
Propietario / Productor Ejecutivo en Lime Eva Producciones Fotos del Gran Los Angeles y el movimiento de cine
Kandy Phillips
Brand Marketing | Estrategia de Comunicación | Social Media Systems | Escritura Creativa y Técnicas | Recursos creativon
Haga clic aquí para tomar el Juramento
Bienvenido al Movimiento de los medios de comunicación Justicia
Publicado en Feminismo, Hollywood, los medios de comunicación
Jennifer L. Pozner es Fundador y Director Ejecutivo de la mujer en los medios de comunicación y noticias, un análisis de los medios de comunicación, la educación y el grupo de defensa, y el autor de Reality Bites Back: La verdad preocupante de TV Guilty Pleasure. Nos sentimos honrados de contar con ella como un invitado blogger hoy en día.
En representación de la señorita, la actriz y activista Rosario Dawson habla de lo importante que es para las mujeres a escribir sus propias historias. Esto es igualmente importante en el entretenimiento y el periodismo como en alike.Yet discutir en la película, el clima actual de los medios de comunicación es extremadamente tóxico para las mujeres y las niñas, y para la gente de color. Eso es porque el objetivo principal de la programación de hoy en día la televisión no es entretener, informar o participar con nosotros. Triste pero cierto: el objetivo es generar altísimos beneficios para los seis principales conglomerados (Disney, Time Warner, NewsCorp, Viacom, CBS y General Electric) que poseen y controlan la inmensa mayoría de lo que se nos da a ver, a ver, escuchar y jugar en periódicos, revistas, TV, radio, vallas publicitarias películas, y juegos de video.
Como resultado, las mujeres están mal representadas y marginados como los escritores de opinión, en primera plana las fuentes de noticias, las anclas de plomo, y los comentaristas de difusión del periodismo … es decir, cuando no faltan por completo (como decenios del documento de investigación). Entretenimiento guión no es mucho mejor. Como director de cine Nia Vardalos escribió en Voces WIMN, los estudios de Hollywood ignorar los datos que muestran que el público realmente quieren apoyar a las películas con fuertes protagonistas femeninas, llamando al éxito de Sex and the City y Mamma Mia “, una casualidad.” Cuando Nia trató de seguimiento su éxito Mi gran boda griega con un nuevo guión, el estudio de los ejecutivos de la presionaron para que el cambio lleva caracteres de mujer a hombre-exactamente lo contrario de la clase de clima Rosario Dawson es justamente reclaman.
Y como explico en la representación de Miss y escribir en Reality Bites Back: La verdad inquietantes sobre Guilty Pleasure TV, TV realidad pretende ser de “gente real” actúa sobre “emociones reales”, pero está más allá de no auténtico. Los espectadores piensan que están escuchando las voces y ser testigo de las experiencias de las “mujeres reales”, pero lo que realmente estamos consumiendo son regresivos, 1950 estereotipos que la colocación de productos de la publicidad y la escritura a través de redes de edición y trucos de producción. Una década de estos espectáculos hyperedited, la realidad manipulador han utilizado chicas reales “y las voces de las mujeres como pilares de presentarnos a todos como estúpidos, Golddiggers perra, patética desesperación de los hombres-y presentando a la mujer de color, en particular, como ignorantes, hipersexual,” ghetto ” “hos”. (Si esto fuera verdad la “realidad” de televisión, veríamos mucho más inteligente, segura de sí misma, las mujeres jóvenes apasionados como “Representación de la señorita” Devanshi Patel protagonista de sus propios espectáculos, y mucho menos las mujeres jóvenes como de Snooki “Jersey Shore”).
Todo esto sería realmente deprimente si no había algo que pudiera hacer al respecto. Afortunadamente, hay muchas maneras de cambiar los medios de comunicación para el mejor. Así que, después de ver la representación de Miss y salir del cine o apagar, usted no sólo debe enfadarse, usted debe estar activo.
En primer lugar, usted puede encontrar y el apoyo positivo, el periodismo difícil, crítica y de entretenimiento que representa a las mujeres en toda su diversidad. No es una comunidad vibrante medios de comunicación independientes en los Estados Unidos donde las mujeres y las personas de color se reflejan en calidad de expertos, y hablar en su propia voz – al igual que Rosario Dawson anima. Deja People y Us Weekly, recogida y revistas no comerciales como la señora, ColorLines, Pulso Mundial y perra: La respuesta feminista a la cultura popular. Para contrarrestar las noticias dañar el contenido de medios discutidos en la película, no se basan sólo en los principales periódicos y la televisión para sus noticias – también buscan fuentes no comerciales periodismo alternativo que, como GRITtv con Flandes Laura, Free Speech TV y radio ALAS . Leer los medios de comunicación en línea y los blogs como Enews Mujeres, Voces de WIMN, Feministing, Feminist.com Racialicious, y tomó debida nota, para nombrar sólo unos pocos, y ver remixes de video pirata en la cultura pop y la frecuencia de feministas.
A continuación, usted puede participar con un movimiento dinámico, de medios emergentes de justicia en los Estados Unidos de que sus necesidades de energía, el apoyo y la participación de transformar los medios de comunicación para el mejor. En 2001, fundé la mujer en los medios de comunicación y noticias, análisis de las primeras mujeres nacionales de los medios de comunicación, la educación y el grupo de defensa de trabajo para aumentar la presencia de las mujeres y el poder en el debate público. Mucho ha cambiado en la década desde que fundé WIMN, que le da aún más oportunidades que nunca para hacer una diferencia. Programas como Grrls carrete de Seattle y la Casa del Pueblo de Nueva York de la Producción de enseñar periodismo, la radio y el cine a las niñas, las personas de color, y las personas de bajos ingresos, para ayudar a las comunidades silenciadas contar sus historias … como Rosario Dawson anima. El Proyecto de Alfabetización de los medios de comunicación en Nuevo México puede ayudarle a obtener la educación en medios de alfabetización en escuelas K-12, y kits de herramientas en línea tiene los adultos y niños por igual se puede usar para convertirse en consumidores activos, medios de comunicación críticos. Y el Centro de Medios de Comunicación Justicia de Oakland y los medios de Liga de la Justicia en San Antonio están luchando para que las empresas rindan cuentas a los medios de comunicación a sus necesidades, la promoción de políticas de medios justos como neutralidad de la red, por lo que Internet y otras tecnologías de información y la comunicación son igualmente accesibles a los todos, y seguir siendo un foro donde cada uno de nosotros puede escribir, podcast, videoblog, y comunicar nuestras realidades en nuestros propios términos.
De todas las organizaciones y medios de Indy Media arriba, a los nacionales de acción sobre los medios de comunicación de base de red, las mujeres y las personas de color han pasado décadas trabajando para luchar contra la parcialidad de los medios y para crear una mejor, más amplia, los medios más diversos. Ahora que “La representación señorita” ha brillado una luz convencional en esta defensa crucial, es el momento para que se unan al movimiento. Bienvenido!
Bio: Jennifer L. Pozner es un periodista, crítico de los medios de comunicación y hablar en público. Ella es la fundadora y Directora Ejecutiva de Mujeres en los medios de comunicación y noticias, y autor de Reality Bites Back: La verdad preocupante de TV Guilty Pleasure. Ha realizado conferencias multimedia y talleres sobre género, raza, clase y sexualidad en los medios de comunicación para más de 100 escuelas secundarias, sin fines de lucro, y conferencias en los EE.UU. y Canadá (si la había, como a un evento de la alfabetización mediática en su ciudad, estar en contacto!)
WCN Transmedia celebrates the life of Marvin Gaye and the 40 year Anniversary of “Whats Going On”. This timeless classic certainly reflects today’s reality which is the true test of a Legend. Marvin we miss you…But Thank God we have your music to live on. Here is our tribute to the Master who is MARVIN GAYE.
Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a four-octave vocal range.[2] Starting as a member of the doo-wop group The Moonglows in the late fifties, he ventured into a solo career after the group disbanded in 1960 signing with the Tamla Records subsidiary of Motown Records. After starting off as a session drummer, Gaye ranked as the label’s top-selling solo artist during the sixties.
In 2008, the American music magazine Rolling Stone ranked Gaye at number 6 on its list of the Greatest Singers of All Time,[6] and ranked at number 18 on 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.[7]
Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr.[1] was born on April 2, 1939 at Freedman’s Hospital in Washington, D.C.. His father, Marvin Gay, Sr., was a minister at the House of God (the House of God headquarters is located in Lexington, Kentucky), which advocated strict conduct and taught and believed in both the old and new Testament. His mother, Alberta Gay (née Alberta Cooper), was a domestic and schoolteacher. Gaye was the second eldest of four children. His younger brother, Frankie (1941–2001), would be one of the main sources of Gaye’s musical development and later served as a soldier in the Vietnam War and embarked on a singing career upon his return to civilian life to follow in his elder brother’s footsteps. His youngest sister, Zeola “Sweetsie” Gay (b. 1945), would later become the main choreographer of her brother’s live shows. As a child, Gaye was raised in the Benning Terrace projects in southeast D.C.[8]
Gaye’s father was minister of a local Seventh-day Adventist Church for a time. By the time his eldest son was five, Marvin Sr. was bringing Gaye with him to church revivals to sing for church congregations. Gaye’s father was assured all four of his children would follow him into the ministry and would later use his strict domineering to get his children to avoid secular activities including sports and secular music. Gaye’s early home life consisted of violence as his father would often strike him for any shortcoming. Gaye and his three siblings were bed-wetters as children.[9] Gaye would later call his father a “tyrannical and powerful king” and said he was depressed as a child, convinced that he would eventually “become one of those child statistics that you read in the papers” had he not been encouraged to pursue his dreams by his mother.[9] By age fourteen, Gaye’s parents moved to the Deanwood neighborhood of northeast D.C. The following year, Gaye’s father quit the ministry after a disappointment over not being promoted as the Chief Apostle (head overseer) of the House of God Inc. Gaye said his father later developed alcoholism, which furthered tension between father and son.
Developing a love for music at an early age, Gaye was already playing instruments including piano and drums. Upon arriving to Cardozo High School, Gaye discovered doo-wop and harder-edged rhythm and blues and began running away from home to attend R&B concerts and dance halls defying his father’s rules. Gaye joined several groups in the D.C. area including the Dippers with his best friend, Johnny Stewart, brother of R&B singer Billy Stewart. He then joined the D.C. Tones, whose members included another close friend, Reese Palmer, and Sondra Lattisaw, mother of R&B singer Stacy Lattisaw.[9] Gaye’s relationship with his father led him to run away from home and join the United States Air Force in hopes of becoming an aviator. However, discovering his growing hatred for authority, he began defying orders and skipped practices. Faking mental illness, he was discharged.[9] His sergeant stated that Gaye refused to follow orders.[10] Upon returning to his hometown, Gaye worked as a dishwasher to make ends meet. Gaye still dreamed of a show-business career, and rejoining Reese Palmer, the duo formed a four-member group calling themselves the Marquees.
A 1959 promotional picture of Harvey and the Moonglows. Gaye is located in the right of a seated Fuqua.
In 1958, the Marquees were discovered singing at a D.C. club by Bo Diddley, who signed them to Okeh Records, where they recorded “Wyatt Earp”, with “Hey Little Schoolgirl” as its B-side. It received moderate success, but not the success Gaye and his band mates had hoped for. Later that year Harvey Fuqua, founder and co-lead singer of the landmark doo-wop group The Moonglows, recruited them, after the breakup of the original members, to be “The New Moonglows” which moved the formerly-named Marquees from Okeh to Chess Records. While there, the “new Moonglows” recorded background vocals for Chess recording stars Chuck Berry and Etta James. After “The Twelve Months of the Year”, which featured a spoken monologue by Gaye, became a regional hit, the group issued “Mama Loochie”, which was the first time Gaye sang lead on a record. The record was issued in late 1959 and became a hit in Detroit. Following a concert performance there, Gaye and other band members were arrested for small possession of marijuana. Afterwards, Fuqua decided to disband the group, keeping Gaye with him, as he favored him over the other members. In 1960, Harvey Fuqua had met Gwen Gordy and the couple embarked on both a personal and professional relationship. That year, the couple formed two record labels, the self-named Harvey Records, and Tri-Phi Records. Gaye was signed to the former label, whose other members including a young David Ruffin and Junior Walker. Gaye provided drums for The Spinners‘ first hit, “That’s What Girls Are Made For“, which was released on Tri-Phi. Stories on how Gaye eventually met Berry Gordy and how he signed to Motown Records vary. One early story stated Gordy discovered Gaye singing at a local bar in Detroit and that he had offered to sign him on the spot. Gaye’s recollection, and also a story Gordy later reiterated, was that Gaye invited himself to Motown’s annual Christmas party inside the label’s Hitsville USA studios and played on the piano singing “Mr. Sandman“. Gordy saw Gaye from afar and upon noting that Gaye was connected with Fuqua began to make arrangements to absorb Fuqua’s labels to Motown bringing all of the labels’ acts to Motown. Gordy said he immediately wanted to bring Gaye to Motown after seeing him perform, impressed by his vocals and piano playing. While working out negotiations, Fuqua would sell fifty percentage interest in Gaye to Gordy, which Gaye would find out later.[11] After Gordy absorbed Anna and Harvey in March 1961, Gaye was assigned to Motown’s Tamla division.
Gaye and Motown immediately clashed over material. While Motown was yet a musical force, Gaye set on singing standards and jazz rather than the usual rhythm and blues that fellow label mates were recording. Struggling to come to terms with what to do with his career, Gaye worked mainly behind the scenes, becoming a janitor, and also settled for session work playing drums on several recordings, which continued for several years. One of Gaye’s first professional gigs for Motown was as a road drummer for The Miracles. Gaye developed a close friendship with the label’s lead singer Smokey Robinson and they’d later work together. Though already a seasoned veteran of the road and almost exempt from Gordy’s Artist Development, which began operating in 1961, Gaye was still required to attend schooling, which he refused. He eventually took advice from grooming director Maxine Powell to keep his eyes open while performing because “it looks like you’re sleeping when you’re performing”.[9] Gaye would later regret skipping the school saying he could’ve benefited more from it.[9] Before releasing his first single in May 1961, he altered his last name to “Gaye”, later stating that he added the ‘e’ because “it sounded more professional” and to emulate what Sam Cooke had done before releasing his first secular record following his split from the Soul Stirrers. A famous story about the name change came from author David Ritz, Gaye’s confidant in later years, who said Gaye had said that he wanted to “quiet the gossip” of his last name and to distance himself from his father.[12]
In May 1961, Tamla released Gaye’s first single, “Let Your Conscience Be Your Guide“. The single flopped as a national release but was a regional hit in the Midwest, as was a follow-up single, the cover of “Mr. Sandman” (titled as just “Sandman” in Gaye’s release in early 1962). In June 1961, Motown issued Gaye’s first album, The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye compromising Gaye’s jazz interests with a couple of R&B songs. The album tanked and no hit single came of it. A third regional hit, “Soldier’s Plea“, an answer to The Supremes‘ “Your Heart Belongs to Me“, was the next release in the spring of 1962. Gaye had more success behind the scenes than in front. Gaye applied drumming on several Motown records for artists such as the Miracles, Mary Wells, The Contours and The Marvelettes. Gaye was also a drummer for early recordings by The Supremes, Martha and the Vandellas and Little Stevie Wonder. Gaye drummed on the Marvelettes hits, “Please Mr. Postman“, “Playboy” and “Beechwood 4-5789” (a song he co-wrote). Later on, Gaye would be noted as the drummer in both the studio and live recordings of Wonder’s “Fingertips” and as one of two drummers behind Martha and the Vandellas’ landmark hit, “Dancing in the Street“, which was another composition by Gaye, originally intended for Kim Weston. Gaye said he continued to play drums for Motown acts even after gaining fame on his own merit. For Gaye’s fourth single, the singer was inspired to write lyrics to a song after an argument with his wife, Anna Gordy Gaye (née Anna Gordy). While working out the song, Gaye mentioned he had his first “major” power struggle with Motown head Berry Gordy over its composition. Gordy insisted on a chord change though Gaye was comfortable with how he wrote it, eventually Gaye changed the chord and the song was issued as “Stubborn Kind of Fellow” in September 1962. The song became a hit on the Hot Rhythm and Blues Sides chart reaching number eight and eventually peaked at number 46 on the Billboard Hot 100 in early 1963. A parent album, That Stubborn Kinda Fellow, was released in December 1962, the same month that Gaye’s fifth single, “Hitch Hike“, was released. That song reached number 30 on the Billboard Hot 100, bringing Gaye his first top forty single. Gaye’s early success confirmed his arrival as a hit maker, and he landed on his first major tour as a performer on Motown’s Motortown Revue.
Early success (1963–1966)
Gaye’s career following his performances with the Motortown Revue assured him success. Gaye’s next single, “Pride & Joy“, became a major hit in the spring of 1963, reaching number-ten on the Billboard Hot 100, selling nearly one million copies. Later that year, Gaye repeated the success with the top thirty hit, “Can I Get a Witness“, which found some leverage in the United Kingdom upon its release on Motown’s UK label Stateside Records. Many of Gaye’s early hits would later be heavily covered by acts such as The Rolling Stones, Dusty Springfield and The Who, performers who admired Gaye and American R&B music in general. Gaye’s hits also was a big influence on the UK’s mod scene with several mod groups including the future Elton John‘s Bluesology and Rod Stewart‘s Steampacket covering Gaye’s hits there. Gaye’s early hits were also a big influence on American producers, including Phil Spector, who nearly had a car accident while pulling over upon hearing “Stubborn Kind of Fellow” for the first time.
Gaye struggled with his success. While deemed a “smooth song-and-dance ladies’ man”, he still aspired to perform more jazz work in his catalog. Because of his success, Motown allowed him to work on such recordings including When I’m Alone I Cry, Hello Broadway and a Nat King Cole tribute album, A Tribute to the Great Nat “King” Cole. All three albums flopped. Gaye tried performing the songs onstage but soon stopped once he discovered that the crowds weren’t too appreciative of the material. One proposed standards project, which took over two years to record, was shelved due to session problems. Gaye’s performances at the Copacabana in 1966 also led to conflict between Gaye and Gordy as Motown had recorded the album for purposes of releasing it in early 1967. However due to a struggle, Motown eventually shelved it until it was later released three decades later. In early 1967, Gaye scored his first international hit with the duet, “It Takes Two“, with Kim Weston, who ironically had already left the label when it became a hit. Only one televised performance of the song showed Gaye singing the song to a puppet. That year, Motown hooked Gaye up with veteran Philadelphia-based singer Tammi Terrell, who had an early stint with James Brown. Gaye would later say of Terrell that she was his “perfect partner” musically.
A screenshot of a 1967 performance by Gaye and Terrell during taping of the Today Show.
Tammi Terrell and I Heard It Through the Grapevine (1967–1969)
The duo was also a success together onstage with Terrell’s easy-going nature with the audience contrasting from Gaye’s laid-back approach. However, that success was short-lived. On October 14, 1967, while performing at Virginia’s Hampden-Sydney College, Terrell collapsed in Marvin’s arms. Terrell had been complaining of headaches in the weeks leading up to the concert, but had insisted she was okay. However, after being rushed to Southside Community Hospital, doctors found that Terrell had a malignant brain tumor.[13]
The diagnosis ended her performing career, though she still occasionally recorded, often with guidance and assistance. Terrell ceased recordings in 1969 and Motown struggled with recording of a planned third Gaye and Terrell album. Gaye initially had refused to go along with it saying that he felt Motown was taking unnecessary advantage of Terrell’s illness. Gaye only reluctantly agreed because Motown assured him recordings would go to insure Terrell’s health as she continued to have operations to remove the tumor, all of which were unsuccessful. In September 1969, the third Gaye and Terrell duet album, Easy was released, with many of the songs subbed by Valerie Simpson, while solo songs recorded years earlier by Terrell, had overdubbed vocals by Gaye.
“I Heard It through the Grapevine” was recorded by Gaye in April 1967, several months before Gladys Knight and the Pips recorded it. The song features an horror-based Wurlitzer piano solo, percussion and horns. Gaye’s recording of it paved the way for what later became “psychedelic soul“.
Terrell’s illness put Gaye in a depression; at one point he attempted suicide but was stopped by Berry Gordy’s father.[citation needed] He refused to acknowledge the success of his song “I Heard It Through the Grapevine“, released in 1967 by Gladys Knight & The Pips (his was recorded before, but released after theirs), his first number-one hit and the biggest selling single in Motown history to that point, with four million copies sold.[citation needed] His work with producer Norman Whitfield, who produced “Grapevine”, resulted in similar success with the singles “Too Busy Thinking About My Baby” and “That’s the Way Love Is“. Meanwhile, Gaye’s marriage was crumbling and he was bored with his music. Wanting creative control, he sought to produce singles for Motown session band The Originals, whose Gaye-produced hits, “Baby I’m For Real” and “The Bells“, brought success.
Tammi Terrell died of a brain tumor on March 16, 1970. Gaye was so emotional at her funeral that he talked to her lying in state as if she was going to respond. Gaye insisted, following Terrell’s death, that he would no longer record duets with any other female performer nor was he ever going to perform on stage again since Terrell’s collapse and subsequent death had spooked him. He already had apprehensions of performing, suffering bouts of stage fright throughout his performing career. Prior to Terrell’s death, he had withdrawn from a scheduled performance citing an illness and was later sued for failure to appear. After Terrell’s death he stopped doing any more live gigs and never really recovered completely from her passing. He had an inspiration, going back to 1968, to try out for the Detroit Lions football team. After a tryout in early 1970, he wasn’t allowed to join the team though he gained friendships with two of its teammates, Mel Farr and Lem Barney. After helping to collaborate what became “What’s Going On“, he returned to Hitsville on June 1, 1970 to record the song, which was inspired by Gaye’s brother’s accounts of his experience at the Vietnam War and co-writer Renaldo “Obie” Benson of the Four Tops‘ disgust of police brutality after seeing anti-war protesters attacked in San Francisco.
Despite releases of several anti-war songs by The Temptations and Edwin Starr, Motown CEO Berry Gordy prevented Gaye from releasing the song, fearing a backlash against the singer’s image as a sex symbol and openly telling him and others that the song “was the worst record I ever heard”. Gaye, however, refused to record anything that was Motown’s or Gordy’s version of him. He later said that recording the song and its parent album “led to semi-violent disagreements between Berry and myself, politically speaking.” Eventually the song was released with little promotion on January 17, 1971. The song soon shot up the charts topping the R&B chart for five weeks.[14][15] Eventually selling more than two million copies, an album was requested, and Gaye again defied Gordy by producing an album featuring lengthy singles that talked of other issues such as poverty, taxes, drug abuse and pollution. Released on May 21, 1971, the What’s Going On album instantly became a million-seller crossing him over to young white rock audiences while also maintaining his strong R&B fan base. Because of its lyrical content and its mixture of funk, jazz, classical and Latin soul arrangements which departed from the then renowned “Motown Sound“, it became one of Motown’s first autonomous works, without help of Motown’s staff producers. Based upon its themes and a segue flow into each of the songs sans the title track, the concept album became the new template for soul music.
Other hit singles that came out of the album included “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)” and “Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)“, making Gaye the first male solo artist to have three top ten singles off one album on the Billboard Hot 100. All three singles sold over a million copies and were all number-one on the R&B chart. International recognition of the album was slow to come at first though eventually the album would be revered overseas as a “landmark pop record”. It has been called “the most important and passionate record to come out of soul music, delivered by one of its finest voices”.[16] The success of the title track influenced Stevie Wonder to release an album with similar themes, Where I’m Coming From, in April of that year. Following the release of the album and its subsequent success, Wonder rejected a renewing offer with Motown unless he was allowed creative control on his recordings, which was granted a year later. Gaye’s independent success not only related to Motown recording artists, other R&B artists of the era also began to rebel against labels to produce their own conceptual albums. The Jackson 5, one of Motown’s final acts to benefit from the label’s “glory years” (1959–1972), tried unsuccessfully to get creative control for their own recordings and as a result left in 1975 for CBS Records.
Gaye’s success was nationally recognized: Billboard magazine awarded him the Trendsetter of the Year award, while he won several NAACP Image Awards including Favorite Male Singer. Rolling Stone named it Album of the Year, and was nominated for a couple of Grammy Awards though inexplicably wasn’t nominated for Album of the Year. In 1972, Gaye reluctantly stepped out of his stage retirement to perform selected concerts, including one at his hometown of Washington, D.C. performing at the famed Kennedy Center, a recording of the performance was issued on a deluxe edition re-release of the What’s Going On album. Also in 1972, Gaye performed for Jesse Jackson‘s PUSH organization and also for a Chicago-based benefit concert titled Save the Children aimed at removing the plight of urban violence in Chicago’s inner city. The latter performance was issued as part of a concert film released in early 1973, also titled Save the Children. Following its success, Gaye signed a new contract with Motown Records for a then record-setting $1 million, then the most lucrative deal by a black recording artist.[9] With creative control, Gaye attempted to produce several albums throughout 1972 and early 1973 including an instrumental album, a jazz album, another conceptually-produced album of social affairs (the canceled You’re the Man project) and an album with Willie Hutch co-producing. In late 1972, Gaye produced the score for the Trouble Man film and later produced the soundtrack of the same name. The title track was the only full vocal work of the album and was released as a single in the fall of 1972 eventually reaching number seven on the pop chart in the spring of 1973.
Let’s Get It On and continued success in music (1973–1977)
“Let’s Get It On” was written by Gaye and producer Ed Townsend, originally as a gospel song, and later as a protest song before eventually turning into a funk-oriented love anthem. It became Gaye’s second number-one hit in 1973.
Gaye performing live at the Oakland Coliseum during his 1973–1974 tour
In late 1972, Gaye left Detroit and moved to Los Angeles but relocated to an area where he was far away from Motown, purchasing a house at the so-called “bohemianhippie” Topanga Canyon Boulevard district, which was a hotbed for musicians looking to get away from the trappings of the music industry and Hollywood itself. He continued to record music at Los Angeles’ Motown studios (Hitsville West) and on March 18, 1973, recorded “Let’s Get It On“, reputedly inspired by Gaye’s new-found independence, after separating from Anna Gordy the previous year. The single was released as a single in June of the year and became Gaye’s second number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100. It also was a modest success internationally reaching number thirty-one in the United Kingdom. With the success of its recording, Gaye decided to switch completely from the social topics that were on What’s Going On to songs with sensual appeal.
Released in August 1973, Let’s Get It On consisted of material Gaye had initially recorded during the sessions of What’s Going On. It was hailed as “a record unparalleled in its sheer sensuality and carnal energy.”[17] Other singles from the album included “Come Get to This“, which recalled Gaye’s early Motown soul sound of the previous decade, while the then-controversial “You Sure Love to Ball” reached modest success but was kept from being promoted by Motown due to its sexually explicit nature. With the success of What’s Going On and Let’s Get It On, Motown demanded a tour. Gaye only reluctantly agreed when demand from fans reached a fever pitch. After a delay, Gaye made his official return to touring on January 4, 1974 at the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland, California. The recording of the performance, held by several music executives as “an event”, was later issued as the live album, Marvin Gaye Live!. Due to Gaye’s growing popularity with his increasing crossover audience and the reaction of the performance of “Distant Lover“, which Motown later released as a single in late 1974, the album sold over a million copies. Gaye’s subsequent 10-city tour, which took off that August, was sold-out and demand for more dates continued into 1975 while Gaye had struggled with subsequent recordings. A renewed contract with Motown in 1975 gave Gaye his own custom-made recording studio.
To keep up with demand and hype, Motown released Gaye’s final duet project, Diana & Marvin, an album with Diana Ross, which helped to increase Gaye’s audience overseas with the duo’s recording of “You Are Everything” reaching number-five in the UK, number-thirteen on the Dutch chart, and number-twenty in Ireland, while the album itself sold over a million copies overseas with major success in the UK. The recording of Diana & Marvin had started in late 1971 and overdubbed sessions took place in 1972 but was shelved from a release until late 1973 following the release of Let’s Get It On. Gaye toured throughout 1975 without new releases and collaborated in the studio producing songs for the likes of The Miracles (now without Smokey Robinson) and Yvonne Fair, helping to produce her version of Norman Whitfield‘s “Funky Music Sho Nuff Turns Me On”, featured on Fair’s The Bitch is Black, while also assisting her in the background with his vocals. Later in 1975, Gaye shaved his head bald in protest to Rubin Carter‘s prison sentence. Gaye initially insisted to keep it bald until Carter’s release though Gaye’s hair and beard returned within a few months.
Gaye performs at the London Palladium in 1977.
In 1976, Gaye released his first solo album in three years with I Want You. The title track became a number-one R&B hit while also reaching the top twenty of the national pop chart. The first of his albums to embrace the then popular disco sound of the time, Motown released a double-A 12′ of “I Want You” alongside another smooth dancer, “After the Dance“. The songs found success as a unit on the Billboard Hot Disco chart, reaching number-ten. By itself “After the Dance”, which wasn’t intended as a second single, eventually reached number fourteen on the R&B chart with minor pop traction, eventually reaching number seventy-four. That year, Gaye faced several lawsuits with former musicians and also faced prison time for falling behind on alimony payments ordered by law following his first wife Anna Gordy filing legal separation after a 15-year marriage. Gaye avoided imprisonment after agreeing to do a tour of Europe, his first tour of such in little over a decade. His first stop was at London’s Royal Albert Hall and then at the city’s London Palladium, where a recording was later released in early 1977 as Live at the London Palladium. Gaye performed in France, Holland, Switzerland and Italy to packed audiences and then returned for several U.S. tour dates though he often suffered from exhaustion from some of the U.S. dates. Between 1975 and 1976, Gaye was recognized by major corporations including the United Nations for charitable work dedicated to children and to affairs related to black culture.
In the spring of 1977, Gaye released “Got to Give It Up, Pt. 1“, which gave him his third number-one US pop hit, the final one Gaye released in his lifetime. The song also topped the R&B and dance singles chart and also found some international success reaching the top ten in England. Released as the only studio track from the Palladium album, its success kept Palladium on the charts for a year eventually selling over two million copies. It was recognized by Billboard as one of the top-ten selling albums of all time that year.
[edit] Here, My Dear and his final days at Motown (1978–1981)
In March 1977, his long, drawn-out court battle with former wife Anna Gordy ended. As a compromise to settle matters between the ex-couple over issues of alimony payments for their adopted son, Gaye’s attorney until his death, Curtis Shaw, advised Gaye to remit a portion of the revenue that he was to get for his next studio album. Gaye entered the recording studio intending to produce a “lazy” album, but ended up with the sprawling double-album set, Here, My Dear, which was held up from release for over a year. Finally released after Motown’s demand for new product in late 1978, the album was initially a flop, tanking after only a couple months on the charts. Its only single, “A Funky Space Reincarnation“, peaked at number twenty-three on the R&B chart, in early 1979, becoming Gaye’s first single since “Soldier’s Plea” 17 years earlier to not hit the Billboard Hot 100.
Gaye became a figure on talk show circuits for most of 1979, mostly appearing on Dinah Shore‘s Dinah & Friends. He also toured in 1979, first in the United States, then in England and in Japan, the latter being the first time (and, as it turned out, the only time) he ever toured that country. As the year continued, Gaye found himself in trouble financially, and at home with second wife, Janis Hunter. The couple split up in 1979, nearly eighteen months after marrying, and by that fall, following a performance in Hawaii, Gaye decided to remain in the state, fearing he might be imprisoned for failing to pay the IRS millions in back taxes; in court, his attorney claimed that several items within the singer’s luggage, including tax returns, were stolen from him while at an airport. Meanwhile, Gaye, now heavily in the throes of drug addiction, struggled to record. Reports stated that while in Hawaii, Gaye lived inside a bread truck. He initially had planned to release a standards album titled The Ballads but discarded it, fearing fans would be disappointed by no recognizable hits on it. The singer then intended to release an album of love songs aimed for the disco audience titled Love Man, but within a year, however, Gaye thought of expressing his feelings about a possible Armageddon, as well as his battles of the heart. Gaye changed the titles of all the songs, rewrote lyrics, and retitled the album, In Our Lifetime?, recording the album tracks while living in London in the middle of his exile.
A 1980 European tour followed, after Gaye made a deal with British promoter Jeffrey Kruger, who had looked after Gaye’s 1976–1977 European tour and his Japanese engagement in 1979. Almost immediately, controversy arose, after Gaye failed to make the stage for Princess Margaret at the Royal Gala Charity Show. While Kruger recalls that Gaye showed up just as audiences were leaving, Gaye’s musicians recalled that Gaye performed to the few that stayed for the performance though Princess Margaret had already left. Though Princess Margaret denied it, the international press printed the news as an “embarrassing snub”, claiming that Gaye had deliberately arrived late. This led to a lawsuit between Gaye and Kruger that eventually settled out of court. While still in London, Gaye ran into problems when recordings of In Our Lifetime? were sent to Motown’s offices back in Los Angeles, initially as rough mixes, to get Motown’s response rather than intending to release it. However, desperate to release Marvin Gaye product, the label rushed the album out on January 15, 1981. Gaye was upset at the news, and accused the label of editing and remixing the album without his consent, putting out an unfinished song (“Far Cry”), altering the album art he requested, and removing the question mark from the title, muting its irony. Gaye vowed to never record another record for Motown. That summer, negotiations began to be made to release Gaye from the label. After several offers landed, Gaye accepted a deal for CBS Records, a deal that was finalized in March 1982.
“Sexual Healing” was written by Gaye alongside Odell Brown and David Ritz. Ritz said Gaye advised him to write a poem after telling the singer he needed “sexual healing” while living in Europe. The song became an international hit after its release in 1982.
On the advice of Belgian concert promoter Freddy Cousaert, Gaye moved to Ostend, Belgium, in February 1981 where for a time he cut down on drugs and began to get back in shape both physically and emotionally. While in Belgium, Gaye began to make plans to renew his declining fortunes in his professional career, starting with a tour he titled “The Heavy Love Affair Tour” in England where he was greeted more warmly by the same London press that had criticized him of the Princess Margaret snub the previous year. The tour ended with two concert dates in Ostend. A documentary leading up to his Belgian concert performances titled Transit Ostend was initially released to just Belgian fans, and was later issued on VHS in bootleg copies following Gaye’s death.
After signing with CBS’ Columbia Records division in 1982, Gaye worked on what became the Midnight Love album. Gaye reconnected with Harvey Fuqua while recording the album and Fuqua served as a production adviser on the album, which was released in October 1982. The parent single, “Sexual Healing“, was released to receptive audiences globally, reaching number-one in Canada, New Zealand and the US R&B singles chart, while becoming a top ten U.S. pop hit and hitting the top ten in three other selected countries including the UK. The single became the fastest-selling and fastest-rising single in five years on the R&B chart staying at number-one for a record-setting ten weeks. Gaye wrote “Sexual Healing” while at the village Moere, near Ostend. Curtis Shaw later said that Gaye’s Moere period was “the best thing that ever happened to Marvin.” The now-famous video of “Sexual Healing” was shot at the Casino-Kursaal in Ostend.[18] “Sexual Healing” won Gaye his first two Grammy Awards including Best Male Vocal Performance, in February 1983, and also won Gaye an American Music Award for Favorite Soul Single. It was called by People magazine as “America’s hottest musical turn-on since Olivia Newton John demanded we get “Physical“.
“
I don’t make records for pleasure. I did when I was a younger artist, but I don’t today. I record so that I can feed people what they need, what they feel. Hopefully, I record so that I can help someone overcome a bad time.
The following year, he was nominated for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance again, this time for the Midnight Love album. In February 1983, Gaye performed “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the NBA All-Star Game, held at The Forum in Inglewood, California, accompanied by Gordon Banks who played the studio tape from stands.[20] In March 1983, he gave his final performance in front of his old mentor Berry Gordy and the Motown label for Motown 25, performing “What’s Going On”. He then embarked on a U.S. tour to support his album. The tour, ending in August 1983, was plagued by Gaye’s returning drug addictions and bouts with depression.
When the tour ended, he attempted to isolate himself by moving into his parents’ house in Los Angeles. As documented in the PBS “American Masters” 2008 exposé, several witnesses claimed Marvin’s mental and physical condition spiraled out of control. Groupies and drug dealers hounded Marvin night and day. He threatened to commit suicide several times after bitter arguments with his father. On April 1, 1984, Gaye’s father fatally shot him when Gaye intervened in an argument between his parents over misplaced business documents. The gun had been given to his father by Marvin Jr. four months previously. Marvin Gaye would have celebrated his 45th birthday the next day. Doctors discovered Marvin Sr. had a brain tumor but he was deemed fit for trial and was sentenced to five years of probation after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter. Charges of first-degree murder were dropped when it was revealed that Gaye had beaten Marvin Sr. before the killing. Spending his final years in a retirement home, he died of pneumonia in 1998.[21]
In 1987, Marvin Gaye Jr. was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He was also honored by Hollywood’s Rock Walk in 1989 and was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1990. In 2005, Marvin Gaye Jr. was admitted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame. In 2007, two of Gaye’s most important recordings, “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” and “What’s Going On”, were voted Legendary Michigan Songs.
Gaye married twice. His first marriage was to Berry Gordy Jr.’s sister, Anna Gordy, who was 18 years his senior. Marvin and Anna were married on January 8, 1964 when Gaye was 24 and Gordy was 42. The marriage imploded after Marvin began courting Janis Hunter, the daughter of Slim Gaillard, in 1973. Anna filed for divorce in 1975; the divorce was finalized in March 1977. Gaye’s erotic and disco-tinged studio album I Want You was based on his relationship with Hunter. In his book Mercy, Mercy Me: The Art, Loves, and Demons of Marvin Gaye, author and music writer Michael Eric Dyson elaborated on the relationship between I Want You and the relationship Gaye had with Hunter, which influenced his music:
“I Want You” is unmistakably a work of romantic and erotic tribute to the woman he deeply loved and would marry shortly, Janis Hunter (Janis Gaye). Gaye’s obsession with the woman in her late teens is nearly palpable in the sensual textures that are the album’s aural and lyrical signature. Their relationship was relentlessly passionate and emotionally rough-hewn; they played up each other’s strengths, and played off each other’s weaknesses.[22]
In October 1976, he married Janis, who was 17 years old when they met. However, the marriage dissolved within a year. After attempts at reconciliation, Janis filed for divorce in 1979. The divorce was finalized in February 1981. During this time, Marvin began dating a model from the Netherlands named Eugenie Vis. In 1982 Gaye became involved with Lady Edith Foxwell, former wife of the British movie director Ivan Foxwell, and spent time with her at Sherston, her Wiltshire estate. Foxwell ran the fashionable Embassy Club and was referred to in the media as “the queen of London cafe society.” The story of their affair was told by Stan Hey in the April 2004 issue of GQ. The report quoted writer/composer Bernard J. Taylor as saying he was told by Foxwell that she and Gaye had discussed marriage.
Gaye had three children. Marvin Pentz Gaye, III (b. 1965), by Denise Gordy, the niece of his first wife Anna Gordy. Marvin III was also adopted by his first wife Anna. The singer disclosed this in David Ritz‘s biography on Gaye, Divided Soul: The Life of Marvin Gaye, saying he was afraid of being criticized for not producing a child. Later, Gaye had two children with Janis Hunter, Nona Marvisa, nicknamed “Pie” by her dad (born September 4, 1974) and Frankie “Bubby” Christian Gaye (born November 16, 1975). Gaye introduced his daughter to a national audience during a show in 1975. Nona would do the same eight years later when her father was given a tribute by Soul Train. Nona has gone on to find success as a singer and actress. Gaye’s eldest son was a music producer. Frankie is said to have taken work as an artist. Gaye also has two grandchildren: Marvin Pentz Gaye IV (b. 1995), born on the anniversary of his grandfather’s death;[23] and Nolan Pentz Gaye (b. 1997).
Marvin Gaye’s musical style changed in various ways throughout his 26-year career. Upon his early recordings as member of The Marquees and Harvey & the New Moonglows in the late 1950s, Marvin recorded in a doo-wop vocal style. After signing his first solo recording contract with Motown, Marvin persuaded Motown executives to allow him to record an adult album of standards and jazz covers. His first album, The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye, conveyed those genres including several doo-wop and blues songs.
The Motown Sound and psychedelic soul
Starting with his first charted hit, 1962’s “Stubborn Kind of Fellow” through 1967’s “Your Unchanging Love”, Marvin’s music featured a blend of black rhythm and blues and white pop music that came to be later identified as the “Motown Sound“. Marvin’s 1962–1964 hits reflected a dance-pop/rock ‘n’ roll approach while his 1965–1969 recordings reflected a pop-soul style. Backed by Motown’s in-house band The Funk Brothers, pre-1970 Marvin Gaye recordings were built around songs with simple, direct lyrics supported by an R&B rhythm section with orchestral strings and horns added for pop appeal. Marvin’s early hits were conceived by Berry Gordy, Smokey Robinson, Mickey Stevenson and Holland-Dozier-Holland.
Marvin’s sound started to change slightly in 1967 after he began working with producers Norman Whitfield, Ashford & Simpson and Frank Wilson. Whereas Marvin’s early sound reflected a youthful exterior, later songs during that period including “You”, “Chained”, “I Heard It Through the Grapevine”, “Too Busy Thinking About My Baby” and “That’s the Way Love Is” were all recorded under the psychedelic soul sound of the late sixties and early seventies. “Psychedelic soul” mixed guitar-driven rock with soul-based grooves. Marvin’s vocal style also changed during that period where he began singing in a gospel texture that had been only hinted at in previous recordings.
In 1971, Marvin issued his landmark album, What’s Going On. The album and its tracks were responsible in the changing landscape of rhythm and blues music as the album presented a full view of social ills in America, including war, police brutality, racism, drug addiction, environmentalism, and urban decay. Beforehand, recordings of social unrest had been recorded by the likes of (Curtis Mayfield &) The Impressions, The Temptations, Sam Cooke, Sly & the Family Stone and James Brown, but this was the first album fully devoted to those issues. The album was produced under what is called a song cycle and because of its theme of “what’s going on” was considered one of the first concept albums to be released in soul music. Marvin’s 1972 soundtrack Trouble Man, based on the blaxploitation film of the same name, mainly featured instrumentals with a few vocal runs, including songs with social commentary. Marvin’s 1972 recordings outside that album – including “Where Are We Going”, “Piece of Clay”, “You’re the Man” and “The World Is Rated X” – also raised social issues and was personal in nature. The songs were to be included in the unreleased 1972 album, You’re the Man, which was canceled after the modest reception of the title single. Marvin issued his next “concept album” with 1973’s Let’s Get It On, based on the spiritual and erotic side of love and sex. Marvin released a similarly themed funk album in 1976, I Want You, before switching to personal issues with the albums Here, My Dear (1978) and In Our Lifetime (1981). The former album focused on Marvin’s problems in his first marriage, while the latter focused on his own life struggles. Marvin’s albums between 1971 and 1981 reflected a period where, as an Allmusic writer said, his music “not only redefined soul music as a creative force but also expanded its impact as an agent for social change”.[24]
Starting in the early-seventies, Marvin’s sound began to reflect the emerging sounds of funk and the later disco movement of the late 1970s. Marvin’s double-sided 1976 single, “I Want You/After the Dance” and his 1977 hit, “Got to Give It Up” were his only successful attempts at recording disco-styled dance music whereas the 1978 single “A Funky Space Reincarnation”, 1979’s “Ego Tripping Out” and the 1981 singles “Praise” and “Heavy Love Affair” aimed at the funk-based urban audience. By itself, “I Want You“, mixed funk with disco, soul and lite rock elements. With the release of 1982’s triple-platinum Midnight Love and the massive platinum selling smash hit, “Sexual Healing”, Marvin mixed the styles of funk and post disco with Caribbean and European-flavored pop music creating a mix that influenced the modern R&B sound. “Sexual Healing” was the biggest R&B hit of the 1980s – No.1 for 10 consecutive weeks. Some of Marvin’s posthumous releases have been varied in nature: 1985’s Dream of a Lifetime was produced mostly in an electro funk sound mostly in the first half of the album, while his posthumous “featuring” on rapper Erick Sermon‘s 2001 hit, “Music” brought him to a younger hip-hop audience.
Legacy and influence
According to several historians, Marvin Gaye’s career “spanned the entire history of rhythm and blues from fifties doo-wop to eighties contemporary soul.” [25] Critics stated that Gaye’s music “signified the development of black music from raw rhythm and blues, through sophisticated soul to the political awareness of the 1970s and increased concentration on personal and sexual politics thereafter.”[26] Marvin’s usage of multi-tracked vocalizing, recording songs of social, political and sexual issues, and producing albums of autobiographical nature have influenced a generation of recording artists of various genres. As an artist who broke away from the controlled atmosphere of Motown Records in the 1970s, he influenced the careers of label mates such as Stevie Wonder, The Isley Brothers and, later in Epic Records, Michael Jackson to gain creative control and produce/co-produce their own albums. The careers of later R&B stars such as Rick James, Prince, R. Kelly, D’Angelo, Raheem DeVaughn, Maxwell, Janet Jackson, George Michael, Justin Timberlake, Usher, Bobby V and J. Holiday also were influenced by the music of Marvin Gaye. Marvin’s erotically concept albums such as Let’s Get It On and I Want You inspired similar albums released by Smokey Robinson, Barry White and his co-producer on I Want You, Leon Ware. Modern-day artists such as Teena Marie and Mary J. Blige have also referenced Marvin in their own songs. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked him No.18 on their list of the “100 Greatest Artists of All Time”.[27]
Tributes and covers
In 1983, Spandau Ballet recorded the single “True” as a tribute to Marvin and the Motown sound he helped established. That same year, electro-funk group R. J.’s Latest Arrival mentioned him with their dance hit, “Shackles on My Feet”. DeBarge‘s 1983 hit, “All This Love” was musically influenced by Marvin’s sound and was rumored that they had wanted Marvin to record the song himself. However, Marvin had left the label before they could approach him.
On April 2, 1984, the day after Marvin’s death, Duran Duran dedicated their live performance of “Save a Prayer” while on their Sing Blue Silver tour and appearing on their Arena album to him. Tribute songs to the singer included Diana Ross‘ “Missing You” and The Commodores‘ “Nightshift” became hits with each song reaching number-one on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart. Other artists who have either paid tribute to Marvin in a song or referenced him have included close friend and former Motown label-mate Edwin Starr, who released “Marvin” the month after his death, Teena Marie‘s “My Dear Mr. Gaye”, Todd Rundgren‘s “Lost Horizon”, the Violent Femmes‘ 1988 single “See My Ships”, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly‘s 1989 R&B hit, “Silky Soul”, ABC‘s 1987 single “When Smokey Sings” (Gaye’s “What’s Going On (song)” is sampled for the Miami Mix) and George Michael‘s “John and Elvis Are Dead” where Marvin is mentioned in one the final lines from the repeated chorus. Stevie Wonder wrote the song “Lighting Up the Candles” as a tribute to Gaye following his death and performed the song originally at Gaye’s funeral service. Wonder later recorded the song for the Jungle Fever soundtrack.
In 1992, Israeli artist Izhar Ashdot dedicated his song “Eesh Hashokolad” to Gaye. Two tribute albums, 1995’s Inner City Blues: The Music of Marvin Gaye (which featured Nona’s version of “Inner City Blues“) and 1999’s Marvin Is 60 featured covers of Marvin’s most famous material. Since the 1960s, Marvin’s songs have been covered by a variety of artists. The Rolling Stones recorded “Baby Don’t You Do It” early in their career. The Band also recorded “Baby Don’t You Do It” numerous times under the Order of the Black title “Don’t Do It”; the different versions, both studio and live, appear on several of their albums and box sets (the only one to be released as a single came from Rock of Ages), as well as in their 1976 concert film The Last Waltz. Rod Stewart during his early tenure with Steampacket covered “Can I Get a Witness”. His 1965 hit, “How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)” was covered three times by Junior Walker in 1966, again in 1975 by James Taylor, and again in 2002 by gospel singer Helen Baylor. In Baylor’s version she substituted the word “baby” for Jesus.
On April 2, 2006, on what would have been the singer’s 67th birthday, a park near the neighborhood where Marvin grew up at in Washington, D.C. was renamed after him after a discussion with the City Council. “Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)” was covered by John Mayer in his Album As/Is, released in 2004. The cover also featured DJ Logic. Elton John‘s song “Club at the End of the Street” also mentions Marvin Gaye. On the 25th anniversary of Marvin Gaye’s death, the singer’s hometown of Washington, D.C. again honored the singer by renaming a street he grew up on called “Marvin Gaye Way”.
Musical achievements and posthumous releases
Gaye scored 41 Top 40 hit singles on Billboard‘s Pop Singles chart between 1963 and 2001, 60 Top 40 R&B singles chart hits from 1962 to 2001, 18 Top Ten pop singles on the pop chart, 38 Top 10 singles on the R&B chart,[28] three number-one pop hits and thirteen number-one R&B hits and tied with Michael Jackson in total as well as the fourth biggest artist of all-time to spend the most weeks at the number-one spot on the R&B singles chart (52 weeks). In all, Gaye produced a total of 67 singles on the Billboard charts in total, spanning five decades, including five posthumous releases.
The year a remix of “Let’s Get It On” was released to urban adult contemporary radio, “Let’s Get It On” was certified gold by the RIAA for sales in excess of 500,000, making it the best-selling single on Motown in the United States. Gaye’s “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” is the best-selling international Motown single, explained by a re-release in Europe following a Levi 501 Jeans commercial in 1986.
On June 19, 2007, Hip-O Records reissued Gaye’s final Motown album, In Our Lifetime as an expanded two-disc edition titled In Our Lifetime?: The Love Man Sessions, bringing back the original title with the question mark and included a different mix of the album, which was recorded in London and also including the original songs from the Love Man album, which were songs later edited lyrically for the songs that made the In Our Lifetime album. The same label released a deluxe edition of Gaye’s Here, My Dear album, which included a re-sequencing of tracks from the album from producers such as Salaam Remi and Bootsy Collins.
His 1983 NBA All-Star performance[29] of the national anthem was used in a Nike commercial featuring the 2008 U.S. Olympic basketball team. Also, on CBS Sports’ final NBA telecast to date (before the contract moved to NBC) at the conclusion of Game 5 of the 1990 Finals, they used Gaye’s 1983 All-Star Game performance over the closing credits. Most recently, it was used in the intro to Ken Burn’s “Tenth Inning” documentary on the game of baseball.
In 2008, Gaye earned $3.5 million, and took 13th place in ‘Top-Earning Dead Celebrities’ in Forbes Magazine.[30]
A documentary about Gaye – What’s Going On: The Marvin Gaye Story – was a UK/PBS USA co-production, directed by Jeremy Marre and was first broadcast in 2006; two years later, the special re-aired with a different production and newer interviews after it was re-broadcast as an American Masters special. Gaye is referenced as one of the supernatural acts to appear in the short story and later television version of Stephen King’s Nightmares and Dreamscapes in “You Know They Got a Hell of a Band“.
A play by Caryl Phillips called A Long Way from Home, focusing on Gaye’s relationship with his father and his last years in Ostend, was broadcast by BBC Radio 3 in March 2008. It featured O. T. Fagbenle as Gaye and Kerry Shale as Marvin Gay Sr., with Rhea Bailey, Rachel Atkins, Damian Lynch, Alibe Parsons, Ben Onwukwe and Major Wiley. It was directed by Ned Chaillet and produced by Chris Wallis.
So far, three movies are currently being planned on Marvin’s life. One movie, Sexual Healing, is based on the post-Motown career of Marvin Gaye’s later years with Jesse L. Martin playing Marvin and James Gandolfini playing Marvin’s Belgium-based mentor, concert promoter Freddy Cousaert.[32] Another film, simply titled, Marvin, is also in plans for production with F. Gary Gray in helm to direct the film.[33] This film, unlike Sexual Healing, will focus on Marvin’s entire life story because unlike Sexual Healing, the second film was allowed rights to Marvin’s Motown catalog. Musicians Common and Usher and actor Will Smith have either been rumored to or have aspired to play the singer possibly in the second film. A third film on Gaye is reportedly being produced by Motown with director Cameron Crowe.[34]
During the 2008 Summer Olympics, Nike ran ads focused on the United States’ Men’s Basketball Team featuring Marvin Gaye’s 1983 performance of “The Star-Spangled Banner” during the NBA All-Star Game. The message is: the team found inspiration in the way Marvin Gaye performed the song.
On multi-genre performer B. Dolan‘s 2010 album, Fallen House Sunken City (Strange Famous Records), “Marvin” is a poem about the last days of Marvin Gaye.
^ ab Simmonds, Jeremy (2008). The Encyclopedia of Dead Rock Stars: Heroin, Handguns, and Ham Sandwiches. Chicago Review Press. p. 190. ISBN1-556-52754-3.
^ Vincent, Rickey; Clinton, George (1996). Funk: The Music, the People, and the Rhythm of the One. Macmillan. p. 129. ISBN0-312-13499-1.
^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits: Complete Chart Information About America’s Most Popular Songs and Artists, 1955–2003. Billboard Books. p. 250. ISBN0-823-07499-4.
^ John Bush. It also was sixth greatest album by Rolling Stone magazine. What’s Going On remains one of the few examples in modern music where critical acclaim and immediate commercial success occurred simultaneously. What’s Going On was the first in a series of Motown albums in which albums overtook singles in commercial importance as well as cultural significance.review of What’s Going On, by Marvin Gaye, allmusic.com (accessed June 10, 2005).
Two-way interaction between brands and consumers continues to separate the Internet from other forms of media. It gives new meaning to the phrase “social butterfly.” Now more than ever, search marketers need to pay attention to the interaction and intersection between search and social.After last week’s visit to VidCon in Los Angeles I found a new perspective on the ways brands can reach consumers through YouTube. VidCon is not an official YouTube conference, but rather organized by YouTubersHank Green and John Green.
Some YouTube stars and starlets garner more than $100,000 annually supporting brands through their channels. They hire lawyers to read contracts and find manufacturing facilities in China to merchandise products.
YouTube even created a Playbook with new strategies, tips, and optimization techniques. It outlines calls to action and metadata, as well as cross-promotion and collaboration.
Take Philip DeFranco, for example. He runs a pop culture YouTube news show that gets between 20 million and 35 million views monthly, and signs on three brands quarterly. This quarter’s sponsors include Netflix, State Farm Insurance, and Samsung. Recently he branched out to help others merchandise their brand. His advice for emerging YouTube stars: “Make cool shit and monetize later.”
Most YouTubers begin by supporting themselves with a day job. “We came home after a long day, made cool shit and hopefully it took off,” DeFranco said.
Five years into the biz of making YouTube content, DeFranco suggests that focusing on the community and the rest will fall into place eventually. Now he focuses more on merchandising because “there’s a much bigger profit than we had originally thought.” It’s a lot of hard work, however. Few know that better than Jeffrey Harman, who supports marketing for Orabrush, the first brand to actually go from marketing on YouTube to distribution in Wal-Mart and other big-box retailers.
Brands looking to connect with YouTube viewers might want to keep an eye out for budding video talent. Harman learned from working with Toby Turner (known in the YouTube community as a viral video guru) that the YouTube star included a fake promotion in all his videos from the start because his long-term business goals included a branded channel.
Tweak Footwear’s James Hotson runs a four-person company that relies mostly on consultants and a manufacturing facility in China to distribute about nine custom shoe designs yearly. The channel developed a marketing strategy called Free-Show Friday, encouraging fans to make videos uploaded to Facebook. The company sometimes uses the ideas when designing shoes. At the end of the week, the company rewards one lucky person who creates a video with a free pair of shoes.
The YouTube creators build a community atmosphere, which attracts viewers and brands. They share, enlighten and get others involved because they love the brand.
No other artist has had more impact in my life. From the first time I heard Stop the Love You Save may be your own to the Jammed Hit Parade of Mega Hits from Thriller. Micheal Jackson will never die in my eyes as his spirit lives in his music. We celebrate his life, morn his death and strive as entertainment professionals to follow his example. I will never forget the day I met Micheal at Leviticus at a birthday party for Hal Jackson. The purity and innocence should have never been questioned, and yet while there are many detractors, some believe could have been orchestrated by forces wanting to control his holdings.
Whatever the real deal is the reality of this time of year every year we will celebrate the Heart and Soul of Micheal Jackson. To be absent in the body is to be in the presence of the Lord Rest in Peace Micheal and may I take a moment to also give tribute to my brother Mark Anthony O’Conner who died the day before Micheal passed from this earth. I say to you both, please keep watch over the children and our efforts to save them. Spread your wings of love across the universe and bring peace and harmony to a troubled world.
Michael Joseph Jackson[1] (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American recording artist, dancer, singer-songwriter, musician, and philanthropist. Referred to as the King of Pop, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records. His contribution to music, dance, and fashion, along with a much-publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture for over four decades. The seventh child of the Jackson family, he debuted on the professional music scene along with his brothers as a member of The Jackson 5, then the Jacksons in 1964, and began his solo career in 1971.
In the early 1980s, Jackson became a dominant figure in popular music. The music videos for his songs, including those of “Beat It“, “Billie Jean“, and “Thriller“, were credited with transforming the medium into an art form and a promotional tool, and the popularity of these videos helped to bring the relatively new television channel MTV to fame. Videos such as “Black or White” and “Scream” made him a staple on MTV in the 1990s. Through stage performances and music videos, Jackson popularized a number of dance techniques, such as the robot and the moonwalk, to which he gave the name. His distinctive musical sound and vocal style have influenced numerous hip hop, pop, contemporary R&B, 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 currently only) dancer from the world of pop and rock ‘n’ roll. 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”); 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 750 million records worldwide. Jackson won hundreds of awards, which have made him the most-awarded recording artists in the history of music. He was also a notable humanitarian and philanthropist, donating and raising hundreds of millions of dollars for beneficial causes and supporting more than 39 charities. According to David Winters, Jackson also donated tens of millions of dollars to many children’s charities anonymously, and spent a lot of his time visiting seriously ill children tirelessly going from hospital to hospital meeting these children just to brighten up their lives. When Jackson finished the visits he would ask the hospital nurses and the doctors what was needed at the hospital in terms of equipment for the children and would then make anonymous donations to the hospital to purchase expensive equipment or whatever else was needed.[2]
Aspects of Jackson’s personal life, including his changing appearance, personal relationships, and behavior, have generated controversy. In 1993, he was accused of child sexual abuse, but the case was settled out of court and no formal charges were brought. In 2005, he was tried and acquitted of further sexual abuse allegations and several other charges after the jury ruled him not guilty on all counts. While preparing for his concert series This Is It, Jackson died of acute propofol intoxication on June 25, 2009, after suffering from cardiac arrest. Before his death, Jackson had been administered drugs including propofol and lorazepam. The Los Angeles County Coroner declared his death a homicide, and his personal physician pleaded not guilty to charges of involuntary manslaughter. Jackson’s death triggered a global outpouring of grief, and as many as one billion people around the world reportedly watched his public memorial service on live television. In March 2010, Sony Music Entertainment signed a $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 childhood home in Gary, Indiana, showing floral tributes after his death.
Michael Jackson was born on August 29, 1958, the eighth of ten children in an African American working-class family who lived in a small 3-room house in Gary, Indiana,[3] an industrial suburb of 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.[4] A sixth brother, Brandon, died shortly after birth.[5]
Jackson had a troubled relationship with his father, Joe.[6][7][8] Joseph acknowledged in 2003 that he regularly whipped Jackson as a boy.[8] 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.[6] 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.[9] 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 child-like throughout his adult life are in many ways consistent with the effects of this chronic maltreatment he endured as a young child.[10] Also, U.S.-based research studies on impact of “adverse childhood experiences” or ACEs (e.g. a child being abused, violence in the family, extreme stress of poverty, etc.) have shown that having a number of ACEs exponentially increases the risk of addiction (e.g. a male child with six ACEs has a 4,600%/46-fold increase in risk of addiction), mental illnesses, physical illnesses, and early death.[11]
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”.[12][13]
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.[4] 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.[14]
The Jackson 5 recorded several songs, including “Big Boy“, for the local record label Steeltown in 1967, before signing with Motown Records in 1968.[4]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.”[15] 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.[4] 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 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.[16]
Move to Epic and Off the Wall (1975–81)
In June 1975, the Jackson 5 signed with Epic Records, a subsidiary of CBS Records[16] and renamed themselves the Jacksons. Younger brother Randy formally joined the band around this time, while Jermaine left to pursue a solo career.[17] 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“.[14] 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.[18] 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.[19]
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“.[20][21] It reached number three on the Billboard 200 and eventually sold over 20 million copies worldwide.[22] 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”.[23][24] 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”.[20] Jackson again won at the American Music Awards in 1981 for Favorite Soul/R&B Album and Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist.[25] 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.[26] In 1980, he secured the highest royalty rate in the music industry: 37 percent of wholesale album profit.[27]
Thriller and Motown 25 (1982–83)
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 in one night for both award shows.[28][29] These awards were thanks to the Thriller album, released in late 1982, which was 1983’s best-selling album worldwide[30][31] and became the best-selling album of all time in the United States,[32] as well as the best-selling album of all time worldwide, selling an estimated 110 million copies so far.[33] 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’.”[34]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.[35] 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.[36] 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.”[37] In 1985, The Making of Michael Jackson’s Thriller won a Grammy for Best Music Video, Longform.[28] 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 ever to be inducted.[38][39][40]
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”.[36]The New York Times wrote that, “in the world of pop music, there is Michael Jackson and there is everybody else”.[41]
In March 1983, 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”. 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 Jacksons’ performance drew comparisons to Elvis Presley‘s and The Beatles‘ appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show.[42] 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.”[43]
Pepsi, “We Are the World” and business career (1984–85)
On January 27, 1984, Michael and other members of the Jacksons filmed a Pepsi Cola commercial, overseen by executive Phil Dusenberry,[44] 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.[19] 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.[45] 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.[46] 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.[47] 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 recognised it with two special honors (one for the creation of the song and one for the USA for Africa idea). They are the only AMAs that Jackson won as non-solo artist.[48][49][50][51]
Jackson at the White House South Portico with 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.[52] 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.[53] In 1981,[54] McCartney was offered the ATV music catalog for £20 million ($40 million).[53][55] 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.[53][55] 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.[54][55]
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.”[56] 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”[53][54] 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.[52] Jackson’s agents thought they had a deal several times, but encountered new bidders or new areas of debate.[52] 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.[52]
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.[52] 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.[52] He also agreed to visit Holmes à Court in Australia, where he would appear on the Channel Seven Perth Telethon.[52][56] Jackson’s purchase of ATV Music was finalized August 10, 1985.[52]
Appearance, tabloids, Bad, autobiography and films (1986–87)
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 was bleaching his skin.[57] 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.[58] Jackson was also diagnosed with vitiligo in his autopsy.[59] 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.[60] 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.[61] Jackson lost weight in the early 1980s because of a change in diet and a desire for “a dancer’s body”.[61] 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.[62]
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. Long before becoming romantically involved with her, Jackson relied heavily on Rowe for emotional support. He also relied heavily on Klein, for medical and business advice.[63]
Jackson two years after he was diagnosed with vitiligo, here in the early stages of the disease
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.[64][65] When Jackson bought a chimpanzee called Bubbles from a laboratory, he was reported to be increasingly detached from reality.[66] 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.[64][65] 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.[65][67][68] These reports became embedded in the public consciousness, inspiring the nickname “Wacko Jacko,” which Jackson came to despise.[69] 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.”[70]
Jackson wore a gold-plated military style jacket with belt in the Bad era
Jackson 2nd June 1988. “Wiener Stadion” venue in Vienna, Austria.
Jackson collaborated with Francis Ford Coppola on the 17-minute 3-D filmCaptain 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: Paris’ installation was the last one to close, in 1998.[71] The attraction would later return to Disneyland in 2010 after Jackson’s death.[72]
In 1987, Jackson disassociated himself from the Jehovah’s Witnesses, in response to their disapproval of the Thriller video.[73] With the industry expecting another major hit, Jackson’s first album in five years, Bad (1987), was highly anticipated.[74] 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.[75] 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 2008, the album had sold 30 million copies worldwide.[76] 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.[28][35] 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 US, the first album to top in 25 countries and the best-selling album worldwide in 1987 and in 1988.[77][78][79][80] In 1988, “Bad” won an American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Single.[81]
The Bad World Tour began on September 12 that year, finishing on January 14, 1989.[82] 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.[83] Jackson broke a Guinness World Record when 504,000 people attended seven sold-out shows at Wembley Stadium. He performed a total of 123 concerts to an audience of 4.4 million people. 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.
Autobiography, changing appearance and Neverland (1988–1990)
In 1988, Jackson released his first and only autobiography, Moonwalk, which took four years to complete and sold 200,000 copies.[84] Jackson wrote about his childhood, The Jackson 5, and the abuse he had suffered.[85] He also wrote about his facial appearance, saying he had had two rhinoplastic surgeries and a dimple created in his chin.[61] 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.[61]Moonwalk reached the top position on The New York Times best sellers’ list.[86] 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 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.[87]
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.[15][88] In 1989, his annual earnings from album sales, endorsements, and concerts was estimated at $125 million for that year alone.[89] Shortly afterwards, he became the first Westerner to appear in a television ad in the Soviet Union.[87]
His success resulted in his being dubbed the “King of Pop“.[90][91][92][93] 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.”[94] President George H. W. Bush designated him the White House’s “Artist of the Decade”.[95] 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.[96][97] Jackson’s live rendition of “You Were There” at Sammy Davis Jr.’s 60th birthday celebration received an Emmy nomination.[87]
Dangerous, Heal the World Foundation and Super Bowl XXVII (1991–93)
In March 1991, Jackson renewed his contract with Sony for $65 million, a record-breaking deal at the time,[98] displacing Neil Diamond‘s renewal contract with Columbia Records.[99] He released his eighth album Dangerous in 1991. As of 2008, Dangerous had shipped seven million copies in the U.S. and had sold 32 million copies worldwide. The Dangerous album was co-produced by Teddy Riley, one of the pioneers of “new jack swing” which convinced Michael to feature a rapper on his album for the first time, the act worked and it turned out to be the best-selling album associated with that movement.[100][101][102] 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.[103] 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.[104] At the end of 1992, Dangerous was awarded 1992’s best-selling album worldwide and “Black or White” was awarded 1992’s best-selling single worldwide at the Billboard Music Awards. Additionally, he won an award as best-selling artist of the ’80s.[105] In 1993, Jackson performed the song at the Soul Train Music Awards in a chair, saying he had suffered an injury in rehearsals.[106] 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.[104]
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 67 concerts.[104][107] He sold the broadcast rights to his Dangerous world tour to HBO for $20 million, a record-breaking deal that still stands.[108]
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.[109][110] In a high-profile visit to Africa, Jackson visited several countries, among them Gabon and Egypt.[111] 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.”[111] In his trip to Côte d’Ivoire, Jackson was crowned “King Sani” by a tribal chief.[111] 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.[111]
In January 1993, Jackson made a memorable appearance at the halftime show at Super Bowl XXVII. 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”. It was the first Super Bowl where the audience figures increased during the half-time show, and was viewed by 135 million Americans alone; Jackson’s Dangerous album rose 90 places up the album chart.[57] 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.[104] 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.[28][35][112]
First child sexual abuse allegations and first marriage (1993–94)
Jackson gave a 90-minute interview to Oprah Winfrey in February 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. The interview was watched by an American audience of 90 million. Dangerous re-entered the album chart in the top 10, more than a year after its original release.[13][57][104]
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.[113][114][115] The Chandler family demanded payment from Jackson, and the singer initially refused. Jordan Chandler eventually told the police that Jackson had sexually abused him.[116] 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.[115] 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.[115]
Later that year, on December 20, Jackson’s home was raided by the police, and Jackson submitted to a 25-minute strip search.[117] Jordan Chandler had reportedly given police a description of Jackson’s intimate parts, notably claiming that his bleach-damaged penis was circumcised; the strip search revealed, to the contrary, that Jackson was actually uncircumcised,[118] a fact confirmed in his autopsy.[119] His friends said he never recovered from the humiliation of the strip search. The investigation was inconclusive and no charges were ever filed.[120][121] Jackson described the search in an emotional public statement, and proclaimed his innocence.[113][117][122] 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.[123] After which time the Chandlers stopped co-operating with the criminal investigation around July 6, 1994.[124][125][126] 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.[127] The Chandlers’ lawyer Mr. Feldman also explicitly stated “nobody bought anybody’s silence”.[128] 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.[125]
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.[129] According to a friend of Presley’s, “their adult friendship began in November 1992 in L.A.”[130] 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.[131] 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.”[132] She eventually persuaded him to settle the allegations out of court and go into rehabilitation to recover.[131]
Jackson proposed to Presley over the telephone towards the fall of 1993, saying, “If I asked you to marry me, would you do it?”[131] They married in the Dominican Republic in secrecy, denying it for nearly two months afterwards.[133] The marriage was, in her words, “a married couple’s life … that was sexually active”.[134] At the time, the tabloid media speculated that the wedding was a ploy to prop up Jackson’s public image.[133] The marriage lasted less than two years and ended with an amicable divorce settlement.[135] 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.[136]
HIStory, second marriage and fatherhood (1995–99)
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.[137][138] 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 15 new songs. The album debuted at number one on the charts and has been certified for seven million shipments in the US.[139] It is the best-selling multiple-disc album of all-time, with 20 million copies (40 million units) sold worldwide.[103][140]HIStory received a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year.[141]
Michael Jackson at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival
The first single released from the album was the double A-side “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”.[141] “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.[89] It was seen as a major artistic and commercial success, receiving a Grammy nomination for “Best Pop Vocal Performance”.[141] 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.[142] “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.[141] 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.[143] 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.[28][144]
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 up a total of $165 million. The show, which visited five continents and 35 countries, became Jackson’s most successful in terms of audience figures.[82] During the tour, Jackson married his longtime friendDeborah 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.[145] 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.[135][146] 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.[147][148]
Label dispute, Invincible and third child (2000–03)
At the turn of the century, the American Music Awards honored Jackson as Artist of the ’80s.[153] 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 he would also be able to 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.[150] 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.[154] Jackson sought an early exit from his contract.[150] Just before the release of Invincible, Jackson informed the head of Sony Music Entertainment, Tommy Mottola, that he was leaving Sony.[150] 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.[155] The second of the two shows took place the night before the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.[156] 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.[154] 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 entitled Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration: The Solo Years 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 US.[100][103][157] 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.[154] The album cost $30 million to record, not including promotional expenditures.[158]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.[154] He charged that Mottola had called his colleague Irv Gotti a “fat nigger“.[159] 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.[158]
In 2002, Michael Jackson won his 22nd American Music Award for Artist of the Century.[160] In the same year, Jackson’s third child, Prince Michael Jackson II (nicknamed “Blanket”) was born.[161] 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.[147] On November 20 of that year, Jackson brought his newborn 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”.[162] Sony released Number Ones, a compilation of Jackson’s hits on CD and DVD. In the US, 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.[100][163]
Second child sexual abuse allegations and acquittal (2003–05)
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.[164] 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.[164] 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.[165][166][167] After the trial, in a highly publicized relocation he moved to the Persian Gulf island of Bahrain, as a guest of Sheikh Abdullah.[168]
Closure of Neverland, Final years and This Is It (2006–09)
In March 2006, the main house at the Neverland Ranch was closed as a cost-cutting measure.[169] 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.[170]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).[138] Jackson agreed to a Sony-backed refinancing deal in April 2006, although the exact details were not made public.[171] 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.[172][173] 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.[148] 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.[173][174]
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.[103] Jackson performed at the World Music Awards, in London on November 15, 2006, and accepted a Diamond Award for selling over 100 million records.[103][175] 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.”[176] 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.[177] 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.[178][178][179] 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.”[180]
In September 2007 Jackson was reportedly still working with will.i.am, but the album was apparently never completed.[181] 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.[182] 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.[182][183][184][185] 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.[186]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.)[187][188]
In the fall of 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.[189][190][191] 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 April 25.[192] An exhibition of the lots opened as scheduled on April 14, but the actual auction was eventually cancelled at Jackson’s request.[193]
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.[194] The London residency was increased to 50 dates after record breaking ticket sales: over one million were sold in less than two hours.[195] 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.[196] 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.[197] 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.[198][199]
Jackson’s first posthumous single was a song entitled “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 entitled Michael Jackson’s This Is It was released.[200] 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.[201] Jackson’s estate received 90% of the profits.[202] 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 entitled “Planet Earth”.[203] 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 total to 26.[204][205]
Jackson’s fans paid tribute to him at his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, shortly after the announcement 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.[206]Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics received a 911 call at 12:22 (PDT, 19:22 UTC), arriving three minutes later at Jackson’s location.[207][208] He was reportedly not breathing and CPR was performed.[209] Resuscitation efforts continued en route to the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, and for an hour after arriving there at 1:13 (20:13 UTC). He was pronounced dead at 2:26 local time (21:26 UTC).[210][211] Jackson’s death triggered a global outpouring of grief.[206]
The news spread quickly online, causing websites to slow down and crash from user overload. Both TMZ and the Los Angeles Times suffered outages.[212]Google initially believed that the input from millions of people searching for “Michael Jackson” meant that the search engine was under DDoS attack. Twitter reported a crash, as did Wikipedia at 3:15 p.m. PDT (6:15 p.m. EDT).[213] 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.[214]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.”[215]
Around 15% of Twitter posts—or 5,000 tweets per minute—reportedly mentioned Jackson after the news broke,[216][217] compared to the 5% recalled as having mentioned the Iranian elections or the flu pandemic that had made headlines earlier in the year.[217] Overall, web traffic ranged from 11% to at least 20% higher than normal.[216][218] MTV and Black Entertainment Television (BET) aired marathons of Jackson’s music videos.[219] 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.[220] Jackson was the topic of every front-page headline in the daily British tabloid The Sun for about two weeks following his death.[221] 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.[222] Magazines including Time published commemorative editions.[223] A scene that had featured Jackson’s sister La Toya was cut from the film Brüno out of respect toward Jackson’s family.[224]
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. Jackson’s casket was present during the memorial but no information was released about the final disposition of the body. While some unofficial reports claimed a worldwide audience as high as one billion people,[225][226][227] 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.[228]
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.[229] 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.”[230] Jackson’s 11-year-old daughter, Paris Katherine, 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.”[231] Reverend Lucious Smith provided a closing prayer.[232] 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.[233][234] At the time of death, Jackson had been administered propofol, lorazepam and midazolam.[235] Law enforcement officials conducted a manslaughter investigation of his personal physician, Conrad Murray.[236] On February 8, 2010, Murray was charged with involuntary manslaughter by prosecutors in Los Angeles.[237] Jackson was entombed on September 3, 2009, at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.[238]
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 came 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.[239][240] 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.”[241][242] 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.[243][244] 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.”[245][246][247]
Death aftermath
After his death, Jackson became the best-selling albums artist of 2009 in the United States selling over 8.2 million albums in the U.S. and a total of 35 million albums worldwide in the 12 months that followed his death.[248][249] 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.[250] 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. 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, entitled “Breaking News“.[251] 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.[250][252] Video game developer Ubisoft announced it would release a new dancing-and-singing game featuring Michael Jackson for the 2010 holiday season. The game entitled 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.[253]Cirque du Soleil announced on 3 November 2010 that it would launch “Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour” in October 2011 in Montreal, while a permanent show will reside in Las Vegas.[254] 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.[255] The tour was written and directed by Jamie King[256] 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.”[257]
In April 2011, Jackson’s longtime friend and billionaire businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed, chairman of Fulham F.C., unveiled a statue of Jackson outside the club’s stadium, Craven Cottage.[258] Fulham fans were however bemused by the statue and failed to understand the relevance of Jackson to the club.[259] Al Fayed however defended the statue and told the fans to ‘go to hell’ if they didn’t appreciate the statue.[260]
Artistry
Influences
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 contemporary musicians such as Little Richard, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, Diana Ross, David Ruffin, Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, Sammy Davis, Jr., 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.[261] 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.[2][262][263] While Little Richard had a substantial influence on Jackson,[264][265] 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.”[266]
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.”[267] 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.[268]
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.[269] 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 is 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.[270] 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.[15]
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.[270] 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 disco set “Baby Be Mine” and “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)“.[270][271][272][273] With Thriller, Christopher Connelly of Rolling Stone commented that Jackson developed his long association with the subliminal theme of paranoia and darker imagery.[273] Allmusic’s Stephen Thomas Erlewine noted this is evident on the songs “Billie Jean” and “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin'”.[272] In “Billie Jean”, Jackson sings about an obsessive fan who alleges he has fathered a child of hers.[270] In “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin'” he argues against gossip and the media.[273] “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.[15][270] 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.[270] 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.[270]
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.[18]
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.[274]
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In Bad, Jackson’s concept of the predatory lover can be seen on the rock song “Dirty Diana“.[275] 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.[74] “Smooth Criminal” was an evocation of bloody assault, rape and likely murder.[74] Allmusic’s Stephen Thomas Erlewine states that Dangerous presents Jackson as a very paradoxical individual.[276] 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“.[276] The first half of the record is dedicated to new jack swing, including songs like “Jam” and “Remember the Time“.[277] 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.[277]Dangerous contains sexually charged efforts such as the multifaceted love song, “In the Closet“.[277] The title track continues the theme of the predatory lover and compulsive desire.[277] 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.[277] In the ballad “Gone Too Soon“, Jackson gives tribute to his friend Ryan White and the plight of those with AIDS.[278]
HIStory creates an atmosphere of paranoia.[279] 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.[280] 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.[279][280] 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”.[281]Invincible found Jackson working heavily with producer Rodney Jerkins.[270] 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”.[282][283]
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.[284] 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.[285] 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.[16] 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”.[286][287] 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”.[273]
The lead single from Dangerous, the danceable hard rock song “Black or White” was one of Jackson’s most successful recordings.[288][289][290] It contains many features of Jackson’s vocal style, including the vocal hiccup he is known for.
A distinctive deliberate mispronunciation of “come on”, used frequently by Jackson, occasionally spelt “cha’mone” or “shamone”, is also a staple in impressions and caricatures of him.[291] 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”.[277] When singing of brotherhood or self-esteem the musician would return to “smooth” vocals.[277] 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”.[292] 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”.[274]
Music videos and choreography
Referred to as the King of Music Videos,[293] 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.[270] Before Thriller, Jackson struggled to receive coverage on MTV, allegedly because he was African American.[294] 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.[295] MTV employees deny any racism in their coverage, or pressure to change their stance. MTV maintains that they played rock music, regardless of race.[296] 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.[295][297] 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.[298] Short films like Thriller largely remained unique to Jackson, while the group dance sequence in “Beat It” has frequently been imitated.[299] The choreography in Thriller has become a part of global pop culture, replicated everywhere from Indian films to prisons in the Philippines.[300] 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.[89]
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.[67][301] For “Smooth Criminal“, Jackson experimented with an innovative “anti-gravity lean” in his performances. The maneuver required special shoes for which he was granted U.S. Patent No. 5,255,452.[302] Although the music video for “Leave Me Alone” was not officially released in the US, in 1989, it was nominated for four Billboard Music Video Awards, winning three; 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.[87]
The MTV Video Vanguard Artist of the Decade Award was given to Jackson to celebrate his accomplishments in the art form in the 1980s; the following year the award was renamed in his honor.[104] “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.[103] 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.[303] Along with Jackson, it featured Macaulay Culkin, Peggy Lipton and George Wendt. It helped usher in morphing as an important technology in music videos.[304]
“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.[305] 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.[104]
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”.[306] 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.[307] 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.[141][308]
“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.[141][309] 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.[141][150][310][311]
Jackson throughout his career transformed the art of the music video and paved the way for modern pop music. Daily Telegraph writer Tom Utley described Jackson in 2003 as “extremely important” and a “genius.”[312] For much of his career, he had an “unparalleled” level of worldwide influence over the younger generation through his musical and humanitarian contributions.[143] 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, including Beyoncé,[313]Mariah Carey,[314]Usher,[315]Green Day,[316]Britney Spears,[314]Madonna,[317]Justin Timberlake,[154] and Ludacris, among others.[318]
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”.[270] 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”.[36] In 1990, Vanity Fair cited Jackson as the most popular artist in the history of show business.[87] 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.”[319]
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.[320] 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.[321] At the memorial service on July 7, 2009, founder of Motown Records Berry Gordy proclaimed Jackson as “the greatest entertainer that ever lived.”[322][323][324]
In 2010, two university librarians found that Jackson’s influence extended into academia, and was detectable in scholarly literature pertaining to a range of subject matter.[325][326] The two researchers combed through various scholars’ writings, and compiled an annotated bibliography of those writings that appeared to meet at least one of several criteria. Among these criteria were appearance in a peer-reviewed journal, and the provision of insight into the nature of “popular icons including Jackson”.[327] The bibliography located references to Jackson in research reports concerning music, popular culture, and an array of other topics. The bibliographers identified as their most peculiar finding an argument that certain aspects of chemistry can be effectively taught by altering and imitating elements of Jackson’s singing.[328] One of the research librarians later reflected that “the fact that someone would take a Michael Jackson song and co-opt it as a means to convey chemistry concepts just shows the pervasiveness of Jackson’s influence”.[325]
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.[155][329] 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, Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002 and Hit Parade Hall of Fame (with his brothers) in 2009.[155][330] 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.[331] His awards include many Guinness World Records (eight in 2006 alone),[332] 13 Grammy Awards (as well as the Grammy Legend Award and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award), 26 American Music Awards (24 only as a solo artist, including the “Artist of the Century”, but not the poll of “Artist of the ’80s”)—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[333]—and estimated sales of up to 750 million records worldwide, making him the world’s best selling male solo pop artist.[28][89][103][153][204][205][334][335][336][337][338] On December 29, 2009, the American Film Institute recognized Jackson’s passing 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.”[339] Michael Jackson also received a Doctor of Humane Letters Degree from the United Negro College Fund [340] and also an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Fisk University.[341]
Lifetime earnings
His total lifetime earnings from royalties on his solo recordings and music videos, revenue from concerts and endorsements have been estimated at $500 million; some analysts have speculated that his music catalog holdings could be worth billions of dollars.[88][342] This speculation however is contradicted by financial documents obtained by the Associated Press, which showed that as of March 31, 2007, Jackson’s 50 percent stake in the Sony/ATV Music Publishing catalog (his most prized asset) was worth $390.6 million and Michael Jackson’s net worth was $236 million.[343]Billboard has estimated that Jackson has generated at least $1 billion in revenue in the year following his death.[344]
^Daniel Schechter, Erica Willheim (2009). The Effects of Violent Experience and Maltreatment on Infants and Young Children. In Charles H. Zeanah (Ed.). Handbook of Infant Mental Health—3rd Edition. New York: Guilford Press, Inc. pp. 197–214.
^ Press references to Jackson as a music “king” appeared as early as 1984 after he swept the Grammy Awards, and “king of pop” appeared as early as 1987. MTV and Fox used the title in joint press releases and ads for the “Black or White” video at Jackson’s request, but MTV denied a report that VJs were required to use it on-camera. Writers described the title as self-proclaimed from then on.
^ Arar, Yardena (February 29, 1984). “Michael Jackson coronated latest king of rock ‘n’ roll”. Boca Raton News: p. 7A.
^ Staff writer (July 27, 1987). “Is the thrill gone for singer Michael Jackson?”. Sacramento Bee: p. B3.
^ Browne, David (November 29, 1991). “Michael Jackson’s Black or White Blues”. Entertainment Weekly.
^ Kreps, Daniel (March 12, 2009). “Michael Jackson’s “This Is It!” Tour Balloons to 50-Show Run Stretching Into 2010″. Rolling Stone (Jann Wenner LLC).
^ Jeans (1993). “Peligroso regreso”. Michael Jackson: Un mito indescifrable (in Spanish). Revista Jeans. p. 7. “En “Black or white” Michael Jackson solicitó la participación del guitarrista de Guns N’ Roses, Slash, para darle a esta canción de hard rock una línea más agresiva, además cuenta con la participación de Tim Pierce en la guitarra heavy metal; y el resultado es una mezcla de hard rock, dance y rap”
^ Ramage, John D.; Bean, John C.; Johnson, June (2001). Writing arguments: a rhetoric with readings. Allyn and Bacon. p. 491. ISBN0-205-31745-6. Retrieved July 14, 2009. “‘Black or White’, described by the record company as ‘a rock ‘n’ roll dance song about racial harmony'”
^ Lewarne, Rory (July 26, 2004). “Pink Grease”. Music News. Retrieved August 10, 2008.
^ Hunter, James (December 6, 2001). “Michael Jackson: Invincible”. Rolling Stone.
^ Chery, Carl: XXL: Michael Jackson Special Collecters Edition, page 95. American Press.
^ “Michael Jackson, “Billie Jean,” directed by Steve Barron, produced by Simon Fields & Paul Flattery,”. Blender. October 2005.
^ Boepple, Leanne (November 1, 1995). Scream: Space Odyssey, Jackson-Style.(video production; Michael and Janet Jackson video). 29. Theatre Crafts International. p. 52. ISSN1063-9497.
^ Bark, Ed (June 26, 1995). Michael Jackson Interview Raises Questions, Answers. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 06E.
A Glove of Their Own is for the kids who toss the bat to choose captains and pick teams, playing in a neighborhood field or an empty lot. You’ll find no coaches, no concession stands, and sometimes just an old bat and ball. But once the first pitch is thrown, you’ll find the real heart and soul of America. You’ll find baseballin its purest form. And the publisher of A Glove of Their Own wants to help all kids know this simple joy by donating a portion of the proceeds to help bring equipment to the kids who play without it.
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