Portal:Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American singer, dancer, and entertainer. Referred to as the King of Pop, he is the most commercially successful and one of the most influential entertainers of all time. His unique contributions to music, dance, and fashion, along with a highly publicized personal life, made him a prominent global figure in popular culture for over four decades. Michael Jackson was born on August 29, 1958, as the eighth of ten children in Gary, Indiana, an industrial suburb of Chicago, to an African American working-class family. His mother, Katherine Esther Scruse, was a devout Jehovah's Witness, and his father, Joseph Walter "Joe" Jackson, a steel mill worker who performed with an R&B band called The Falcons. Jackson had three sisters: Rebbie, La Toya, and Janet, and six brothers: Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, Brandon and Randy. Alongside his brothers, he made his debut in 1964 as lead singer and youngest member of The Jackson 5, and later began a successful solo career in 1971. His 1982 album Thriller remains the best-selling album of all time, with Off the Wall (1979), Bad (1987), Dangerous (1991), and HIStory (1995) also among the world's best selling albums. He is widely credited with having transformed the music video from a promotional tool into an art form with videos for his songs such as "Billie Jean", "Beat It" and "Thriller" making him the first African American artist to amass a strong crossover following on MTV. With stage performances and music videos, Jackson popularized a number of physically complicated dance techniques, such as the robot and the moonwalk. His distinctive musical sound, vocal style, and choreography, is credited with stretching across and breaking down cultural, racial, economic, generational, and global barriers that has inspired countless pop, rock, R&B and hip hop artists. See also: The Jackson family portal...
Selected article -Michael Jackson videography debuted was at the age 11, as a member of The Jackson 5. Later referred to as the "King of Pop", Jackson had seven of his solo albums promoted with music videos. In the early 1980s, Jackson became a dominant figure in popular culture and the first African American entertainer to have a strong crossover fanbase on Music Television (MTV). The popularity of his music videos that aired on MTV, such as "Beat It", "Billie Jean" and "Thriller"—credited for transforming the music video from a promotional tool and into an art form—helped bring the relatively new channel to fame. Videos such as "Black or White" and "Scream" made Jackson an enduring staple on MTV into the 1990s. Some of his short films drew criticism for their violent and sexual elements; others were lauded by critics and awarded Guinness World Records for their length, success and expense. The pop singer's earliest and most notable film role was as Scarecrow in the 1978 American musical The Wiz. He went on to appear in productions such as Men in Black II (2002) as well as lesser known productions, Miss Cast Away (2004) and his own feature-length movie, Moonwalker (1988) in which he starred alongside Joe Pesci. The singer also appeared in an episode of American cartoon The Simpsons. Several of Jackson's other films are notable for their runtime. Captain EO (1986), a 17-minute film that cost $30 million to create, was the most expensive video to produce (in dollars per minute) at the time of its release.Michael Jackson's Ghosts (1997), in which Jackson played four characters, has been credited as the longest music video ever. Several of Jackson's feature films have been released onto home video, and have been certified by trading bodies such as the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Selected biography -The Personal relationships of Michael Jackson have been the subject of public and media attention for several decades. The entertainer remained romantically unengaged until meeting his first love, the child actress Tatum O'Neal, whom he became involved with as a teenager in the 1970s. From his second marriage to Debbie Rowe, the first two of three children were born: son Prince Michael Jackson (February 13, 1997) and daughter Paris Michael Katherine Jackson (April 3, 1998). The pair divorced on October 8, 1999, with Rowe giving full custody rights of the children to Jackson. The pop star's third child, son Prince Michael Jackson II, was born to an unnamed surrogate mother on February 21, 2002. Selected song -"Blood on the Dance Floor" is a song that was released as the first single from the remix album, Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix. Jackson and Teddy Riley created the track in time for the 1991 release of Dangerous. However, it did not appear on that record and was minimally altered before commercial release in 1997. The song is about a predatory woman by the name of Susie, who seduces Jackson before plotting to stab him with a knife. The composition explores a variety of genres ranging from rock to funk. Commentators compared "Blood on the Dance Floor" to music from Dangerous. Others commented on the songs perceived aggressive tone and the vocal style, the broad genres heard and possible lyrical interpretations of the song. Reviews at the time of release were largely mixed, but contemporary reviews have been favourable. The song was promoted with a music video that premiered on Top of the Pops. It centred around Susie seducing Jackson in a courtship dance, before opening a switchblade. Did you know? -
Selected album -Invincible is the tenth and last studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson released in his lifetime. The album was released by Epic Records on October 30, 2001. Invincible was the first release of new Jackson material since Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix in 1997 and the first studio album in six years since HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I. Jackson, Rodney Jerkins, R. Kelly and Teddy Riley received producing and writing credits among others. Similar to Jackson's previous material, the themes in Invincible are mainly based on Jackson's personal experiences with fame and media, romance, and social issues. Invincible received generally mixed reviews from contemporary music critics.The album's singles were incomplete in their release. Jackson was able to use these conflicts as leverage to exit his contract early. The album was a commercial success; it peaked at number one in eleven territories worldwide, including the United States (with sales of 363,000 units its first week), the United Kingdom, Australia, France and Switzerland. Invincible charted within the top ten in six other territories; its least successful charting area was Mexico, where the album peaked at number twenty nine. Invincible re-entered music charts several times during the decade. Despite the reported worldwide sales of thirteen million copies, the album has been viewed as a commercial failure compared to Jackson's previous albums sales. Selected picture -Template:/box-header Template:/Categories Template:/box-footer
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