We at Music Universe can't believe we are writing this. Michael Jackson is dead. He was 50.
Michael Jackson was the King of Pop and one of the most popular artists of all time. His life story is of one that only Hollywood could dream of tellin.
The son of a steelworker, he rose to fame as the lead singer of the Jackson 5, a band he formed with his brothers in the late 1960s. The group's first four singles, 'I Want You Back,' 'ABC,' 'The Love You Save' and 'I'll Be There' went to No. 1 on the Billboard pop chart, the first time any group had pulled off that feat.
By the late '70s, as a 'black African American' solo artist, he was topping the charts with cuts from 'Off the Wall,' including 'Rock With You' and 'Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough.'
In 1982, he released 'Thriller,' an album that eventually produced seven hit singles. This album cemented his status as the biggest star in the country as the album became the best-selling album in history, with 50 million copies sold worldwide.
On the Motown Records' 25th-anniversary special in 1983, with notable turns by the Temptations, the Four Tops and Smokey Robinson, it was Michael Jackson who stopped the show. His electrifying performance of 'Billie Jean,' complete with the patented backward dance moves aka 'the moonwalk', boosted his stardom to a new level.
Fans worldwide adored him. He created mayhem when ever he came out into the public. At the time, Jacko was the biggest and most recognised entertainer in the world.
It all happened very fast too. Just after that Motown special, he hadn't even turned 25 himself, but he'd been a star for more than half his life. He was given the nickname the 'King of Pop' -- a spin on Elvis Presley's status as 'the King of Rock 'n' Roll' and few questioned it.
'Thriller's' follow-up, 1987's 'Bad,' sold almost as many copies. However, towards as the 90's drew neaer, the pop music landscape was changing. Rap, hip-hop and alternative music were taking over.
His next release, 1991's 'Dangerous,' debuted at No. 1 but "only" produced one top-ranking single 'Black or White' and that song was the song that first brougght about Jacko's clutching of his crotch routine. Then 'Dangerous' was knocked out of its No. 1 spot on the album charts by Nirvana's 'Nevermind', suggesting Jacko's music career was coming to an end.
After that, more attention was paid to Jackson's private life than his diminishing music career. His 1995 two-CD greatest hits, 'HIStory,' sold relatively poorly, and then his 'comeback' album in 2001, 'Invincible,' did even worse.
Throughout his life, even more in recent years, rumours and speculation surrounded Jacko. At different points in his life there were rumours that he slept in a hyperbaric chamber and even purchased the bones of John Merrick, the "Elephant Man." (Neither was true.) He was a man of very interesting ways, he had a pet chimpanzee, Bubbles; underwent a series of increasingly drastic plastic surgeries; established an estate, 'Neverland', filled with zoo animals and amusement park rides; married Elvis Presley's daughter, Lisa Marie and managed to purchase the Beatles catalog from under Paul McCartney's nose, which displeased the ex-Beatle immensely.
In 1990s and 2000s, Jacko found himself in a bit of bother with the public after statements during a 2003 interview with British journalist Martin Bashir done for a documentary called "Living With Michael Jackson;" questions over his changing physical appearance; and, above all, the accusations that he sexually molested young boys at Neverland.
In July 2008, after three years away from the spotlight, Jackson announced a series of concerts at London's O2 Arena as his "curtain call." Some of the shows, initially scheduled to begin in July, were eventually postponed until 2010.
The son of a steelworker, he rose to fame as the lead singer of the Jackson 5, a band he formed with his brothers in the late 1960s. The group's first four singles, 'I Want You Back,' 'ABC,' 'The Love You Save' and 'I'll Be There' went to No. 1 on the Billboard pop chart, the first time any group had pulled off that feat.
By the late '70s, as a 'black African American' solo artist, he was topping the charts with cuts from 'Off the Wall,' including 'Rock With You' and 'Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough.'
In 1982, he released 'Thriller,' an album that eventually produced seven hit singles. This album cemented his status as the biggest star in the country as the album became the best-selling album in history, with 50 million copies sold worldwide.
On the Motown Records' 25th-anniversary special in 1983, with notable turns by the Temptations, the Four Tops and Smokey Robinson, it was Michael Jackson who stopped the show. His electrifying performance of 'Billie Jean,' complete with the patented backward dance moves aka 'the moonwalk', boosted his stardom to a new level.
Fans worldwide adored him. He created mayhem when ever he came out into the public. At the time, Jacko was the biggest and most recognised entertainer in the world.
It all happened very fast too. Just after that Motown special, he hadn't even turned 25 himself, but he'd been a star for more than half his life. He was given the nickname the 'King of Pop' -- a spin on Elvis Presley's status as 'the King of Rock 'n' Roll' and few questioned it.
'Thriller's' follow-up, 1987's 'Bad,' sold almost as many copies. However, towards as the 90's drew neaer, the pop music landscape was changing. Rap, hip-hop and alternative music were taking over.
His next release, 1991's 'Dangerous,' debuted at No. 1 but "only" produced one top-ranking single 'Black or White' and that song was the song that first brougght about Jacko's clutching of his crotch routine. Then 'Dangerous' was knocked out of its No. 1 spot on the album charts by Nirvana's 'Nevermind', suggesting Jacko's music career was coming to an end.
After that, more attention was paid to Jackson's private life than his diminishing music career. His 1995 two-CD greatest hits, 'HIStory,' sold relatively poorly, and then his 'comeback' album in 2001, 'Invincible,' did even worse.
Throughout his life, even more in recent years, rumours and speculation surrounded Jacko. At different points in his life there were rumours that he slept in a hyperbaric chamber and even purchased the bones of John Merrick, the "Elephant Man." (Neither was true.) He was a man of very interesting ways, he had a pet chimpanzee, Bubbles; underwent a series of increasingly drastic plastic surgeries; established an estate, 'Neverland', filled with zoo animals and amusement park rides; married Elvis Presley's daughter, Lisa Marie and managed to purchase the Beatles catalog from under Paul McCartney's nose, which displeased the ex-Beatle immensely.
In 1990s and 2000s, Jacko found himself in a bit of bother with the public after statements during a 2003 interview with British journalist Martin Bashir done for a documentary called "Living With Michael Jackson;" questions over his changing physical appearance; and, above all, the accusations that he sexually molested young boys at Neverland.
In July 2008, after three years away from the spotlight, Jackson announced a series of concerts at London's O2 Arena as his "curtain call." Some of the shows, initially scheduled to begin in July, were eventually postponed until 2010.
Michael Jackson R.I.P 1958 - 2009
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