Michael Jackson was born on August 29^th, 1958 in Gary, Indiana to two music oriented parents. His father, Joseph, played guitar in a local group called The Falcons. His mother, Katherine, was a country music enthusiast. Michael was the youngest of five brothers that soon became the Jackson 5. In 1969, the president of Motown records, Berry Gordy Jr. signed the group. Gordy was fascinated by their amazing ability to sing, and made them into the loudest, most fashionable group at that time. Jackson 5 topped the charts with many hits; however, none of their success would have come if Michael was not in the group. He was the most talented of the five boys with the best dance moves and an amazing voice.

    But even as the Jackson 5 was producing music, Michael started topping the pop charts as a solo performer. As Michael grew to be an adolescent in the mid 1970s, MGM Records launched a rival against Jackson, Donny Osmond. Accordingly, Motown records made Michael Jackson a solo performer. However, Michael’s solo career was bright to a halt for a few years until his return with the lead role in The Wiz. During this time Jackson was working with Quincy Jones, a songwriter and composer. When the hit album, Off the Wall, came out in the late 1970s, people viewed Jackson as an adult. He had made the transition from child star to adult superstar. However, Jackson was not done growing in his stardom. In 1982, the album Thriller was released and became one of the most successful albums of all time. With such songs as “Thriller,” “Billy Jean,” and “Beat it,” this album showed people what an amazing dance and singer Jackson could be.

    The next few years for Jackson were filled with a variety of things. Michael went on to accept the largest individual sponsorship deal with Pepsi-Cola in 1983. The following year, Jackson was in the “Victory Tour.” Soon after all of this, a group of Jehovah’s Witnesses claimed Michael was the Messiah. He then took part in the USA for Africa benefit. Jackson went on to write a book and continue his singing career throughout the 80s and early 90s. However, in 1993, Jackson was accused of child abuse. He settled out of court for a sum of money and soon after went into hiding. His contract with Pepsi-Cola was retracted and his career was considerably damaged. For the next few years, Jackson engaged in two failed marriages and now has three children, two from the second marriage and one from a surrogate mother. In the last few years, Jackson has been constantly attacked by the media and tried to keep his private life out of the public eye.

 

There are only a handful of artists who grace our screens and reach the top of our charts that are influential enough to be considered icons by the American standard.  Michael Jackson’s career and lifestyle has allowed him to achieve such a status.  Michael Jackson achieved American icon status because of his childhood stardom, his ability to appeal to a diverse audience, and his mysterious and secretive lifestyle.

    Michael Jackson has long been a part of the public eye.  From the Jackson 5’s debut in 1968, Jackson has attracted the attention of colleagues and fans alike.  Michael’s exuberant vocals defined such catchy Jackson 5 hits as "I Want You Back," "ABC," and "I’ll Be There".  Since he began performing at the age of five, he was known to be a powerfully creative and disciplined artist.  Jackson, with a distinctive voice and a dancer unlike no other, catapulted the Jackson 5 into their stardom.  He mesmerized audiences with such amazing stage presence and talent.  The Jackson 5 crossed over into TV specials and television shows, cementing them as some of the youngest pop icons of their day.  But it is Michael that has remained the most influential and successful member of the group.  His transition from childhood stardom into one of the most influential solo artists of the century has rarely been matched. 
             Jackson, along with being the lead vocalist for the Jackson 5, was also the main choreographer.  Their electrifying shows cemented a strong fan base that grew larger with every passing show.  The group toured extensively because of Michael’s intense drive to succeed.  An important attribute that Michael gained as a child was a reputation for a strong work ethic and immense talent.  These helped catapult him into adulthood stardom along with contributing to his icon status.  From a very early age, Michael stepped forward into the limelight ahead of his brothers.  The American people reacted to him in a way that is unparalleled by any other artist.  They related to this child because of his love of the music and love of performing.  He reenergized the music and his precedent gave way to a whole new era of music. 

Michael Jackson’s ability to attract to such a diverse audience taps into an American myth for the reason that no one knows exactly how he did it.  He appealed to audiences in the Jackson 5, surpassing the boundaries of age and race.  While the kids loved the music, so did the parents.  Anyone could listen, but everyone loved the music.  As a solo artist, Michael’s musical and dancing talent made the 1983 Thriller the best selling album of all-time.  Thriller not only attracted previous rhythm-n-blues fans but also crossed over to heavy metal fans with rocker Eddie Van Halen’s appearance.  Along with heavy metal fans, Thriller attracted Beatles fans with the feature of Paul McCartney. 

            American pop culture had been waiting for an album like Thriller for years.  Michael’s timing was right.  Along with a diverse fan base, Michael received a variety of awards.  Success throughout the 1980s brought him formal recognition: he received a special humanitarian award from President Reagan, World’s Best-Selling Pop Artist, World Music Awards for Best-Selling artist, also several Grammy awards including the Living Legend Award in 1993.  Although today his strangely sporadic and surprising appearances have given him a more negative connotation, that aspect makes him a myth.  Once popular for talent, he now draws new audiences for his unexpected behavior.

            Another reason why Michael Jackson is a pop icon is because he has such a mystifying personality. All of the allegations held again him for child molestation, his face changes, and odd marriages are fascinating to Americans. One main part of American culture is gossip. Tabloid newspapers make up a lot of the journalism American’s read, and Jackson has always been part of the extraordinary stories they write about. The more scandals people read in tabloids about stars, the more interesting they become. Michael Jackson has kept his private life so hush-hush that when a morsel of information surfaces about him, it is acknowledged even more. Jackson has lived in the public eye since the age of four and many stories have circulated in and out of the tabloids and then back again.

In his earlier years, the first big story that surfaced about Jackson was in the early Eighties when Michael’s new album, Thriller, was released. He changed from a “lithe, afro’d, fresh-faced sensation” to a sex object. Michael’s “nose was more sculpted, his cheekbones higher and his lips seemed thinner” (Cowley). American’s saw the new Jackson as “devastatingly attractive, and there was a new, strutting sexual energy about him” (Cowley). But it didn’t end here. Jackson went on to have many more face changes. From nose job after nose job, and dark to light colored skin, Jackson has become a completely different looking person. American’s have followed his different looks for twenty years now.

Another part of Michael’s life that has been kept secretive is his relationships with women. He has been married to two women, Lisa Marie Presley and Debbie Rowe. Jackson’s marriage to Lisa Marie was secretly done in the Dominican Republic on May 26^th, 1994. It ended two years later on January 18^th, 1996. They had no children together and kept their marriage completely private. His second marriage to Debbie Rowe was on November 15^th, 1996. This marriage was more interesting then Jackson’s first. Debbie gave birth to two of his children, Prince Michael, born February 13, 1997, and Paris Katherine, born April 3, 1998. After their divorce on October 8^th, 1999, Michael had a third child by a surrogate mother. He named the little boy Prince Michael II, also known as "Blanket.”

Lastly, Jackson is known for his strange relationship with children. On September 15, 1993 Jackson was accused of molesting a 13-year-old boy. A civil suit was filed against Michael Jackson for seduction and sexual abuse. On December 22, Jackson responded to the allegations and pleaded innocent. On January 25, 1994, he settled out of court with his accuser for an estimated sum of $20 million. In addition, in 2002 Jackson dangled a baby over a hotel balcony in Berlin. It was not confirmed whether or not the baby was one of Jackson’s three children. This story made headlines in many papers in America, and stayed in newspapers for a long time.

 

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VH1.com : Michael Jackson : Biography  Reliable biography, also includes twenty related books.
www.michaeljackson.com  Epic/Sony Music Entertainment.
Michael Jackson World Network (MJWN) - Fan Club  Up to date fan site.
MICHAEL JACKSON - KING OF POP  Hundreds of quality photographs from Thriller era through Invincible.

            


              
"When I create my music, I feel like an instrument of nature. 
I wonder what delight nature must feel when we open our hearts
and express our God-given talents." Michael Joseph Jackson      >>