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• HIStory Era

HIStory World Tour

• View history

The HIStory World Tour is Michael Jackson 's third and final solo concert tour, with 82 concerts attended by 4.5 million fans. The tour spanned the globe with stops in 52 cities, in 35 countries on 5 continents. Unlike the Bad and Dangerous World Tours , the HIStory Tour has never been released on DVD despite numerous fan requests. Amongst it all, several full concerts have been leaked on YouTube.

• 1.1.1 The Changes
• 2 Royal Brunei Concert Set List
• 3 Rehearsal Set List
• 4 1996-1997 Concert Set List
• 5 Tour Dates
• 6 Broadcasts and Recordings
• 9.1 - First leg (1996):
• 9.2 - Second leg (1997):
• 10 References

Overview [ ]

Royal brunei concert [ ].

Prior to the HIStory Tour, Michael Jackson performed a free concert at the Jerudong Park Amphitheatre in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei on July 16, 1996. The concert's purpose was a birthday performance for the Sultan of Brunei's 50th birthday. The concert was attended by the royal family of Brunei.

Much of this concert resembled Jackson's Dangerous Tour, keeping the details of the HIStory Tour a close secret. Jackson would later return to Brunei during the HIStory Tour on December 31, 1996.

been leaked on YouTube.

The Changes [ ]

• This concert marked the debut live performances of " You Are Not Alone " and " Earth Song " in Michael's personal concerts, however he had performed both songs during other ceremonies and TV shows in 1995.
• This concert also marked the last performances of " Jam ", " Human Nature ", " I Just Can't Stop Loving You ", " She's Out Of My Life ".
• "Jam" has a much shorter ending.
• "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" was performed with Marva Hicks instead of Siedah Garrett.
• "The Way You Make Me Feel" replaces " Working Day And Night ".
• "You Are Not Alone" replaces " Will You Be There ".
• Instrumentation for "Billie Jean" is slower than the Bad or Dangerous Tours, similar to the upcoming HIStory Tour, but sung live.
• Michael sings the wrong lyrics in the second verse of "Beat It". He also throws his jacket just like the HIStory Tour.
• The 1995 MTV Awards version of "Dangerous" is present in this concert.
• " Heal The World " planned to be performed, but was pulled from final setlist.
• " Man In The Mirror " ends with a curtain call instead of Rocket Man.
• " Earth Song " wasn't performed with the cherry picker.

Royal Brunei Concert Set List [ ]

• " Brace Yourself "  Introduction
• " Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' "
• " Human Nature "
• " Smooth Criminal "
• " I Just Can't Stop Loving You "  with Marva Hicks
• " She's Out of My Life "
•   Jackson 5 Medley: "I Want You Back" / "The Love You Save" / "I'll Be There "
• " Thriller "
• " Billie Jean "
• " The Way You Make Me Feel "
• Black Panther  Video Interlude
• " Beat It "  with Jennifer Batten
• " You Are Not Alone "
• " Dangerous "  (samples an extract from "Owner of a Lonely Heart" by Yes, Ennio Morricone's "The Good, The Bad & The Ugly" theme, "Smooth Criminal", Janet Jackson's "You Want This" and "Let's Dance," Judy Garland's "Get Happy", Monty Norman's "James Bond Theme", and a guitar intro from Duran Duran's "A View to a Kill")
• " Black or White "
• " Man in the Mirror " Encore
• " Earth Song "

Rehearsal Set List [ ]

• Scream / They Don't Care About Us / In The Closet [1]
• Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
• Stranger in Moscow

Smooth Criminal

• You Are Not Alone
• The Way You Make Me Feel
• Jackson 5 Medley
• Off the Wall Medley

Billie Jean

• She's Out Of My Life
• Come Together / D.S. (First Leg) / Blood on the Dance Floor (Second Leg)

Black Or White

• Heal The World

An early song list for the tour, dated July 30, 1996, featured Man In The Mirror , Will You Be There , Jam , Childhood , Dirty Diana , 2 Bad , State of Shock, and She's Out Of My Life . "Man in the Mirror", "2 Bad", "Jam", and "She's Out of My Life" were the only one of these songs known to have been rehearsed, with the latter song appearing on a rehearsal setlist for August 25, 1996, before being cut. Morphine was rehearsed twice for the 1997 leg, but was removed.

1996-1997 Concert Set List [ ]

• " Gates of Kiev "  Video Intro
• "HIStory Medley": " Scream " / " They Don't Care About Us "  featuring snippet of " HIStory " / " In the Closet "  featuring snippet of " She Drives Me Wild "
• " Wanna Be Startin' Somethin ''
• " Stranger in Moscow "
• "The Wind" Video Interlude
• " The Way You Make Me Feel "  performed on select dates
• " The Jackson 5 Medley": "I Want You Back" / "The Love You Save" /"I'll Be There "
• " Off the Wall Medley "  performed on select 1996 and 1997 dates / " Rock With You" / "Off the Wall" / "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough "
• " Remember the Time "  Video Montage Interlude
• " Beat It "
• " Come Together "/" D.S. "  performed on select 1996 dates / " Blood on the Dance Floor "  (performed from Bremen to Oslo in the second leg, omitted on July 2)
• "Black Panther"  Video Interlude (sometimes replaced with " Brace Yourself " video)
• " Dangerous "  (withdrawn from Tokyo concert on Dec. 20 and from Manila concert on Dec. 8; samples an extract from "Owner of a Lonely Heart" by Yes, Ennio Morricone's "The Good, The Bad & The Ugly" theme, " Smooth Criminal ", Janet Jackson's "You Want This" and "Let's Dance," Judy Garland's "Get Happy", Monty Norman's "James Bond Theme", and a guitar intro from Duran Duran's "A View to a Kill")
• " We Are the World "  Video Interlude
• " Heal the World "
• " HIStory " (with instrumental of " They Don't Care About Us " as a curtain call)

Tour Dates [ ]

• July 16, 1996 - Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei

First leg (Europe)

• September 7, 1996 - Prague, Czech Republic
• September 10, 1996 - Budapest, Hungary
• September 14, 1996 - Bucharest, Romania
• September 17, 1996 - Moscow, Russia
• September 20, 1996 - Warsaw, Poland
• September 24, 1996 - Zaragoza, Spain
• September 28 and 30, October 2, 1996 - Amsterdam, Netherlands

First leg (Africa)

• October 7, 1996 - Tunis, Tunisia

First leg (Asia)

• October 11 and 13, 1996 - Seoul, South Korea
• October 18, 1996 - Taipei, Taiwan
• October 20 ,1996 - Kaohsiung, Taiwan
• October 22, 1996 - Taipei, Taiwan
• October 25, 1996 - Singapore, Singapore
• October 27 and 29, 1996 - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• November 1, 1996 - Mumbai, India
• November 5, 1996 - Bangkok, Thailand

First leg (Oceania)

• November 9 and 11, 1996 - Auckland, New Zealand
• November 14 and 16, 1996 - Sydney, Australia
• November 19, 1996 - Brisbane, Australia
• November 22 and 24, 1996 - Melbourne, Australia
• November 26, 1996 - Adelaide, Australia
• November 30, December 2 and 4, 1996 - Perth, Australia

First leg (Asia) Part 2

• December 8 and 10, 1996 - Manila, Philippines
• December 13, 15, 17, and 20, 1996 - Tokyo, Japan
• December 26 and 28, 1996 - Fukuoka, Japan
• December 31, 1996 - Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei

First leg (North America)

• January 3 and 4, 1997 - Honolulu, Hawaii

Second leg (Europe)

• May 31, 1997 - Bremen, Germany
• June 3, 1997 - Cologne, Germany
• June 6, 1997 - Bremen, Germany
• June 8 and 10, 1997 - Amsterdam, Netherlands
• June 13, 1997 - Kiel, Germany
• June 15, 1997 - Gelsenkirchen, Germany
• June 18, 1997 - Milan, Italy
• June 20, 1997 - Lausanne, Switzerland
• June 22, 1997 - Bettembourg, Luxembourg
• June 25, 1997 - Lyon, France
• June 27 and 29, 1997 - Paris, France
• July 2, 1997 - Vienna, Austria
• July 4 and 6, 1997 - Munich, Germany
• July 9, 1997 - Sheffield, United Kingdom
• July 12, 15, and 17, 1997 - London, United Kingdom
• July 19, 1997 - Dublin, Ireland
• July 25, 1997 - Basel, Switzerland
• July 27, 1997 - Nice, France
• August 1, 1997 - Berlin, Germany
• August 3, 1997 - Leipzig, Germany
• August 10, 1997 - Hockenheim, Germany
• August 14, 1997 - Copenhagen, Denmark
• August 16, 1997 - Gothenburg, Sweden
• August 19, 1997 - Oslo, Norway
• August 22, 1997 - Tallinn, Estonia
• August 24 and 26, 1997 - Helsinki, Finland
• August 29, 1997 - Copenhagen, Denmark
• September 3, 1997 - Ostend, Belgium
• September 6, 1997 - Valladolid, Spain

Third leg (Africa)

• October 4 and 6, 1997 - Cape Town, South Africa
• October 10 and 12, 1997 - Johannesburg, South Africa
• October 15, 1997 - Durban, South Africa

Broadcasts and Recordings [ ]

A number of full or near-full concerts were broadcast on television and are now available on YouTube. Here is the list:

• Bucharest 1996 - The first full televised concert and also the third concert of the tour. "The Great Gates of Kiev" introduction was filmed off-screen onto the Jumbotron, not a direct feed like the other concerts. The footage and audio for the "Remember The Time" Interlude was different from that shown at other concerts. The crowd noises and some crowd footage is from the Dangerous Tour in Bucharest DVD, but the true origin of these sounds is unknown, as the Bucharest DVD did contain footage from Wembley, Madrid and several other concerts. During " Billie Jean ," the playback started late as Michael Jackson covered his mouth to lip-sync, and during the final number " HIStory ," for a brief moment, he sang over playback. This concert was televised by TELE 7 ABC.
• Budapest 1996 - This concert was the second concert of the tour. The full concert is an amateur recording by a fan in bad quality. Parts of the songs were recorded from the Jumbotron. There is also a 30 minute professional radio broadcast of the show.
• Tunis 1996 - This concert was aired on September 18, 2010 by the Nessma TV channel in Tunisia. Before then, only parts of this concert were shown on television as well as a very poor quality amateur-filmed far from the stage. The broadcast ended at " Heal the World ," cutting off the final number "HIStory." The quality of the broadcast was rather average as the entire concert was on a VHS and broadcast at a low bit rate. A large, spinning Nessma TV logo occasionally rolled across the screen as a means of copyright protection. The concert broadcast twice, with the red ball appearing in different places in both broadcasts (which has allowed fans to re-edit the two broadcasts to remove this logo). During the first broadcast, a scrolling bar of text was placed at the bottom of the screen informing viewers of the second broadcast.
• Seoul 1996 - During the performance of " Earth Song ," Jackson, (who was up on a cherry picker) was accosted by a male Korean fan who climbed up the crane just to meet Jackson. Michael held on to the man because he had a risk of falling. The man was then taken away by security after the crane was lowered. This concert was commercially released on VHS in Korea. Before the release of the Live in Bucharest DVD, this was the only commercially released Michael Jackson concert. Despite an official release, the versions that have appeared online are poor quality leaks because copy protection of the original VHS has prevented a good quality rip. The intros and endings of some songs are cut off as well. The VHS contains both the Seoul nights, one from 11 October, and 13 October. The first half of the contains the 11th October show, while the beginning of 2nd verse of Thriller to HIStory is the 13th October show.
• Kuala Lumpur 1996 - Performances of " Come Together / D.S. ," " Black or White ," "Earth Song," "Heal the World," and "HIStory" were not broadcast. The available broadcasts go up to " Dangerous ." Snippets of the October 29 concert (including the aforementioned songs) were also released during a news report on TV1000. Because crotch grabbing is considered impure in Islam, Jackson altered his crotch-grabbing move in this concert. It was televised by NTV7, but so far, only poor quality VCD recordings are known to exist. In 2015, full footage from the second show was uploaded in better quality.
• Auckland 1996 - This was the last known professionally filmed concert with the " Off the Wall Medley " and last performance of "Come Together / D.S." It was also the only known performance of "Billie Jean" with a repeated chorus near the end of the dance sequence. Also, when Jackson began singing " Thriller ," for a brief moment, the a cappella could not be heard. In 2015, the full footage from the first show leaked.
• Sydney 1996 - Only a few songs were broadcast from this concert, as well as parts from the concert on November 14. Nine Network also showed some footage from the first concert in the days after Jackson died; it was revealed that he sang " Beat It " fully live as the a cappella track was malfunctioning at the time. Just a few hours after the latter performance, Jackson married Debbie Rowe in a civil ceremony in his presidential suite at the Sheraton on the Park Hotel. Also in Sydney, Michael's latest short film Ghosts had its film premiere.
• Manila 1996 - This was televised first initially by GMA Network. This was also broadcast on Singapore's MediaCorp Channel 5 around October 2006. The Channel 5 version fades after each song performed (there is no intro to "Billie Jean"), but is in higher quality than the GMA broadcast. This was one of the few HIStory Tour concerts where Jackson did not beatbox before he threw his hat at the end of "Billie Jean" (another example being the concert in Moscow). " The Way You Make Me Feel " was performed, but not broadcasted (although there was an amateur snippet of "The Way You Make Me Feel" filmed and put on a news report in Manila). This was one of the two concerts where "Dangerous" was withdrawn from the setlist (the other being the concert in Tokyo (December 20). "Scream" is also censored (along with the broadcast of the concert in Copenhagen).
• Brunei 1996 - This was never televised, but known to exist as a rare promo item as with Royal Concert. Along with the latter performance, it is among one of the rarest known concert footage to exist. Private collectors have obtained the concert on VHS in high quality but have never released full concert footage, remaining controversial for their refusal to share the tape. In October 2008 a poor-quality VCD copy (also additionally compressed and watermarked) was uploaded onto the internet by a fan in Brunei who obtained the concert from a stage crew. Video quality was fair and the sound was badly encoded with a rumbling distortion when bass was played. Unwatermarked files from the same VCD source had been uploaded, though the sound quality was still very poor. An edited high quality soundboard CD was leaked in 2013. In the CD, the live vocals in Scream were replaced by playback and the drum ending of Billie Jean was shortened. As with Malaysia, Brunei has a mostly Muslim population, so Jackson altered his crotch-grab move and this is also obscured by camera angles that are different from most other concerts. This concert is also noted for the first verse of " Scream " being sung live. The curtain used in " Smooth Criminal " and the cherry picker for "Beat It" and "Earth Song" were not present during this concert (though they were during the Royal Brunei Concert ). High quality footage of the concert leaked in 2015.
• Munich 1997 - Jackson planned upon filming this concert for a DVD release by Christmas, so more camera angles (including individual crowd shots) were used, and the audio was later remastered heavily to emphasize the percussion and audience sounds. Jackson also had the concert filmed with HD cameras. The release was ultimately cancelled due to Jackson's dissatisfaction of the behind-the-scenes filming, as well as having laryngitis and the flu which affected his live vocals and dancing. However, the performance was televised extensively in many different countries, making it one of the most readily available concerts. The most common version is the one aired by Sat. 1 and most other channels, but other versions, such as the one that aired in South Africa (with a small segment from a concert at Johannesburg), and a Japanese version with alternate camera angles also exist. Most versions have also been edited with a segment from the concert on August 3, 1997 at Leipzig before the " Jackson 5 Medley " where Jackson talks about an insect on the stage which he calls the security to remove and Stranger In Moscow being 4 July, though the beginning and the ending contained 6 July. An unedited version of the concert from July 6 has the original camera angles seen on the jumbotrons and original sound. Two amateur videos from July 4 (one of which contained footage of both shows) also exist. Following Jackson's death, this concert was re-televised by RTL 5, who had previously televised it on their Veronica channel. This was also televised in Singapore's MediaCorp Channel 5 in 2009. It was also recently televised in Germany on ZDF on June 24 with alternate camera angles and being upscaled to 720p HD, and in Australia on the music channel MAX for his death anniversaries. In Malaysia, 8TV had broadcast the concert on August 2009 in conjunction with the King of Pop's birthday, and it was shown again on June 26, 2010 on the first anniversary of Jackson's death. Also, the Brazilian channel Multishow always air this concert in HD and with no cuts.
• Copenhagen 1997 - Broadcast by TV1000 and Channel 3. Most VHS rips of this version that have appeared seem to suffer from a greenish video noise and audio problems. This concert, along with the 1996 concert in Seoul, were televised on Korean television in July 2009; the songs " Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' ," " Stranger in Moscow ," and " Blood on the Dance Floor " were edited off in this new televised version of this concert. However, only a version with poor sound quality was recorded by a fan. This performance was also televised on Singapore's MediaCorp Channel 5 in early 2010, both on its standard definition channel as well as upscaled to 1080i HD. The upscaled version has been recorded by fans but has not been shared. The audio of the concert had been edited by the TV station, resulting in some compression issues as well as the censoring of "Scream" ("stop f***in' with me" was replaced with "stop pressurin' me").
• Gothenburg 1997 - This was also broadcast by TV1000 and Channel 3. This concert is very similar to the Copenhagen concert; it also contains the last televised performance of "Blood on the Dance Floor" (though the concert in Oslo on August 19 was the last actual live performance of this song). During "Scream," the pre-recorded a capella vocal of Jackson did not play back. Jackson continued to lip-sync and dance until the vocals continued during the chorus.
• Helsinki 1997 - Most versions that have appeared suffer from audio noise and the video has some ghosting artefacts, although there is no watermark. The HIStory Teaser was shown at the end of the programme.
• Basel 1997 - On December 25, 2016, YouTube channel MJ Beats leaked the full concert, and it is now available on YouTube. At first, they leaked a couple songs, then they would release a poll asking the fans which performance they would like to see next. They would continue to do so until every song was leaked, they then live streamed the full show on Facebook, then on YouTube.
• Johannesburg 1997 - Released by MJ Beats on Michael's Birthday in 2017. Michael's parents had attended the show.

Snippets and amateur recordings also exist:

• Prague 1996 - Most notably the first part of the concert with "Scream." Full amateur audio and a near-full concert recording exists.
• Warsaw 1996 - Most notably "The Way You Make Me Feel." A snippet of Billie Jean also exists.
• Zaragoza 1996 - "The Way You Make Me Feel" is the only song professionally recorded available. Amateur recordings exist.
• Amsterdam 1996 - The full concert is an amateur recording available on YouTube for viewing.
• Singapore 1996 - Snippets of "Scream", "They Don't Care About Us" and "History" are found on TCS (now MediaCorp) Singapore Channels 5 and 8. The quality is very poor but it is stated that the defects are inherent in the programme.
• Tokyo 1996 - The near-full concert is on YouTube with Jackson falling during the lean sequence in "Smooth Criminal."
• Honolulu 1997 - The full concert is an amateur recording.
• Bremen 1997 - Snippets of "Scream", "They Don't Care About Us", and "Billie Jean" exists as well as a near-full amateur recording from May 31st. Snippets of "Scream", "They Don't Care About Us", "Billie Jean", "Earth Song", and HIStory exists from June 6th.
• Cologne 1997 - Amateur snippets of "Scream" and "Smooth Criminal" are available and a news report on the concert there.
• Gelsenkirchen 1997 - The near full concert is an amateur recording and is available on YouTube.
• Milan 1997 - The full concert is an amateur recording and is available on YouTube.
• Lyon 1997 - Snippets of "Scream" and "They Don't Care About Us". The near-full concert is an amateur recording and is available on YouTube.
• Paris 1997 - Amateur audio of "Scream", "They Don't Care About Us", "In The Closet", "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'", "Stranger In Moscow", and "Billie Jean" are available on YouTube (as of 11.02.2023) from June 27th. Snippets of "Scream", "They Don't Care About Us", "Earth Song", and "Heal The World" and the near-full concert is available on YouTube from June 29th.

Outfits [ ]

Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' Golden Suit Closed without Armour

Intro MJ 2040 Golden suit with silver-plates and armour

Scream/TDCAU/In the closet gold suit with armour

You Are Not Alone jacket

Stranger In Moscow Golden Suit Open Without Armour

Jackson 5 Medley Jacket

The Way You Make Me Feel (tucked in)

The way you make me feel (Untucked)

Off The Wall Medley Jacket

Thriller (White)

Beat It Cape

Thriller (red)

Thriller (white and red, used only in one of the Amesterdam shows in ´96)

A mock up of the Thriller jacket wore by Michael in one of the Amesterdam shows in 1996.

Beat it Jacket

Come Together/D.S Jacket (Purple)

Come Together/D.S Red Jacket

Blood On The Dance Floor (Dark Red, only used on the May 31st, 1997 show in Bremen , Germany)

Blood On The Dancefloor Jacket

Dangerous Without Jacket

Heal the World Jacket

HIStory Jacket

• " The Way You Make Me Feel " was performed without the second verse and was withdrawn from all shows after the concert in Gelsenkirchen (June 15).
• " Off the Wall Medley " was withdrawn from the show in Tunis and was withdrawn permanently following the concert in Kiel (June 13, 1997).
• " Come Together / D.S. " was withdrawn from the concerts after Perth, and all the second and third leg concerts, except for Honolulu (January 3 and 4).
• " Blood on the Dance Floor " was performed in all second leg show until August 19 (in Oslo), except Vienna (July 2), and it was performed with a red jacket in Bremen (May 31).
• Bruno Mars attended the Honolulu show in Hawaii, on 3 January 1997
• " Dangerous " was withdrawn from the concerts in Tokyo (December 17 and 20) and Manila (December 8 and 10).
• Only two numbers from the set list were sung fully live, "Wanna be Startin' Somethin'" and "The Jackson 5 Medley. The rest of the set list was either fully lip-synced or sung live at the end of the song. It's never been publicly revealed why Jackson elected to lip-sync but many fans have speculated vocal difficulties as Jackson's voice is noticeably hoarse throughout the first half of the tour. Other reasons include Jackson's choice of putting recorded vocals to sound like the Studio Recording. There were possible chances that Jackson was singing under the playback, after provided the multitrack leaks of the Munich 6th July show.
• Wanting to be better prepared physically for the tour, Jackson trained with Bodybuilder/Actor Lou Ferrigno. Ferrigno helped with Jackson's training and diet. Because of this, Jackson is noticeably heavier during the first half of the tour than in previous tours.

Cancellations and postponement [ ]

- first leg (1996): [ ].

09/27/96: Casablanca, Morocco, Stade Mohammed V; moved to Amsterdam, Netherlands (due to security problems)

09/29/96: Casablanca, Morocco, Stade Mohammed V; moved to Amsterdam, Netherlands (due to security problems)

10/02/96: Cairo, Egypt, Cairo International Stadium; moved to Amsterdam, Netherlands (due to security problems)

10/16/96: Taipei, Taiwan, Chungshan Soccer Stadium; Rescheduled to October 22, 1996. (due to time constraints)

- Second leg (1997): [ ]

07/29/97: Barcelona, Spain, Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys; Rescheduled to September 4, 1997. (due to tour restructuring) CANCELLED

08/08/97: Ljubljana, Slovenia, Ljubljana Hippodrome; CANCELLED (due to low ticket sales)

08/31/97: Ostend, Belgium, Hippodrome Wellington; Rescheduled to September 3, 1997. (due to the death of Princess Diana)

09/05/97: Almería, Spain, Estadio, Municipal Juan Rojas; CANCELLED

09/07/97: Valladolid, Spain, Estadio José Zorrilla; Rescheduled to September 6, 1997. (due to tour restructuring)

09/09/97: Madrid, Spain; CANCELLED

09/11/97: Palmero, Italy; CANCELLED

09/13/97: Alicante, Spain, Estadio José Rico Pérez; CANCELLED

09/16/97: Tunis, Tunisia, Stade El Menzah; CANCELLED

09/18/97: Tunis, Tunisia, Stade El Menzah; CANCELLED

09/20/97: Izmir, Turkey, Izmir Atatürk Stadium; CANCELLED

09/23/97: Istanbul, Turkey, Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium; CANCELLED

09/26/97: Ankara, Turkey, Ankara 19 Mayıs Stadium; CANCELLED

There were some initial plans to take the tour also to Brazil on February 1998. More precisely, Sao Paulo, Curitiba, Rio de Janeiro, and Brasília. These plans were suspended so he can work on MJ and Friends.

- Third leg; CANCELLED (1998)

02/??/98: São Paulo, Brazil, Morumbi Stadium; CANCELLED

02/??/98: Curitiba, Brazil, Pedreira Paulo Leminski; CANCELLED

02/??/98: Rio de Janiro, Brazil, Maracanã Stadium; CANCELLED

02/??/98: Brasília, Brazil, Mané Garrincha Stadium; CANCELLED

02/??/98: Buenos Aires, Argentina, Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti; CANCELLED

References [ ]

• ↑ https://mjbeats.com.br/a-inédita-lista-de-michael-jackson-e-o-show-history-tour-1c142ee4dd9b
• 1 Bigi Jackson
• 2 List of unreleased songs
• 3 Get Your Weight Off of Me

HIStory World Tour: 1996 – 1997

The HIStory Tour was Michael’s last solo tour, which started on September 7th 1996 and ended on October 15th 1997. It consisted of 82 concerts and was seen by approximately 4.5 million people. It was his most popular tour, based on attendance and how much money it made.

During the HIStory Tour, not only was Michael the first pop artist in history to sell out Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii; but he actually performed there twice…both shows a sell out.

Set List – 1st Leg

• Scream/They Don’t Care About Us/In the Closet
• Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’
• Stranger in Moscow
• Smooth Criminal
• You Are Not Alone
• The Way You Make Me Feel
• Jackson 5 Medley
• Off The Wall Medley
• Billie Jean
• Come Together/D.S. (For three months only)
• Black Or White
• Heal The World

Set List – 2nd Leg

• Blood On The Dance Floor (For three months only)

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An exceptional tribute by an exceptional cast of musicians and dancers... a show that I recommend to all Michael Jackson fans.

INTRODUCING GARTH FIELD

TOUR DATES NOW ON SALE

“THE ULTIMATE MJ TRIBUTE”

The michael jackson history show.

Showtime Australia presents this spectacular music tribute and full-scale stage production honouring the one and only King of Pop, Michael Jackson. Celebrate Jackson’s creative genius and unsurpassed talent with riveting live performances spanning his entire catalogue including Thriller, Billie Jean, Smooth Criminal, Bad, Beat It, ABC, Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough, Human Nature, PYT, They Don’t Really Care About Us and many more.

Get the full Michael Jackson concert experience with accomplished impersonator Garth Field – electrifying in his role as Jackson – plus a live band, choreographed dancers, authentic costumes, state-of-the-art sound and theatrical lighting, vision and effects.

“The ultimate tribute to the King of Pop…”

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Preview: Michael Jackson HIStory

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Music Interviews

A michael jackson timeline, michael jackson: full npr music archive, read and hear the archive of npr stories on michael jackson, photo timeline.

Follow a chronology of the singer's life, highlighted by breathtaking commercial success, intense public scrutiny and odd lifestyle choices:

Aug. 29, 1958: Michael Joseph Jackson is born to Katherine and Joe Jackson in Gary, Ind. His older siblings are Rebbie, Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, LaToya and Marlon. Later, brother Randy and sister Janet join the family. Katherine Jackson raises her children as Jehovah's Witnesses.

1962: Michael, Marlon, Jackie, Tito and Jermaine combine to form a band. At first, their father does not approve, but later changes his mind and manages the band. Jackson sings lead vocal on most of the songs.

1968: Motown signs The Jackson 5.

1969: The song "I Want You Back" jumps to the number-one singles spot. "ABC (1970)," "The Love You Save" and "I'll Be There" follow suit.

1971-1972: Jackson goes solo, and his singles "Got to Be There," "Rockin' Robin" and "I Wanna Be Where You Are" storm the charts — as does "Ben," a ballad about a pet rat featured in the horror movie Ben .

1978: Jackson makes his film debut as the Scarecrow in The Wiz , an urban retelling of the classic film The Wizard Of Oz . Diana Ross co-stars as Dorothy. Jackson is said to wear his makeup long after production hours.

1979: Jackson records Off The Wall , his first album as a solo artist. The singles "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" and "Rock With You" both shoot to number-one hits.

1980: Jackson nabs his first Grammy Award for Best R&B Male Vocal Performance.

1982-1983: Jackson releases the album Thriller , and it tops the charts for 37 weeks. Seven singles dash into the top 10, including "Billie Jean," "Beat It," "Thriller" and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'." The extended video sequence on "Thriller" has Jackson morph into a werewolf. Jackson unveils his signature dance move, the moonwalk.

1984: Questions arise about Jackson's changing appearance, and some wonder if the singer has had plastic surgery. He builds a home on 2,700 acres in Central California, complete with its own amusement park rides, and calls it Neverland.

1985: Jackson and Lionel Richie pen "We Are The World," with the proceeds from sales of the single slated for hunger relief in Africa. Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Cyndi Lauper and other prominent artists lend their voices to the song. It sells a record seven million copies.

1987: Bad , Jackson's third album, hits the shelves. He embarks on a world tour.

1988: Doubleday publishes Jackson's autobiography, Moonwalk .

1990: Thriller goes platinum for the 21st time and the Guinness Book of World Records certifies it as the best-selling album ever. To date, it has sold 65 million copies.

1992: Jackson tells Oprah Winfrey he has vitiligo, a skin disorder that destroys melanin and, in severe cases, can leave a victim devoid of skin color. He also reveals that his father emotionally abused him as a child.

1993: Jackson is accused in civil court of molesting an 11-year-old boy. Police descend on Neverland and subject Jackson to a full body search. "It was the most humiliating ordeal of my life," he says in a televised statement in December.

1994: Jackson settles the molestation case out of court. The boy is paid more than $15 million, to be held in trust until he is an adult. The parents of the boy receive $1.5 million each.

May 26, 1994: Jackson and Lisa-Marie Presley tie the knot. The marriage will last less than two years.

1995: Sony releases HIStory: Past, Present and Future Book I . Janet Jackson performs a duet with her older brother on "Scream."

1996: Jarvis Cocker of the British band Pulp accosts Jackson in mid-act at the BRIT Awards. Jackson was surrounded by children and a rabbi performing "Earth Song." Cocker claims Jackson had attempted to imitate Christ.

1997: Jackson marries Debbie Rowe, a nurse. Rowe gives birth to a son, Prince Michael. Jackson is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

1998: Rowe bears a girl, Paris Michael Katherine.

1999: Jackson and Rowe split.

2000: "Billie Jean," "Rock With You," "I Want You Back" and "Beat It" make Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 greatest songs of all time.

2001: Sony releases Invincible, which is panned by critics and does not sell well. Jackson battles a $21-million civil suit by a German concert promoter who says the singer backed out of two concerts and pocketed an advance.

2002: Jackson lifts his newborn son, Prince Michael, over a hotel room terrace so fans can glimpse — and is roundly criticized for endangering his child. The identity of the child's mother is never revealed. Jackson says the child is the result of artificial insemination from a surrogate mother and his own sperm cells.

2003: Jackson is charged with seven counts of child sexual abuse and two counts of administering an intoxicating agent. All charges were made by the same boy, Gavin Arvizo, who was under 14 at the time of the alleged crime.

2005: Jackson is acquitted on all counts in the Arvizo case in the the People v. Jackson trial in Santa Maria, Calif.

2006: Financial troubles force closure on the main house on the Neverland Ranch. Jackson agrees to a Sony-backed refinancing deal. Jackson makes his first public appearance since the Arvizo trial to accept eight records from the Guinness World Records in London, including "Most Successful Entertainer of All Time." In late 2006, Jackson agrees to share joint custody of his first two children with ex-wife Debbie Rowe.

2007: Jackson and Sony buy Famous Music LLC from Viacom, which gives him rights to songs by Eminem, Shakira, Beck and others.

2008: Jackson issues Thriller 25 , celebrating 25 years of the iconic album. The reissue hits number one in eight countries and reached number two in the U.S. Sony releases King of Pop , a fan-curated compilation.

June 25, 2009: Jackson dies in Los Angeles at 50 after going into cardiac arrest.

• Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson was a multitalented singer and dancer who enjoyed a chart-topping career both with the Jackson 5 and as a solo artist.

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Quick Facts

Early life and family, the jackson 5, emerging solo career, "thriller" (1982), the height of stardom, continued career success and abuse allegations, career decline and criminal charges, wives and children, memorials and legacy, who was michael jackson.

Known as the “King of Pop,” Michael Jackson was a best-selling American singer, songwriter, and dancer. As a child, Jackson became the lead singer of his family’s popular Motown group, the Jackson 5 . He went on to a solo career of astonishing worldwide success, delivering No. 1 hits from the albums Off the Wall , Thriller , and Bad . Thriller remains one of the best-selling albums in history. In his later years, Jackson was dogged by allegations of child molestation. The 13-time Grammy Award winner died in 2009 at age 50 of a drug overdose just before launching a comeback tour.

FULL NAME: Michael Joseph Jackson BORN: August 29, 1958 DIED: June 25, 2009 BIRTHPLACE: Gary, Indiana SPOUSES: Lisa Marie Presley (1994-1996) and Debbie Rowe (1996-2000) CHILDREN: Michael “Prince,” Paris , and Prince “Blanket” ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Virgo

Michael Joseph Jackson was born on August 29, 1958, in Gary, Indiana. He was the eighth of 10 children born to Joseph Jackson , a crane operator, and Katherine Jackson, a homemaker and a devout Jehovah’s Witness. Both of Jackson’s parents previously had musical aspirations themselves: Katherine played clarinet and piano and had aspired to be a country singer, while Joseph was a guitarist who performed in local R&B bands. They encouraged their children to pursue musical ambitions, and Jackson’s career in music began at the age of 5 under his father’s encouragement.

Almost all of Jackson’s siblings made marks in the music industry, including Rebbie , Jackie, Tito, Jermaine , La Toya, Marlon, Randy, and Janet Jackson . (His brother Brandon, Marlon’s twin, died shortly after birth.) Joseph pushed his children hard to succeed, making them rehearse five hours a day after school, and was reportedly known to become violent with them . He was said to beat them with a belt buckle or electric kettle cord and to order them to break a branch off a tree if they got a dance step wrong so he could hit them with it.

Joseph molded his sons into a musical group in the early 1960s that would later become known as the Jackson 5. At first, the Jackson Family group consisted of Jackson’s older brothers Tito, Jermaine, and Jackie. Jackson joined his siblings when he was 5 years old and emerged as the group’s lead vocalist. He showed remarkable range and depth for such a young performer, impressing audiences with his ability to convey complex emotions. They officially became the Jackson 5 when older brother Marlon joined the group.

Watch This Is It , the dramatic documentary with rare behind-the-scenes footage of Michael creating and preparing for his sold out shows that would have taken place in London's O2 Arena.

Jackson and his brothers spent endless hours rehearsing and polishing their act. At first, the Jackson 5 played local gigs and built a strong following. They recorded one single on their own, “Big Boy,” with the B-side “You’ve Changed,” but the record failed to generate much interest. The group moved on to working as the opening act for R&B artists such as Gladys Knight and The Pips, James Brown , and Sam and Dave. Many of these performers were signed to the legendary Motown record label, and the Jackson 5 eventually caught the attention of Motown founder Berry Gordy .

Impressed by the group, Gordy signed the group to his label in early 1969. Jackson and his brothers moved to Los Angeles, where they lived with Gordy and with Diana Ross of the Supremes as they got settled. The Jackson 5 made its first television appearance during the 1969 Miss Black American Pageant, performing a cover of “It’s Your Thing.” Their first album, Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5 , hit the charts in December 1969, with the single “I Want You Back” reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart shortly afterward.

More chart-topping singles quickly followed, such as “ABC,” “The Love You Save,” and “I’ll Be There.” For several years, Jackson and the Jackson 5 maintained a busy tour and recording schedule, under the supervision of Gordy and his Motown staff. The group became so popular that it even had its own self-titled cartoon show, which ran from 1971 to 1972. Jackson also popularized the “robot dance” after using the move during a 1973 performance of the song “Dancing Machine” on The Mike Douglas Show .

Despite the group’s great success, there was trouble brewing behind the scenes. Tensions mounted between Gordy and Joseph over the management of his children’s careers, with the Jacksons wanting more creative control over their material. The group officially severed ties with Motown in 1976, though Jermaine remained with the label to pursue his solo career. Now calling themselves the Jacksons, the group signed a new recording deal with Epic Records. By the release of its third album for the label, Destiny (1978) , the brothers had emerged as talented songwriters.

Moonwalk: A Memoir

Jackson began his solo career while simultaneously performing with the Jackson 5. He released his debut solo album at age 13 with Got to Be There (1971), making the charts with the title track. He had his first solo No. 1 single with the title track from his sophomore album Ben (1972), which he recorded for the 1972 film of the same name about a killer rat. Jackson followed those albums with Music and Me (1973) and Forever, Michael (1975), the latter of which was his last album with Motown Records.

As Jackson’s stardom rose, he tried his hand at acting, and the experience left its mark on his music, too. Jackson portrayed the Scarecrow in the Sidney Lumet–directed film The Wi z (1977), starring alongside Diana Ross and Nipsey Russell. While living in New York City to make the film, Jackson frequently visited the Studio 54 nightclub and was exposed to early hip-hop music, which contributed to his beatboxing in future songs like “Working Night and Day.”

Jackson achieved his solo career breakthrough with Off the Wall (1979), his first album with Epic Records and his first produced by Quincy Jones , whom he met while working on The Wiz . An infectious blend of pop and funk, Off the Wall featured the Grammy Award–winning single “Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough,” along with such hits as “Rock with You,” “She’s Out of My Life,” and the title track. Critics felt the album moved Jackson from the pop music of his youth into a more complex sound, and some have called it one of the best pop albums ever made .

Jackson was still performing with his brothers at this time, and the overwhelmingly positive response to Off the Wall helped the Jacksons as a group. Their album Triumph (1980) sold more than 1 million copies, and the brothers went on an extensive tour to support the recording. At the same time, Jackson continued exploring more ways to branch out on his own. In 1983, Jackson embarked on his final tour with his brothers to support the album Victory (1984). Jackson’s duet with Mick Jagger called “State of Shock” was the most successful single from the album.

Jackson achieved unparalleled success with the release of his six solo album Thriller (1982), which as of August 2021 was still recognized by Guinness World Records as the best-selling album of all time, having sold 67 million copies worldwide and 34 million units in the United States alone. The album stayed on the charts for 80 weeks after its release, holding the No. 1 spot for 37 weeks, and generated seven Top 10 hits, including “Thriller,” “Billie Jean,” “Beat It,” “Human Nature,” “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’,” and “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing).”

The album garnered 12 Grammy Award nominations and notched eight wins, both records at the time. Jackson also filmed an elaborate music video was for the album’s title track. Directed by filmmaker John Landis, the 14-minute “Thriller” mini-movie features a horror plot that culminates with Jackson dancing with dozens of zombies in an abandoned city street. Following its debut on MTV on December 2, 1983, it was hailed as one of the greatest music videos of all time and became the first music video to be selected for the National Film Registry in 2009.

On a 1983 television special honoring Motown, Jackson performed his No. 1 hit “Billie Jean” and debuted the moonwalk, which became one of his signature moves. The dance step, which R&B musician Jeffrey Daniel had taught him three years earlier , involves the dancer gliding backwards despite bodily actions that suggest forward motion. The much-lauded dance performance further boosted sales for the already-successful Thriller album. The New York Times hailed Jackson as a “musical phenomenon,” writing: “In the world of pop music, there is Michael Jackson and there is everybody else.”

Jackson signed a record-breaking $5 million promotional deal with PepsiCo in November 1983, launching the brand’s youth-targeted New Generation campaign. However, Jackson ended up filing a lawsuit against Pepsi when, during filming of a simulated concert for a commercial, pyrotechnics accidentally set Jackson’s hair on fire , resulting in second- and third-degree burns on his scalp. Jackson had surgery to repair his injuries and is believed to have begun experimenting with plastic surgery around this time. His face, especially his nose, would become dramatically altered in the coming years.

In 1985, Jackson showed his altruistic side by working with Lionel Richie to co-write “We Are the World,” a charity single for the non-profit organization USA for Africa. A veritable who’s who of music stars participated in the project, including Ray Charles , Bob Dylan , Willie Nelson , Bruce Springsteen , and Tina Turner . It became one of the top-selling singles of all time and raised, by some accounts, more than $75 million for humanitarian aid to fight poverty in Africa.

Five years after Thriller , Jackson released his highly-anticipated follow-up album Bad (1987). Although unable to duplicate the phenomenal sales of Thriller , Bad still reached the top of the charts and became the first album to feature five No. 1 hits with “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You,” “Bad,” “The Way You Make Me Feel,” “Man in the Mirror,” and “Dirty Diana.” Filmmaker Martin Scorsese directed the title track’s music video, which featured a then-unknown Wesley Snipes and involved an elaborate story about delinquent teenagers and gang violence. Jackson spent more than a year on the road, playing concerts to promote the album.

In 1988, Jackson bought 2,700 acres of property in Los Olivos, California, for $17 million and had it converted into Neverland Ranch , a home and private amusement park that he owned until 2005. Named after the fantasy island from the Peter Pan story, it included a zoo, train, Ferris wheel, and 50-seat movie theater. Several exotic pets were kept at the ranch, including Jackson’s famous pet chimpanzee Bubbles.

Around the late 1980s, rumors began swirling that Jackson was lightening the color of his skin to appear more white and sleeping in a special oxygen chamber to increase his lifespan. In 1993, Jackson agreed to a rare television interview with Oprah Winfrey to quell rumors. He explained that the change in his skin tone was the result of a skin condition known as vitiligo, and he opened up about the abuse he suffered from his father.

In 1991, Jackson released his eighth solo album Dangerous , his first without Quincy Jones in 16 years. The album marked a different direction for Jackson and mixed various genres, including R&B, funk, gospel, hip-hop, rock, industrial, and classical. It included the hit single “Black or White,” with an accompanying music video directed by Landis and featuring a cameo appearance by child star Macaulay Culkin . The final minutes of the video featured Jackson making sexual gesturing and violently damaging cars and buildings, which drew criticism from some viewers. Jackson issued an apology and edited the video to remove these elements.

Jackson’s music continued to enjoy widespread popularity in the following years. In 1993, he performed at several important events, including the halftime show of Superbowl XXVII. However, 1993 also saw the first of several child molestation allegations against Jackson, when a 13-year-old boy claimed that the music star had fondled him. Jackson was known to have sleepovers with boys at his Neverland Ranch, but this was the first public charge of wrongdoing. The police searched the ranch, but said they found no evidence to support the claim. The following year, Jackson settled the case out of court with the boy’s family.

In the 2003 television documentary Living with Michael Jackson, British journalist Martin Bashir spent several months with the singer, even getting him to discuss his relationships with children. Jackson admitted that he continued to have children sleep over at his ranch, even after the 1993 allegations and that sometimes he slept with the children in his bed. “Why can’t you share your bed? That’s the most loving thing to do, to share your bed with someone,” Jackson told Bashir.

Jackson’s musical career began to decline with the lukewarm reception to HIStory: Past, Present, and Future, Book I (1995). The two-disc album featured a greatest hits compilation on disc one and new material on disc two that included collaborations with Janet Jackson, The Notorious B.I.G. , Shaquille O’Neal , and Slash . HIStory was considered Jackson’s most personal album , with lyrics pertaining to his child abuse allegations and anger of his treatment by the media. The record spawned two hits, “You Are Not Alone” and his duet with sister Janet, “Scream.” The spaceship-themed video for the latter song cost a record-setting $7 million to produce and earned a Grammy Award for its slick effects. Another track from the album, “They Don’t Care About Us,” brought Jackson intense criticism for using an anti-Semitic term.

In 2001, Jackson released Invincible , his final studio album prior to his death. It cost $30 million to produce, making it the most expensive album ever made . The album touched upon such topics as isolation, social issues, and Jackson’s continued objections to the media. Despite debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard charts, it received mixed reviews from critics. Invincible was released as Jackson was having legal issues with Sony over the rights to his master recordings , which escalated when Jackson called Sony Music Chairman Tommy Mottola a racist who exploits Black artists.

By the turn of the century, Jackson was increasingly becoming known for his eccentricities, which included wearing a surgical mask in public. In 2002, Jackson made headlines when he seemed confused and disoriented on stage at the MTV Video Music Awards. In 2002, he received enormous criticism for dangling his baby son Blanket over a balcony while greeting fans in Berlin, Germany. In a later interview, Jackson explained that “We were waiting for thousands of fans down below, and they were chanting they wanted to see my child, so I was kind enough to let them see. I was doing something out of innocence.”

In 2003, Jackson encountered more legal woes when he was arrested on charges related to incidents with a 13-year-old boy. He faced 10 counts in total, including lewd conduct with a minor, conspiracy to commit child abduction, false imprisonment, and extortion. The resulting 2005 trial was a media circus, with fans, detractors and camera crews surrounding the courthouse. More than 130 people testified, and Jackson’s accuser described via videotape how he had been given wine and molested. However, the jury found problems with his testimony, as well as that of his mother. Jackson was found not guilty of all charges on June 14, 2005.

In August 1994, Jackson announced that he had married Lisa Marie Presley , daughter of rock icon Elvis Presley . The union proved to be short-lived, as they divorced in 1996. Some thought that the marriage was a publicity ploy to restore Jackson’s image after child molestation allegations.

Later in 1996, Jackson wed nurse Debbie Rowe . Jackson and Rowe had two children through artificial insemination: son Michael Joseph Jackson Jr. , born in 1997 and known as Prince Jackson, and daughter Paris Michael Katherine Jackson , born in 1998. When Rowe and Jackson divorced in 1999, Michael received full custody of their two children. Jackson would go on to have a third child, Prince Michael Jackson II who went by “Blanket” and now “Bigi,” with an unknown surrogate in 2002.

Jackson died on June 25, 2009, at the age of 50, after suffering a cardiac arrest in his Los Angeles home. CPR attempts failed, and he was rushed to the hospital, where he died later that morning. In February 2010, an official coroner’s report revealed Jackson’s cause of death was acute propofol intoxication, or a lethal overdose on a prescription drug cocktail including the sedatives midazolam, diazepam, and lidocaine.

Aided by his personal physician Dr. Conrad Murray , Jackson had been taking sedative drugs to help him sleep at night. Murray told police that he believed Jackson had developed a particular addiction to propofol, which Jackson referred to as his “milk.” Murray reportedly administered propofol by IV in the evenings, in 50-milligram dosages, and was attempting to wean the pop star off the drug around the time of his death.

A police investigation revealed that Murray was not licensed to prescribe most controlled drugs in the state of California. The steps he took to save Jackson also came under scrutiny, as evidence showed that the standard of care for administering propofol had not been met, and the recommended equipment for patient monitoring, precision dosing, and resuscitation had not been present. As a result, Jackson’s death was ruled a homicide. Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter on November 7, 2011, receiving a four-year maximum prison sentence.

In 2013, the Jackson family launched a wrongful death lawsuit against AEG Live, the entertainment company that promoted Jackson’s planned comeback series in 2009. They believed that the company had failed to effectively protect the singer while he was under Murray’s care. Jackson family lawyers sought up to $1.5 billion—an estimation of what Jackson could have earned to that point—but in October 2013, a jury determined that AEG wasn’t responsible for the singer’s death.

On July 7, 2009, a televised memorial was held for Jackson’s fans at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles. While 17,500 free tickets were issued to fans via lottery, an estimated 1 billion viewers watched the memorial on television or online. Jackson’s death resulted in an outpouring of public grief and sympathy. Memorials were erected around the world, including one at the arena where he was set to perform and another at his childhood home in Gary, Indiana. The Jackson family held a private funeral on September 3, 2009, at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California, for immediate family members and 200 guests. Celebrity mourners included Jackson’s ex-wife Lisa Marie Presley and actor Elizabeth Taylor .

Over the course of his career, Jackson had notched 38 Grammy Award nominations and 13 wins, including Album of the Year for Thriller , Record of the Year for “Beat It,” Song of the Year for “We Are The World,” and his first Grammy in 1980 for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance on “Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough.” Among his other awards and honors are the 1993 Grammy Legend Award, his 2001 induction to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and The Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

Michael Jackson's This Is It

A documentary of Jackson’s preparations for his final tour, entitled This Is It , was released in October 2009. The film, which features a compilation of interviews, rehearsals, and backstage footage of its star, made $23 million in its opening weekend and went on to make $261 million worldwide.

A handful of posthumous albums were released in the years after Jackson’s death. The first, Michael , was released in December 2010 amid controversy about whether the singer actually performed some of the tracks. Brother Randy was among those who questioned the authenticity of the recordings, but the Jackson estate later refuted the claims, according to The New York Times . The second album, Xscape ( 2014), featured R&B star and Jackson protege Usher performing the single “Love Never Felt So Good.” The album debuted at No. 2 on Billboard ’s Top 200 Album chart.

Since his death, Jackson has been profiled in multiple biographies and inspired the creation of two Cirque du Soleil shows. He was posthumously honored with the 2018 Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation Legacy Award for Humanitarian Service, with children Paris and Prince Michael accepting on his behalf.

Jackson’s debts have been settled thanks to his earlier investment in the Sony/ATV Music catalog, which includes the publishing rights for songs of industry heavyweights such as the Beatles , the Rolling Stones , and Taylor Swift . The Jackson estate sold its share of Sony/ATV in 2016 for $750 million, and two years later, the estate received another $287.5 million for its stake in EMI Music Publishing. Additionally, Jackson’s earning power lasted well past his final days. In October 2017, Forbes announced that Jackson had topped the publication’s list of top-earning dead celebrities for the fifth straight year, earning $75 million.

Accusations of sexual abuse against Jackson resurfaced in early 2019 with the airing of Leaving Neverland at the Sundance Film Festival, followed by an HBO broadcast. The four-hour documentary explores the recollections of two men who describe how the pop star lured them into his orbit when they were boys, gaining the trust of their parents, before coercing them into sexual activities in hotel rooms and at his Neverland Ranch. The Jackson estate called the two accusers “serial perjurers” and launched a $100 million lawsuit against HBO. As of December 2020, the suit planned to go into arbitration .

• Being onstage is magic. There’s nothing like it. You feel the energy of everybody who’s out there. You feel it all over your body.
• Being an entertainer, you just can’t tell who is your friend.
• Being mobbed hurts. You feel like you’re spaghetti among thousands of hands. They’re just ripping you and pulling your hair. And you feel that any moment you’re gonna just break.
• I hate to take credit for the songs I’ve written. I feel that somewhere, someplace, it’s been done, and I’m just a courier bringing it into the world. I really believe that. I love what I do. I’m happy at what I do. It’s escapism.
• Why can’t you share your bed? That’s the most loving thing to do, to share your bed with someone.
• If you enter this world knowing you are loved and you leave this world knowing the same, then everything that happens in between can be dealt with.
• I always want to know what makes good performers fall to pieces.
• My father would rehearse with a belt in his hand. You couldn’t mess up.
• Magic is easy if you put your heart into it.
• I wouldn’t be happy doing just one kind of music or label ourselves. I like doing something for everybody... I don’t like our music to be labeled. Labels are like... racism.
• What I’m asking is whether this is still a country where a peculiar person such as Michael Jackson can get a fair shake and be considered innocent until proven guilty... or is this just a 21st century American barnyard where we all feel free to turn on the moonwalking rooster... and peck it to death?

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Colin McEvoy joined the Biography.com staff in 2023, and before that had spent 16 years as a journalist, writer, and communications professional. He is the author of two true crime books: Love Me or Else and Fatal Jealousy . He is also an avid film buff, reader, and lover of great stories.

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