2. Jackie

3. Tito

4. Jermaine

5. La Toya

6. Marlon

7. Michael

8. Randy

10. No extracurricular activities the school provided

11. Forced to act mature beyond his yearsIt is probably controversial when it comes to opinions on if Michael’s childhood lifestyle was healthy or not. Certainly it’s different than the average child who grew up in Gary, Indiana.<br />Jackson 5 Exposure<br />The exposure of the Jackson 5 began just within their small town of Gary, Indiana. They would perform in local clubs and bars. As their talent grew, they were able to branch out and compete in bigger competitions. At these larger competitions is where Michael’s passion for improving really stood out. Michael quoted, “he may have learned more from Jackie Wilson than from anyone or anything else.”(Jackson 48) During other performances Michael would be glued to the wings of the stage. “While his brothers were off elsewhere eating and talking, Michael would crouch down in the wings of the stage watching every step, every move, every twist, every turn, every grind, every emotion, every light move.” He even noticed the patent-leather shoes they would wear and desired to have the same pair. Unfortunately when he went around to stores, none carried them in little boy sizes. CITATION Mic88 1033 (Jackson)<br />First Recording Experience<br />“[Michael’s] dead-on mastery of James Brown's dance moves and soulful, mature-beyond-his-years vocals made him a natural focal point” (“VH1”). Because of his unbelievable talent, in 1968 Bobby Taylor and the Vancouvers discovered the Jackson 5 which gave them the opportunity to sign with Berry Gordy of Motown Records. (“All Michael Jackson.com”) The entire family packed up and made the big move to California to start a brand new journey. Within their first year with Motown, they issued their debut single when Michael was only 11 years old. quot;
I Want You Back,quot;
quot;
ABC,quot;
quot;
The Love You Save,quot;
and quot;
I'll Be Therequot;
all hit number one in 1970, making the Jackson 5 the first group in pop history to have their first four singles top the charts. (“VH1”) All in all they recorded 14 albums and Michael recorded 4 solo albums with Motown. With all of their momentum, in 1976 the Jackson 5 decided they wanted to move on and gain more “artistic freedom”, so they signed with Epic Records and became known as “The Jacksons”. (“All Michael Jackson.com”) <br />First Time Acting<br />In 1977 Michael landed a roll in the all-black film musical “The Wiz” starring with Diana Ross. In doing so, he was allowed to meet producer/composer Quincy Jones. Michael and Jones worked together to produce and record his first solo album as an adult. The album titled “Off the Wall” produced 4 Top Ten singles which was the first ever album to achieve such. When Michael finally turned 21, he decided he would not renew the management contract he had with his father’s company. “Michael wanted to take full control of his music and business affairs and he hired his own accountants, lawyers and management. Weisner and DeMann were signed on as Michael’s personal management.” (“All Michael Jackson”)<br />Rejoining The Jackson 5<br />2286000840105After much success with the “Off the Wall” album, Michael went back to working in the studio with his brothers, The Jacksons. They recorded the album “Triumph” in which Michael contributed to six of the nine tracks on the album. Just a year after the Triumph album was released, The Jacksons embarked on a 39-city tour starting in Tennessee. The tour broke stadium records playing to approximately 600,000 fans. This tour generated somewhere around $5.5 million. This success was just taste of what was to come for Michael’s stardom. <br />Thriller Era<br />Soon after the Triumph tour, Michael began working on the album “Thriller”. No one had any speculation that this album would become the biggest in history. Not only did he cause everyone’s jaws to drop with the music that was produced, but he also “sealed his own phenomenon by debuting his signature quot;
moonwalkquot;
dance step on May 16, 1983.” (“VH1”) The response of the viewers was overwhelming and Michael would at that moment go down in history for such incredible dance moves. Because of his “moonwalk” a new interest in the “Thriller” album was sparked and millions rushed to stores to purchase the album. During this time the 14 minute short film and single “Thriller” was released. The film directed by John Landis cost an estimated $1 million of Jackson’s own money. Luckily Landis made a deal with MTV to air a 60 minute documentary of the making of the short film. The film was sold on video tape becoming the biggest selling music video of all time generating $9 million as of 2006. (VH1) “Thriller was inducted into the Guinness Book Of World Records as the planet’s best seling album. It was in the top ten for 80 consecutive weeks, and America’s best seller of both 1983 and 1984. CITATION Chr09 1033 (Roberts)<br />Bad Era<br />Next was the “Bad” era in 1987 which was another album Michael recorded and had produced. He wrote nine of the eleven tracks and worked with several other artists to make this album a success. Of course there was a “Bad World Tour” beginning in Tokyo Japan and ending in the United States. Upon returning to the United States, the “Bad” show became much larger. It had new music, new choreography, and a new stage. The tour lasted 16 months and happened to be the largest tour any entertainer had undertaken. Michael certainly proved himself to be the greatest entertainer in the 1980s as he broke 6 different records which he still holds today. (“All Michael Jackson.com”)<br />Famous Moon Walk<br />While Michael was busy with his “Bad” tour, he managed to complete his autobiography “Moon Walk”. The book made the New York Best Seller list in May 1988.(“All Michael Jackson.com”) Just a month later, Jackson purchased his 2700 acre ranch in California which he called Neverland. On this ranch included things like an amusement park and exotic animals which caused others to speculate that Jackson was obsessed with recapturing his childhood. Some cosmetic surgeries also took place during this time resulting in “accusations from the black community that his gradually lightening skin tone was a result of an intentional effort to become whiter”. (“VH1”) -285752152650Years later, Jackson revealed “he had a disorder called vitiligo, in which pigment disappears from the skin, leaving large white blotches and making direct sunlight dangerous.”(“VH1”)<br />Despite the accusations, Jackson continued on doing what he did best. Entertainment.<br />New Sound<br />In effort to update his sound, Michael cut ties with Quincy Jones and teamed up with a new producer named Teddy Riley and Bill Botrell. The album “Dangerous” was the next project which had a “New Jack Swing” sound to it and was more influenced by gospel and hip hop. The “Dangerous World Tour” began in 1992. The shows had much more equipment involved than any of the past world tours. Michael began each show by popping out from below the stage. During the song “Smooth Criminal” he performed “the lean” with a new patented device. As the tours progressed, they suddenly came to an end due to child abuse allegations and a dependency on pain killers from his scalp surgeries. (“All Michael Jackson.com”)<br />Overcoming Media<br />Michael recovered from all the investigations which were finally dropped in 1994. On May 26 of that same year, he married Lisa Marie Presley. During their marriage he began working on 2 albums at the same time: “HIStory” and “Blood on the Dance Floor”. “HIStory” was a 2-disc album containing older songs as well as 12 new. <br />An example of some of the works produced on Jackson’s “HIStory” album are listed below.<br />AlbumSongLengthHIStoryBillie Jean4:54HIStoryThriller6:00 <br />Michael worked independently to produce this album playing several instruments and co-writing the 12 new songs. He was extremely busy and just 19 months after he and Lisa were married, she filed for divorce. Without hesitation his career proceeded and he started a new company called Kingdom Entertainment. During the “HIStory World Tour” it was announced that Michael was going to have a child of his own with Debbie Rowe. They married in 1996 and had Prince Michael Joseph Jackson in 1997. Soon after the 2nd album “Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix. It consisted of 8 remixed songs from the “HIStory” album and 5 new songs. With little promotion of the album, Michael still managed to top the charts. In 1998, still during the HIStory World Tour, Michael announced the birth of his daughter, Paris Katherine Michael Jackson. (All Michael Jackson.com) Just a year later, Michael and Debbie were divorced. <br />Invincible Era<br />As tired and worn out as Michael probably was, he still pressed on and began working on yet another new album called “Invincible”. In 2001 Michael wrote “What More Can I Give” featuring 35 different artists in response to the memorable 9/11 tragedy. Benefits were graciously given to those victims involved. Later he released another album titled “Number Ones” which featured 16 of his number one hits during his solo career plus two bonus tracks. During the Invincible era, Michael contributed to many charities and certainly won many awards like past albums did for him. (All Michael Jackson.com) <br />A Closer Look on Michael’s Home Life<br /> 2002 marked the year of the announcement a 3rd child, Prince Michael II. Having three children now, curiosity of how Michael lived his life sparked journalist, Martin Bashir’s interest. Michael agreed to a documentary which covered 8 months of day to day doings. “He wanted to provide the world with a truthful account of his life. After the documentary aired, Michael felt extremely betrayed and actually released his own footage of the daily accounts. From this point on, the path ahead of Michael consisted mainly consisted of defending himself in courts and in front of the press. He still released a 4 cd/1 dvd box set called “The Ultimate Collection” which included most all of his greatest works. (“VH1”) <br />Last Chance<br />Michael announced he would perform a series of concerts beginning in England with a premier date of July 8, 2009. Unfortunately he was unable to fulfill that promise because he suffered from cardiac arrest and passed away June 25, 2009.(“Biography.com”) News of Michael’s death caused a flood of sorrow to many people across the world. He has gone down in history as a true legend. Despite all the controversy, “there was no body like him and he will never be replaced in the hearts and minds of his millions of fans worldwide: forever the King of Pop.” CITATION Chr09 1033 (Roberts)<br />Listed below are some of the albums Michael produced and how many copies sold up until recently:<br />Album TitleRelease DateCopies Sold<br />InvincibleOct 29, 20018-10 Million<br />HIStoryJune 20, 199520+ Million<br />DangerousNov 26, 199130+ Million<br />BadAug 31, 198730+ Million<br />ThrillerNov 30, 198250+ Million<br />Off the WallAug 10, 19920+ Million<br />Bibliography BIBLIOGRAPHY Jackson, Michael. Moon Walk. Double Day, 1988.Michael Jackson. 28 September 2010 <http://www.biography.com/articles/Michael-Jackson-38211>.Roberts, Chris. quot;
Michael Jackson: The King of Pop 1958-2009.quot;
Carlton Books Ltd, 2009. 144.<br />