Michael Jackson
King o' the Pop
 |
American singer, dancer, and songwriter
Michael Jackson performs during a 1993 concert tour in Asia. Jackson began his career as a
child performing with his brothers in the group known as the Jackson Five, and achieved
worldwide fame as a solo performer, largely due to his highly personal style of singing
and dancing. Jackson’s greatest musical success, the 1982 album Thriller, won
an unprecedented eight Grammy Awards, produced a record-breaking seven Top Ten hits, and
became the best-selling album in history. Because of Jackson’s eccentric and
reclusive lifestyle, he has been a frequent target of the media spotlight. |
Jackson,
Michael (1958- ), American popular singer, dancer, and songwriter, known for his
dancing style, slight physical appearance, and unprecedented popular success. Jackson was
born in Gary, Indiana. At the age of five he joined his brothers' singing group, then
known as the Jackson Five and later renamed the Jacksons. Michael's dancing ability as
well as his singing skills made him the group's leader. Under the sponsorship of music
producer Berry Gordy, the group became very popular, recording albums and making personal
and television appearances.
Jackson's first solo album, Got
to Be There (1971), established him as a solo performer. Leaving the family group, he
played the Scarecrow in the musical film The Wiz (1978) and recorded the album Off
the Wall (1979), which included a number of songs he had written. His album Thriller
(1982) earned an unprecedented eight Grammy Awards and sold more than 40 million copies,
making it the best-selling album in history up to that time. The music videos of the singles "Beat It" (for which he received a Grammy) and
"Billie Jean" from this album made Jackson a popular performer on MTV (Music Television).
Jackson rejoined his brothers
on a six-month tour after the release of their album Victory (1984). He also
cowrote (with Lionel Richie) the song "We Are the World" (1985), which was
performed by a group of more than 40 popular musicians, with all profits from audio and
video sales donated to alleviate world hunger. Subsequently, Jackson's album Bad
(1987) and the title single, as well as the video of the song, became bestsellers, as did
his album Dangerous (1991) and the single "Remember the Time" (1991). In
1995 the double album HIStory was released. Half of the album is a compilation of
the most successful songs from Thriller, Bad, and Dangerous, while
the other half is a collection of original compositions. In 1996 Jackson won a Grammy
Award for the music video "Scream" (1995), which he created with his sister
Janet. That same year he and Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of the late rock singer Elvis
Presley, whom he had wed in 1994, divorced. Jackson's autobiography, Moonwalk, was
published in 1988.
