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Xscape General Discussion

Hess said:
Maybe next project will be even more amazing - not many leaked songs back - so if next album has 8 songs too - maybe 6 or 7 of those will be songs we've never heard before. - I just hope they are as good as the songs on Xscape.
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Thats the reason I will be even more excited for the next full album than for Xscape. Most of the awesome leaked tracks are now released. As long as they don't decide to pack all of the Dangerous bonus-CD leaks on that album, most of them will be totally new to us!

They don't need to hurry with new stuff, it won't rot away if properly stored. So someday we will get to hear probably awesome stuff like from the RedOne sessions and I'm patiently looking forward to that day :D
 
OnirMJ said:
That is false. I didn't like the idea of unfinished demo from 1980 being on the album with almost complete professionally recorded songs from 90's and 00's. And I still think that. After I found out that that demo with incomplete lyrics will be the first single from highly anticipated new MJ album I was disappointed, because I thought that was the wrong decision. After I heard poor McClain's version on iHearts Music Awards I was furious and frustrated - yes I admit. BUT immediately after hearing masterfully produced Timbaland version with brilliant JT backing vocals I changed my mind and publicly admitted here that I was wrong. Nothing wrong with that. Who could have known back then what Timbo will do with it? That song proves his talent, he really is a production genious. From 30 year old demo tape with no multitracks he created a classic MJ song. I think I can't be blamed for not believing in miracles.

And even though Timbo did great job, LNFSG is still not my favourite song from the album or "most accomplished thing in my book". I still think that both Chicago and Slave To The Rhythm are better songs and that they should have been released as singles before LNFSG.
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So now in retrospect after seeing how well and acclaimed LNFSG was by critics and how it became a smash on the charts you still would have choosen Chicago and STTR as singles before LNFSG? Lol, come on man.
 
Themidwestcowboy said:
So now in retrospect after seeing how well and acclaimed LNFSG was by critics and how it became a smash on the charts you still would have choosen Chicago and STTR as singles before LNFSG?
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Yes. And how do you know that Slave and Chicago would not be received the same or even better? Those brilliant songs didn't even get the chance to become hits. And Slave was very well received among people when that Sony commercial first aired month before the album was released and after Billboard "hologram" performance. If they released it as a single and promoted it like they did with LNFSG it would definitely be a smash hit. CD single with remixes, album version and guest duet artist or rapper and with great video/extended Xperia Z2 commercial!
 
OnirMJ said:
Yes. And how do you know that Slave and Chicago would not be received the same or even better?
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I've read dozens upon dozens of professional reviews of XSCAPE out of curiosity as to how the general public is perceiving it. Every single article I've read, even those that have given an overall negative review of the album, has showered "Love Never Felt So Good" with positive remarks. "Chicago" and "Slave to the Rhythm" have not had such luck - I distinctly recall some reviews calling them the worst on the album.

"Love Never Felt So Good" is the type of feel-good Michael Jackson song that we haven't heard in years - no drama, no troubles, just upbeat fun. The general public aren't the biggest fans of the abrasive Michael, as reviews of XSCAPE have outlined.

Releasing "Chicago" or "Slave to the Rhythm" as the lead single would have been an awful idea. "Love Never Felt So Good" was perfect. And its reception (#8 in the United States, overwhelmingly positive critical reception) proves it.
 
AlwaysThere said:
I've read dozens upon dozens of professional reviews of XSCAPE out of curiosity as to how the general public is perceiving it. Every single article I've read, even those that have given an overall negative review of the album, has showered "Love Never Felt So Good" with positive remarks. "Chicago" and "Slave to the Rhythm" have not had such luck - I distinctly recall some reviews calling them the worst on the album.

"Love Never Felt So Good" is the type of feel-good Michael Jackson song that we haven't heard in years - no drama, no troubles, just upbeat fun. The general public aren't the biggest fans of the abrasive Michael, as reviews of XSCAPE have outlined.

Releasing "Chicago" or "Slave to the Rhythm" as the lead single would have been an awful idea. "Love Never Felt So Good" was perfect. And its reception (#8 in the United States, overwhelmingly positive critical reception) proves it.
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I agree. LNFSG was the perfect choice for a lead single, not only for the reasons you stated, but also because right now it seems this type of old-school feel good songs are having a revival as artists like Pharrell, Bruno Mars, Daft Punk and Timberlake himself are having big success on the charts with similar sounding songs.

So it was definitely the best choice to get radio and public on board.
 
thiron said:
Most of the awesome leaked tracks are now released. As long as they don't decide to pack all of the Dangerous bonus-CD leaks on that album, most of them will be totally new to us!
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There are still number of leaked songs out there. Not just Dangerous outtakes, but Thriller demos also, I Am A Loser, Days In Gloucestershire. And even People Of The World - with all star guests - something like We Are The World or What More Can I Give. All those songs are releasable in some way. So there is still number of unreleased leaked tracks. Also don't forget Freddie Mercury demos, maybe Estate will also want to take their take on these songs.
 
AlwaysThere said:
I've read dozens upon dozens of professional reviews of XSCAPE out of curiosity as to how the general public is perceiving it. Every single article I've read, even those that have given an overall negative review of the album, has showered "Love Never Felt So Good" with positive remarks. "Chicago" and "Slave to the Rhythm" have not had such luck - I distinctly recall some reviews calling them the worst on the album.
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"critical reception" and "professional reviews" - professional in what??

Are we even in MJ forum or what? Those are the same people and the same "profession" that bashed Bad, Dangerous, HIStory & BOTDF. And Invincible before even or without even hearing it.

I don't care what those douchebags have to say. The songs would be hits. The general public had great reception of both songs. On youtube, twitter... Also Slave To The Rhythm was extremely positively received after Sony Xperia ad aired. Everyone asked "what's the name of this song" and everyone praised the song. Also millions of views of "hologram" performance (which sucked) but they seemed to love it.
 
OnirMJ said:
"critical reception" and "professional reviews" - professional in what??

Are we even in MJ forum or what? Those are the same people and the same "profession" that bashed Bad, Dangerous, HIStory & BOTDF. And Invincible before even or without even hearing it.

I don't care what those douchebags have to say. The songs would be hits. The general public had great reception of both songs. On youtube, twitter... Also Slave To The Rhythm was extremely positively received after Sony Xperia ad aired. Everyone asked "what's the name of this song" and everyone praised the song. Also millions of views of "hologram" performance (which sucked) but they seemed to love it.
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Probably your right with Slave To The Rhythm. But not as a first single. As the second it would have been perfect!
But Love Never Felt So Good was the best choice they could do ;)
 
Well XSCAPE was a great album. Better than Michael. Michael only had HMH and Behind The Mask as a good single. But with XSCAPE I love almost every single song.

The Estate/Sony missed so many opportunities. They should have released STTR after the hologram performance and they should have premiered APWNN through a YouTube link on Twitter. And as last not releasing Chicago as a single was a huge dumb mistake.

It seems like they didn't even care anymore after making their profits....
 
OnirMJ said:
Yes. And how do you know that Slave and Chicago would not be received the same or even better? Those brilliant songs didn't even get the chance to become hits. And Slave was very well received among people when that Sony commercial first aired month before the album was released and after Billboard "hologram" performance. If they released it as a single and promoted it like they did with LNFSG it would definitely be a smash hit. CD single with remixes, album version and guest duet artist or rapper and with great video/extended Xperia Z2 commercial!
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Now you're just being obstinate man. Place and time for everything. It was the right time to release LNFSG. The throwback disco sound was very prominent in the charts, it had a summervibe, nice catchy song not hard to sing along too not too aggressive. They played their cards right with the 1st single. Don't be that way just because you were proven wrong.
 
OnirMJ said:
"critical reception" and "professional reviews" - professional in what??

Are we even in MJ forum or what? Those are the same people and the same "profession" that bashed Bad, Dangerous, HIStory & BOTDF. And Invincible before even or without even hearing it.

I don't care what those douchebags have to say. The songs would be hits. The general public had great reception of both songs. On youtube, twitter... Also Slave To The Rhythm was extremely positively received after Sony Xperia ad aired. Everyone asked "what's the name of this song" and everyone praised the song. Also millions of views of "hologram" performance (which sucked) but they seemed to love it.
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Says who? Because a few YouTube comments have given the songs positive reviews? Keep in mind that most of those reviews are from people who are borderline obsessed with Michael and praise anything that has his name plastered on it - and yes, I've looked.

You need to get off this. You aren't in charge of the Estate, you don't have a say in what songs are released as singles. Live with it.
 
Doggone said:
Well XSCAPE was a great album.

The Estate/Sony missed so many opportunities. They should have released STTR after the hologram performance and they should have premiered APWNN through a YouTube link on Twitter. And as last not releasing Chicago as a single was a huge dumb mistake.

It seems like they didn't even care anymore after making their profits....
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I totally agree about STTR and APWNN. I think they should have been released at the time in your post. Strike while the iron is hot.
I think they both would have done great.
I think Xscape did amazingly well but
I'm very sorry that they didn't keep it going.
 
AlwaysThere said:
You need to get off this. You aren't in charge of the Estate, you don't have a say in what songs are released as singles. Live with it.
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And that's why we should criticize the Estate. They think they are doing the right thing but not always. They made some mistakes in the past with XSCAPE. Criticize them so that they can learn from their mistakes.
 
Doggone said:
And that's why we should criticize the Estate. They think they are doing the right thing but not always. They made some mistakes in the past with XSCAPE. Criticize them so that they can learn from their mistakes.
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I definitely agree.

However I don't believe that the only service we should offer the Estate is criticism. They screw up more than the average Joe but they've also hit certain things right on the head. Criticism should be equal to praise.
 
ThatGrapeJuice (Sam) @thatgrapejuice · March, 17th

The Numbers Are In: 'Empire' Beats Madonna To #1...Despite Singer Selling More http://bit.ly/1be4fC1

just interesting, if true... how was Xscape doing in its first week ?
 
Michael Jackson's Xscape Origins: The First Review

Posted: 03/18/2015 10:23 am EDT Updated: 2 hours ago (name of book author contains blocked words)
Charles Thomson

They say every cloud has a silver lining. It is a nice sentiment and the world would be a far lovelier place if it were true, but when Sony released Xscape last year - its latest collection of remixed Michael Jackson demos - it seemed positively irredeemable. Muddled, uninspired and inexplicably issued on the only record label Jackson chose to protest against in his lifetime, many of the star's fans were so unimpressed they felt moved to boycott the release.
I used this blog to deliver my own withering appraisal of the collection, drawing on Jackson's own writings and interviews to demonstrate why he would have opposed such a release. While the original demos - released in an expanded version of the album - provided a tantalising glimpse of Jackson's creative process, it remained the case that he had left each of these tracks on the cutting floor for a reason, and some of those reasons were apparent upon listening. Moreover, the 'contemporized'(vandalized) new versions were universally inferior to Jackson's original concepts.

It is with great surprise, therefore, that I find myself conceding that something positive has actually come from the album's release. It comes in the form of Xscape Origins, a new book by Australian journalist . After reading my Xscape review he sent me an early draft of the manuscript and I can now post the world exclusive first review of the final product.



[/center]Book cover used with written permission from . ******.(DS) *******
[/center]******* was perplexed that Sony relegated the Jackson's original compositions to a bonus disc on a more expensive version of the album. While current producers were wheeled out for seemingly endless interviews to promote their re-imaginings of the artist's work, Jackson's own vision and process was almost completely overlooked.
Determined to right this perceived wrong, ******* flew to America to interview a number of Jackson's original collaborators, including songwriters, studio engineers and producers. In his book he presents a comprehensive back story for each track. The result is a revealing and exciting insight into the working habits of pop's most reclusive star.
If the Xscape demos provided a tantalizing glimpse of Jackson's alchemy, *******'s book boots down the studio door and places the reader right there behind the mixing deck, providing a front row view of the star's process. And what a process it was, with the singer funding round-the-clock work by world class musicians and engineers, sometimes on and off for decades, to perfect each track before it could be released under his name.

In *******'s extensive interviews, Jackson's collaborators portray him as a tireless perfectionist; he had enjoyed a longer career by age 18 than most artists ever manage and was therefore determined that he would not waste more of his life recording unless he could produce something truly ground-breaking every time.
While exacting, Jackson appears typically childlike in many of the book's tales from the studio. In one, Jackson tells his producers off for not thinking far enough outside the box, asking what's stopping them from simply inventing a new musical instrument. In constant search of a new sonic experience, Jackson sets up a microphone on the floor and records himself splatting eggs. Another day, he sends his team to a junkyard to 'find me some new sounds'.
Jackson is like a musical mad professor, refusing to be constrained by tradition or accepted practice. That said, not all of the tracks are born of such wild sonic experiments. Some evolve from good, old-fashioned jam sessions, Jackson at one point busting his famous stage moves in the recording studio as he challenges his bassist to keep creating rhythms that make him want to dance.

These insights are invaluable. As ******* acknowledges in his opening pages, Jackson is arguably not always afforded the credit he deserves as a musician, in part because he largely refused to engage in any meaningful discussion of his work. Schooled at Motown, he learned from a young age that to be anything other than irritatingly non-committal in press interviews was completely out of the question.
He routinely batted away questions about his process, insisting at times that he could take no credit for his music, which he would blandly claim God had given to him, fully-formed. He would notably change tact when he ended up in a courtroom, as he so often did, facing frivolous plagiarism suits, at which point he would suddenly be able to give a step-by-step account of each song's creation - but precious little of that testimony has been made public and as such, mystery continues to surround his methods.

The process described in *******'s book is surprisingly collaborative. While Jackson would frequently bring his own material to the table (one collaborator recalls him singing entire compositions to his musicians - every note of every chord - so they could play and record them), he was equally happy recording others' material if he felt it was strong enough. At any one time, he may have three teams of producers all working separately on one album, competing with one another to create the best songs and secure their place on the CD.

In some cases, *******'s stories are more interesting than the songs they describe. After all, these were tunes Jackson ultimately decided were not worthy of inclusion on his albums. The creators of Blue Gangsta repeatedly describe the track to ******* as a 'modern day Smooth Criminal' - which sounds a lot like wishful thinking. Monotonous - not to mention slightly ridiculous, given Jackson's public image by the time he recorded it - the tune was somewhat of a low point on the collection. However, reading the team's vivid recollections of Jackson stepping into the booth to record his vocal almost gave me goosebumps by proxy.

Moreover, some chapters do not necessarily only detail the creation of individual tracks. ******* uses some songs as vehicles to detail months of sessions, particularly for Jackson's 2001 album Invincible, whose creation was turbulent and has long been shrouded in rumor and secrecy. The Invincible chapters also document the star's deteriorating relationship with Sony.

Hundreds of books have been written about Michael Jackson, but this is one of the very few must-reads to have been published since his death, forgetting his much-debated private life and shedding light on the one area most people appear least informed about; his work.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/charles-thomson/michael-jacksons-xscape-o_b_6889006.html

Aside: I disagree with the writer. I simply love Xscape.:yes:

I agree with him about the amazing methods Michael Jackson used to create his music.
But, I disagree with him about the Xscape CD. I simply think Xscape is AMAZING!!!!


Also there are other books that analyze Michael Jackson's music, for example:
331/3 Dangerous by Susan Fast and Man in the Music by Joseph Vogel,
Also, I wonder if he has seen the film documentaries "Bad" by Spike Lee, and his upcoming
"Off the Wall" film documentary.
 
Paris78;4081900 said:
ThatGrapeJuice (Sam) @thatgrapejuice · March, 17th

The Numbers Are In: 'Empire' Beats Madonna To #1...Despite Singer Selling More http://bit.ly/1be4fC1

just interesting, if true... how was Xscape doing in its first week ?
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It sold 157,000 in its first week. So now it would be easily #1.
 
Do you know if they have to stream the whole album or if the count individual songs?
This is on things like Spotify and Pandora, right?
Can you also listen to the album on YouTube and does that count?

Charles Thomsons articles come across as rather nasty at times. He must be one of the anti Estate people.
 
Paris78;4081900 said:
just interesting, if true... how was Xscape doing in its first week ?
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It is true.

http://www.billboard.com/articles/c...pire-soundtrack-number-one-madonna-number-two

Columbia promoted this soundtrack in conjunction and through the U.S. television program, Empire, where Timbaland is the executive music producer. It is number one on Itunes AND Billboard. Columbia correctly distributed free copies AFTER the U.S. Billboard number one was secured. Streaming was helpful as it was with Xscape’s LNFSG and STTR. Madonna's recent musings on Michael in several interviews and social media unfortunately did not help with her sales.

barbee0715;4081936 said:
Do you know if they have to stream the whole album or if the count individual songs?
This is on things like Spotify and Pandora, right?
Can you also listen to the album on YouTube and does that count?
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The album is number one. Columbia released a single each week through the television show for purchase on Itunes. It is actually quite ingenious and is similar to an idea I believe Michael had for releases during the TII tour. The album can stream on YT as well.

Charles Thomsons articles come across as rather nasty at times. He must be one of the anti Estate people.
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???

Charles Thomson may not have appreciated Xscape but, D.amien S.hields does and has written a book about the development of each song. S.hields’ articles on Xscape on his website have been particularly invaluable because his focus is on Michael’s process as opposed to Estate/Sony's focus on the Xscape’s producers (Timbaland, Stargate, Jerkins, etc.) This book has received praise from Sundberg and Michael Prince. Matt Forger authored the book's foreword.

Adding:

respect77;4081913 said:
It sold 157,000 in its first week. So now it would be easily #1.
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That is not a good comparison in my view. The time periods are different and timing is very important in securing a number one spot.
 
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respect77 said:
It sold 157,000 in its first week. So now it would be easily #1.
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And now with the new rules of streaming and single sales added to the album sales, I think Xscape would've generated an even bigger number because LNFSG was a big hit at the time having solid streams and sales.

barbee0715 said:
Do you know if they have to stream the whole album or if the count individual songs?
This is on things like Spotify and Pandora, right?
Can you also listen to the album on YouTube and does that count?
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You can stream just one song from the album and it will count - if that song got 1500 streams it counts like one album sale. This is why albums that have spawned big hits will have an advantage with both streaming and single sales.

I think Youtube and Pandora do not count towards the album chart. Youtube views only count towards the singles chart (HOT 100). Spotify, iTunes, Google Play streaming counts towards the album chart.

Charles Thomsons articles come across as rather nasty at times. He must be one of the anti Estate people.
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He is anti-Estate. Not only that, but he trashed MJ himself pretty bad before he passed.
 
elke hassell @ElkeHassell ·
Message from the Michael Jackson Estate
CAaoLRIUcAAqVow.png:large


is this a new message ??
 
Every time a song from Xscape comes on my playlist I love it.

Still can't figure why anyone disliked this project.
 
Tony R said:
Every time a song from Xscape comes on my playlist I love it.

Still can't figure why anyone disliked this project.
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Taste is what it mainly comes down to for me anyway. 6 out of the 8 contemporary versions are not enjoyable in any way.
 
Felt the urge to jump in here and admit that Timbaland's version of "Do You Know Where Your Children Are," which I initially disliked, has been steadily growing on me over the past few months. It's a major improvement over the demo oddly enough.
 
AlwaysThere said:
Felt the urge to jump in here and admit that Timbaland's version of "Do You Know Where Your Children Are," which I initially disliked, has been steadily growing on me over the past few months. It's a major improvement over the demo oddly enough.
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Funnily enough, I listened to all of Xscape the other day at work, and that was one of the songs I most liked originally. Now I can't stand it. I like the fact that it sounds like a Commodore 64 game though, I love that retro 8-bit sound!
 
Does anyone else find it quite ironic that the entire basis of Xscape was to modernize Michael's songs to match current pop music, yet the album's biggest success has been "Love Never Felt So Good," a song that sounds directly out of the '70s/'80s? Even negative reviews of the album as a whole sing praise to that song as a wonderful throwback to the upbeat Michael.

I dunno. Just struck me today.
 
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