11th Feb, 2008: MJ News and Mentionings

[L.J]

G'day kiddies!! :shades:


If you haven't heard it yet... Nothing MJ related occurred at the 50th Grammies held this Sunday night.

You can go and see how the drama unfolded in the Grammies thread :lol:

Thread Link: http://www.mjjcommunity.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46015



Ok so on with the news:


Michael Jackson News:


Michael Jackson Settles Neverland Tax Debt


Los Olivos, Calif. (Feb. 11, 2008)
By WebCPA staff


Michael Jackson has finally settled the outstanding $600,000 property tax debt on his Neverland Ranch.
The pop star paid off a state tax lien on the property, according to Santa Barbara County records.
The settlement amount included penalties and fees, but did not take into account the $23 million the singer owes after defaulting on loans he took out on the ranch. One financial services company, Fortress Investment, is already two weeks past the time it can start foreclosing on the property.
The ranch has been vacant since 2005. Jackson has vowed not to return to Neverland because of the bad memories associated with the property, on which he has been accused of child abuse. The ranch at one time attracted hordes of visitors to its Disney-like environment and hosted both a zoo and fairground.


http://www.webcpa.com/article.cfm?articleid=26726



Anniversary edition takes the thrill out of 'Thriller'

One hundred and four million albums sold worldwide.
Thirty-seven weeks at No. 1.
Eight Grammys.
Seven Top 10 hits.
And five unnecessary new tracks that nearly undermine that legacy.
Tonight, Michael Jackson is expected to appear at the Grammy Awards to celebrate the induction of his landmark 1982 album, "Thriller," into the Grammy Hall of Fame. On Tuesday he will release a 25th-anniversary edition of it. The expanded CD/DVD package will include the original nine-song album, one unreleased track from the original sessions, and five reworkings with contributions from contemporary artists that range from innocuous to downright damaging.
Associating with will.i.am, Fergie, Akon, and Kanye West is meant to lend Jackson credibility with today's urban music fans, but adding modern flourishes to a record like "Thriller" doesn't do anything to improve it. If anything, it diminishes the one unblemished chapter of Jackson's creative life.
The stats associated with "Thriller" have always been impressive on their own. But facts and figures don't tell the musical tale. Somewhere between the genuflection of fellow musicians such as Mary J. Blige (who has been part of the reissue's promotion campaign) and the undying devotion of Jackson's fans lies the inarguable fact that "Thriller" was, and remains, a splendid specimen of dance pop. Beyond that, it was a watershed moment in pop music history by any standard: a commercial giant, a critical home run, and a cultural gamechanger.
An element of nostalgia is involved in any reissue, yet this anniversary edition doesn't feel or sound like a museum piece. The percolating twitch of tracks like "Billie Jean" and the dreamy charms of "Human Nature" still hold up and, amazingly, haven't been sullied by the sideshow that eventually tarnished Jackson's public persona.
Production techniques from the '80s have sometimes made listening to music from the era a cringe-worthy exercise. And though Jackson and producer Quincy Jones indulged in the synth-mania of the times (notably on the title track's crashing opening notes), the unassailable melodies, sense of urgency, and freedom that saturate these songs still inspire involuntary neck twitches and impromptu re-creations of Jackson's moves at weddings, parties, and clubs.
For further proof of its enduring impact, look no further than YouTube, which is littered with clips that pay homage to the album - everything from homemade videos of Filipino inmates getting down in the jailhouse yard to last week's Super Bowl ad. Or you could just cock an ear toward the diverse array of current hitmakers who have cribbed from Jackson, from the suave, effortless glides and soul-boy pleas of Chris Brown, Ne-Yo, and Usher to the dance-floor confections of Justin Timberlake and Maroon 5.
It seems fitting, then, that the one extra track that is well-executed and worth hearing on the anniversary release is "For All Time." This sweet, earnest ballad - recorded during the original sessions but left off of the album - sounds like the daytime flipside to "Human Nature." It's similar enough to that song in vocal cadence and keyboard atmospherics to justify its exclusion but it's as good, or better, than the two non-hits ("The Lady in My Life" and "Baby Be Mine") that did make the cut.

If Jackson had simply appended this song and included the DVD - consisting of videos for "Billie Jean," "Beat It," "Thriller," and Jackson's electric appearance on "Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow" - this new "Thriller" would have been the perfect reissue. But the bonus tracks slowly deflate the joy of what came before.
Jackson has certainly made some puzzling moves over the years, but his belief that he could improve on perfection with the help of the Black Eyed Peas has to rank almost as high on his list of bad decisions as returning journalist Martin Bashir's call to participate in a British TV documentary.
Will.i.am, in partnership with co-producer Jackson, is the main criminal here, and there's nothing smooth about it. Working with a demo that predated Paul McCartney's duet vocal, will.i.am hacks up "The Girl Is Mine." A roughed-up guitar sound is head-bobbingly funky, but the addition of his own execrable rap - "she mine, she mine, she mine, she like the way I rock" - makes it unlistenable.
Not satisfied with victimizing one woman, he guts "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing) 2008" - another original demo remix - of its easy, silly charm by the inclusion of such thoughtful Will updates as "You're looking really cute in them jeans/ I'll peel 'em off like a tangerine." BEP bandmate Fergie does no irreparable harm on a remix duet of "Beat It" but adds nothing of value, either.
Akon goes out on a limb with "Wanna Be Startin' Something," with light-fingered faux-vibraphone runs and the addition of a new vocal track from Jackson. Akon's lyrics take the song to the club and then back to the bedroom. It's not a complete success but retains the fidgety essence of the original while feeling fresher than the approach of his peers.
Only Kanye West's chop-shop reworking of "Billie Jean" - he begins with the pre-chorus, ever-so-slightly slows the tempo, beefs up the drum echo - builds on an original without desecrating it. He also wisely limits his vocal contribution to a couple of wordless exclamations and a triumphant shout of "number one!"
You could argue it's a waste of Grammy airtime tonight to celebrate something that has already been endlessly praised. The show is supposed to shine a light on the previous year's best work, and if Jackson, who turns 50 this year, still holds out the slimmest hope of commercial relevance, this trip back to 1982 does him no favors. But considering its incredibly long legs, "Thriller" certainly deserves its place in the pop pantheon.
For those millions who remember the initial rush of "Thriller" and the subsequent generations who received it secondhand but undiluted, anniversaries are meaningless as long as the songs remain the same. Instead of relying on today's whiz kids to help him reminisce, Jackson the musician should summon that fearless 25-year-old and get back to the future.

http://www.boston.com/ae/music/arti...ary_edition_takes_the_thrill_out_of_thriller/









Michael Jackson Mentionings:




'I've finished talking about Michael. I've done it all my career.'



[FONT=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]On the release of her 10th album, Discipline, Janet Jackson talks about her brothers, babies and why she never wants to grow up[/FONT]

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif] Elizabeth Day
Sunday February 10, 2008
The Observer

[/FONT] There are few things in this world more embarrassing than being forced to dance in your chair. This realisation comes to me on a drizzly morning in Manhattan when I find myself in a roomful of earnest music journalists and record executives being played seven tracks from the new Janet Jackson album. We are seated in a large corner office at Island Def Jam Records, surrounded by orchids and ornamental cigar boxes. As each new song is pumped out at ear-splitting volume, a strange competitiveness sets in as to who can appear most in tune with the music.

She is now more commonly referred to as Michael Jackson's sister, the younger sibling who wore a T-shirt emblazoned with the words 'I'm a pervert too' during his trial on 10 counts of child molestation in 2005.

Article in full here:

http://music.guardian.co.uk/pop/story/0,,2253427,00.html#article_continue







'Disorderly Conduct: Recent Art in Tumultuous Times'

Artists in the exhibition at the Orange County Museum of Art depict a world in upheaval.


In his video "Untitled (The Michael Jackson Project)," 2004, McMillian dons white clown makeup to evoke the complex cultural influence of Jackson's continually morphing face. "I was questioning his transformation in a certain way," McMillian says, but "it's more about what we project onto faces, or onto personas, and clowns are definitely things that we project onto and that also supposedly provide a mirror."

In Jackson's case, the man in the mirror reflects the highs and lows of a generation. "When we see current-day Michael Jackson almost in his 50s . . . it's a very different look than when he was 8 years old," says McMillian, 39. "So part of our understanding of him is through our memory of having seen him perform and transform before our eyes over the past 30 to 40 years." Jackson, he says, "represents dystopia, the American dream gone south or gone awry," he says.

http://www.calendarlive.com/tv/radio/cl-ca-disorderly10feb10,0,2384579.story





Michael Jackson HIStory:

1992 - Michael Jackson's single "Remember The Time" was released.

1992 - Michael Jackson began a trip of Africa in Gaob. He had planned to visit the Ivory Coast and Tanzania.




MJJC TIP of the day:

MJJF member's be sure to activate your PMs via your User CP :flowers:

 

[earthlyme]

One hundred and four million albums sold worldwide.
Thirty-seven weeks at No. 1.
Eight Grammys.
Seven Top 10 hits.
And five unnecessary new tracks that nearly undermine that legacy.
Tonight, Michael Jackson is expected to appear at the Grammy Awards to celebrate the induction of his landmark 1982 album, "Thriller," into the Grammy Hall of Fame. On Tuesday he will release a 25th-anniversary edition of it. The expanded CD/DVD package will include the original nine-song album, one unreleased track from the original sessions, and five reworkings with contributions from contemporary artists that range from innocuous to downright damaging.
Associating with will.i.am, Fergie, Akon, and Kanye West is meant to lend Jackson credibility with today's urban music fans, but adding modern flourishes to a record like "Thriller" doesn't do anything to improve it. If anything, it diminishes the one unblemished chapter of Jackson's creative life.
The stats associated with "Thriller" have always been impressive on their own. But facts and figures don't tell the musical tale. Somewhere between the genuflection of fellow musicians such as Mary J. Blige (who has been part of the reissue's promotion campaign) and the undying devotion of Jackson's fans lies the inarguable fact that "Thriller" was, and remains, a splendid specimen of dance pop. Beyond that, it was a watershed moment in pop music history by any standard: a commercial giant, a critical home run, and a cultural gamechanger.
An element of nostalgia is involved in any reissue, yet this anniversary edition doesn't feel or sound like a museum piece. The percolating twitch of tracks like "Billie Jean" and the dreamy charms of "Human Nature" still hold up and, amazingly, haven't been sullied by the sideshow that eventually tarnished Jackson's public persona.
Production techniques from the '80s have sometimes made listening to music from the era a cringe-worthy exercise. And though Jackson and producer Quincy Jones indulged in the synth-mania of the times (notably on the title track's crashing opening notes), the unassailable melodies, sense of urgency, and freedom that saturate these songs still inspire involuntary neck twitches and impromptu re-creations of Jackson's moves at weddings, parties, and clubs.
For further proof of its enduring impact, look no further than YouTube, which is littered with clips that pay homage to the album - everything from homemade videos of Filipino inmates getting down in the jailhouse yard to last week's Super Bowl ad. Or you could just cock an ear toward the diverse array of current hitmakers who have cribbed from Jackson, from the suave, effortless glides and soul-boy pleas of Chris Brown, Ne-Yo, and Usher to the dance-floor confections of Justin Timberlake and Maroon 5.
It seems fitting, then, that the one extra track that is well-executed and worth hearing on the anniversary release is "For All Time." This sweet, earnest ballad - recorded during the original sessions but left off of the album - sounds like the daytime flipside to "Human Nature." It's similar enough to that song in vocal cadence and keyboard atmospherics to justify its exclusion but it's as good, or better, than the two non-hits ("The Lady in My Life" and "Baby Be Mine") that did make the cut.

If Jackson had simply appended this song and included the DVD - consisting of videos for "Billie Jean," "Beat It," "Thriller," and Jackson's electric appearance on "Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow" - this new "Thriller" would have been the perfect reissue. But the bonus tracks slowly deflate the joy of what came before.
Jackson has certainly made some puzzling moves over the years, but his belief that he could improve on perfection with the help of the Black Eyed Peas has to rank almost as high on his list of bad decisions as returning journalist Martin Bashir's call to participate in a British TV documentary.
Will.i.am, in partnership with co-producer Jackson, is the main criminal here, and there's nothing smooth about it. Working with a demo that predated Paul McCartney's duet vocal, will.i.am hacks up "The Girl Is Mine." A roughed-up guitar sound is head-bobbingly funky, but the addition of his own execrable rap - "she mine, she mine, she mine, she like the way I rock" - makes it unlistenable.
Not satisfied with victimizing one woman, he guts "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing) 2008" - another original demo remix - of its easy, silly charm by the inclusion of such thoughtful Will updates as "You're looking really cute in them jeans/ I'll peel 'em off like a tangerine." BEP bandmate Fergie does no irreparable harm on a remix duet of "Beat It" but adds nothing of value, either.
Akon goes out on a limb with "Wanna Be Startin' Something," with light-fingered faux-vibraphone runs and the addition of a new vocal track from Jackson. Akon's lyrics take the song to the club and then back to the bedroom. It's not a complete success but retains the fidgety essence of the original while feeling fresher than the approach of his peers.
Only Kanye West's chop-shop reworking of "Billie Jean" - he begins with the pre-chorus, ever-so-slightly slows the tempo, beefs up the drum echo - builds on an original without desecrating it. He also wisely limits his vocal contribution to a couple of wordless exclamations and a triumphant shout of "number one!"
You could argue it's a waste of Grammy airtime tonight to celebrate something that has already been endlessly praised. The show is supposed to shine a light on the previous year's best work, and if Jackson, who turns 50 this year, still holds out the slimmest hope of commercial relevance, this trip back to 1982 does him no favors. But considering its incredibly long legs, "Thriller" certainly deserves its place in the pop pantheon.
For those millions who remember the initial rush of "Thriller" and the subsequent generations who received it secondhand but undiluted, anniversaries are meaningless as long as the songs remain the same. Instead of relying on today's whiz kids to help him reminisce, Jackson the musician should summon that fearless 25-year-old and get back to the future.

Hmmmmmmmm.... well, I can say i didnt see much of him Yesterday!!!

 

[Nebbby]

****.

that's what he'd like you to think, lol

 

[elusive moonwalker]

****.

just aswell ive seen him then isnt it.

 

[Topflux]

I think he wants to retire. He may launch albums and work in studio but I think he won't perform live ever anymore.

 

[hopespringseternal]

I think he wants to retire. He may launch albums and work in studio but I think he won't perform live ever anymore.

Good then maybe some of you drama queens will quit junking up MJ boards and disappear so they rest of us fans can celebrate and enjoy Michael without the stupid negativity.

 

[athina_livadi]

Good then maybe some of you drama queens will quit junking up MJ boards and disappear so they rest of us fans can celebrate and enjoy Michael without the stupid negativity.

Thank you for saying that! I love you for saying that!
If he wants to retire it's his choice...stop all this crap and leave him alone! We want to enjoy the fact that he is well and happy and some won't let us. Go and nag somewhere else for God's sake! :mello:

 

[Ebony]

Thanks for the news. Do not sleep on Michael guys.

 

[mjjmsc]

oh ,you are all so positive! :-/ i don't understand why you are still coming to this kind of forums...

 

[vinniram]

I want Michael to be happy, and healthy, and to just have a wonderful life. Half his life is come and gone, and I think he has grown, and matured, and developed, and he's ready to fly into the next half with enthusiasm and joy.

And to all you saying people should stop bugging Michael about not performing, I agree. He deserves to be celebrated for his great achievements. That said, I always dreamed of seeing Michael perform just once, and it would be a dream come true if that happened, and I feel no shame in admitting that that's how I feel.

 

[Nebbby]

Thank you for saying that! I love you for saying that!
If he wants to retire it's his choice...stop all this crap and leave him alone! We want to enjoy the fact that he is well and happy and some won't let us. Go and nag somewhere else for God's sake! :mello:

if he wants to retire he should let us all know it! I'm sick of waiting for his comeback. I know he will make a comeback eventually but last night he missed another great opportunity for great publicity which he deserves!

 

[hopespringseternal]

if he wants to retire he should let us all know it! I'm sick of waiting for his comeback. I know he will make a comeback eventually but last night he missed another great opportunity for great publicity which he deserves!

Get over it, it's not the first awards show he hasn't performed it and it won't be the last one he misses, let it go it's Monday. He's Michael Jackson there will be plenty of other opportunities for him to perform if he wants it, going on and on and crying about what he supposedly missed out on is pointless, redundant and borderline stupid at this point.

 

[cinderella]

if he wants to retire he should let us all know it! I'm sick of waiting for his comeback. I know he will make a comeback eventually but last night he missed another great opportunity for great publicity which he deserves!

retire????? come on..... he still has someting to say in this musical/visual world
no way it's not over yet.... more it's a new beginning
..... people should be more patient-_-

 

[athina_livadi]

if he wants to retire he should let us all know it! I'm sick of waiting for his comeback. I know he will make a comeback eventually but last night he missed another great opportunity for great publicity which he deserves!

If you are tired of waiting then DON'T. You choose to wait Michael doesn't make you wait....and he has no obligation to let us know anything if he doesn't want us to know! We are not his boss and he is not a slave. If you are tired of supporting him and waiting for a "comeback" then go and "admire" someone else. Michael isn't making a comeback because he has NEVER stopped!!!unk:

 

[Nebbby]

Get over it, it's not the first awards show he hasn't performed it and it won't be the last one he misses, let it go it's Monday. He's Michael Jackson there will be plenty of other opportunities for him to perform if he wants it, going on and on and crying about what he supposedly missed out on is pointless, redundant and borderline stupid at this point.

somewhat agree. but what is he going to do to promote Thriller 25 which btw isn't selling too well on amazon

 

[Nebbby]

If you are tired of waiting then DON'T. You choose to wait Michael doesn't make you wait....and he has no obligation to let us know anything if he doesn't want us to know! We are not his boss and he is not a slave. If you are tired of supporting him and waiting for a "comeback" then go and "admire" someone else. Michael isn't making a comeback because he has NEVER stopped!!!unk:

letting us know about his plans to retire would be the least he could do!!

 

[cinderella]

somewhat agree. but what is he going to do to promote Thriller 25 which btw isn't selling too well on amazon

why should he promote it?

it's the re-release of the best selling album of all time (25 years old)

it's not the last word from Michael in this bussiness
he has more to offer and he wants more than that.... come on , he is not a a veteran whose career is over-_-

 

[Nebbby]

why should he promote it?

it's the re-release of the best selling album of all time (25 years old)

it's not the last word from Michael in this bussiness
he has more to offer and he wants more than that.... come on , he is not a a veteran whose career is over-_-

well, Sony promised us a big promotional campaign. I just figured Michael would make a few TV appearances as no videos seem to be in the making

 

[L.J]

I didn't see anything in any of those news articles about MJ retiring..... get back on topic y'all and stop looking for chances to fight.

it's getting tiring for those who do want to enjoy surfing on here.

 

[Roxanne]

thankies linda so i was right when i said i was convinced michael wouldnt even show up at the grammy's. damn it feels weird to be right :ermm:

 

[cinderella]

well, Sony promised us a big promotional campaign. I just figured Michael would make a few TV appearances as no videos seem to be in the making

we're going in circles here.....

I don't want to repeat this again and again....

Michael is for sure greatful for his incredible "Thriller" success
but honestly I would be surprised if he would be too willing to promote it....
it would be a trap for him and he knows that as the album is already the best selling album all of time.... I think it's more like a way to check the market before releasing the new material and starting the heavily promotion by himself including apperances, short films and so on

please, never forget that three years ago about this time we would see Michael every single day.... as he was walking to the court of law fighting for his life and dignity.... they wanted to distroy him but they did not

it's hard to be back again as Michael Jackson the singer/dancer
he has to fight for this but he will climb the number 1 charts all around the world finally again.... no doubt about it

 

[Datsymay]

we're going in circles here.....

I don't want to repeat this again and again....

Michael is for sure greatful for his incredible "Thriller" success
but honestly I would be surprised if he would be too willing to promote it....
it would be a trap for him and he knows that as the album is already the best selling album all of time.... I think it's more like a way to check the market before releasing the new material and starting the heavily promotion by himself including apperances, short films and so on

please, never forget that three years ago about this time we would see Michael every single day.... as he was walking to the court of law fighting for his life and dignity.... they wanted to distroy him but they did not

it's hard to be back again as Michael Jackson the singer/dancer
he has to fight for this but he will climb the number 1 charts all around the world finally again.... no doubt about it

You are telling the truth there. I enjoyed the fact that the media were all over the place clambering for his appearance. Who would have thought that they were begging him to appear, and I wonder how many media turned up just to see MJ at the grammy's.

 

[cinderella]

exactly, Datsymay

 

[Rasta Pasta]

Good then maybe some of you drama queens will quit junking up MJ boards and disappear so they rest of us fans can celebrate and enjoy Michael without the stupid negativity.

I CO-SIGN!!

 

[Sparkle72]

..... people should be more patient-_-

Patient?

I'm not moaning here, but his last album was in 2001. The last tour was over a decade ago...and he hasn't peformed in god knows how long.

I think his fans have been patient for long enough don't you?

 

[Poefiend]

^ yeah what they said!! :lol: Rasta Pasta and HopeSpringsEternal
I agree. :flowers:

 

[Rasta Pasta]

If you are tired of waiting then DON'T. You choose to wait Michael doesn't make you wait....and he has no obligation to let us know anything if he doesn't want us to know! We are not his boss and he is not a slave. If you are tired of supporting him and waiting for a "comeback" then go and "admire" someone else. Michael isn't making a comeback because he has NEVER stopped!!!unk:

so glad.. i didn't come on the forum last night... I can't believe people are still biotching.. about Michael not performing at the Grammys.............when the producer already said .. and it was posted on the forum...days ago... that MICHAEL IS NOT PERFORMING...

the Grammy's is not the last award show on or entertainment show.. on the planet.... the world has not ended.. and sky didn't fall..

if MJ upsets u so much..move on..there are plenty of celebs out there.. and stop biotching...its getting real old..

 

[Justthefacts]

I thought this was a news thread? Not a OMG Michael may never sing again thread.

 

[Poefiend]

story at 11.....

 

[cinderella]

Patient?

I'm not moaning here, but his last album was in 2001. The last tour was over a decade ago...and he hasn't peformed in god knows how long.

I think his fans have been patient long enough don't you?

no... you're not moaning, here....right


and how about the trial time??????? how about the whole conspiracy thing..... how about the personal problems and the bad publicity?????

open your eyes, guys and do not be soooooooo selfish....

yeah, some time I'm saying