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How come Michael seems to have less fans in…

filmandmusic

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the age group you’d expect him to have most fans?

Let me clarify. How come it seems MJ’s biggest fanbase are 30 to 40 somethings?
MJ’s peak was in the early 80s, his music was very influential with teenagers. Add 40 years post thriller, this makes the fans then now in their late 50s to late 60s.
Now where are those fans? I don’t know anyone of that age bracket being an MJ fan and it seems there aren’t a lot of them here on the forum either. It is possible people of that age don’t spend their time online of course so maybe they are a silent majority? They’re surely still fans or did they drop off along the years?

I did not research all of this it is just based on gut feeling. In the media for example I see MJ fans ranging from 25 to 45 or so but never really older.
 
I normally see the age group being 40 somewhere around that age group. I'm definitely in the younger group. Probably in the youngest group.
 
filmandmusic said:
the age group you’d expect him to have most fans?

Let me clarify. How come it seems MJ’s biggest fanbase are 30 to 40 somethings?
MJ’s peak was in the early 80s, his music was very influential with teenagers. Add 40 years post thriller, this makes the fans then now in their late 50s to late 60s.
Now where are those fans? I don’t know anyone of that age bracket being an MJ fan and it seems there aren’t a lot of them here on the forum either. It is possible people of that age don’t spend their time online of course so maybe they are a silent majority? They’re surely still fans or did they drop off along the years?

I did not research all of this it is just based on gut feeling. In the media for example I see MJ fans ranging from 25 to 45 or so but never really older.
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Well, Zinnia is at least one of them. Not to call out her age.

As a matter of fact, there's a lotta fans this age on the forum. And on YouTube. Look at any J5/Jacksons material, they're under there.

Meanwhile, another portion probably were fly by night safe to say. And moved away due to various controversies. Not even the big stuff per say, just the general hectic ness and things, tabloid mongering like Paul and the Beatles catalog, et cetera. Unfortunate.
 
I’ve been a fan since the 80s and never in a fanclub until a few months ago. I used to obsess about MJ as a kid, but luckily the mjmania wear off when I got older (even though I always stayed a fan; buying albums attending concerts). I also didn’t love his 2 last albums so I kind of lost interest until This is it (I was going to go to the concert). After watching LN I was chocked and since I have had some time on my hands this year I did some extensive research concerning the allegations and this is how I found my way here. People 40+ usually just don’t have the time or the passion to spend time on a forum. But a lot of my friends 40-50 really love MJ’s music.
 
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This is a general phenomenon which is not restricted only to Michael Jackson's fans.

It has been confirmed by researchers (who have conducted relevant surveys) that people care less about their favorite music as they get older.

Researchers have pinpointed several reasons for that, for example:

One reason is that people have more important priorities in their lives as they get older.

Another reason is that people's musical preferences evolve or change as they get older.
 
mj_frenzy said:
It has been confirmed by researchers (who have conducted relevant surveys) that people care less about their favorite music as they get older.
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Really? Then how is it that boomer acts like The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Dolly Parton, U2, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Garth Brooks, etc still make lots of money touring? On the R&B side, a group like Maze is still somewhat popular and they haven released a record since the early 1990s. Charlie Wilson still gets radio airplay for his new music on the Adult R&B radio format. It was recently announced that New Edition is going to have a residency in Vegas in 2024. Who do you think is the main audience for something like The Rock n Roll Hall Of Fame? I kinda doubt it's Cardi B fans. 😂 Also if older folks don't care about music that much, then why are there all of these tribute bands & singers. Some make good money doing that. There's even hybrid tribute groups like Dread Zeppelin (Elvis Presley & Led Zeppelin) and Beatallica (Beatles & Metallica). There'a another tribute band called The Musical Box who only does Peter Gabriel era Genesis material. Both Phil Collins & Steve Hackett have performed with them and I Think Peter went to one of their shows. Younger people are generally not into jazz. zydeco, or blues. The audience for that is usually older.
 
Michael Jackson continues to inspire younger fans even decades after his peak. I'd wager many people on this forum have only known Michael since the invincible era or even way later so they never got to know the mania surrounding him yet somehow he gets their attention.
Along the way it seems many of his older fans have abandoned him somewhat.
How many MJ impersonators have you seen of 50 years old?

I have the feeling this isn't happening any longer with Elvis or The Beatles though I could be wrong. I have known several 60+ men who are still crazy about Elvis Presley to this day. One of them even gets the exact same haircut, the other one has a "man cave" which looks like a shrine to Elvis.

I don't know , something is missing, something doesn't add up, Michael should have millions of fans or admirers of 50 to 70 year old given that he was super successful when these people were young adults themselves. I do wonder where they are...
 
filmandmusic said:
Michael Jackson continues to inspire younger fans even decades after his peak. I'd wager many people on this forum have only known Michael since the invincible era or even way later so they never got to know the mania surrounding him yet somehow he gets their attention.
Along the way it seems many of his older fans have abandoned him somewhat.
How many MJ impersonators have you seen of 50 years old?

I have the feeling this isn't happening any longer with Elvis or The Beatles though I could be wrong. I have known several 60+ men who are still crazy about Elvis Presley to this day. One of them even gets the exact same haircut, the other one has a "man cave" which looks like a shrine to Elvis.

I don't know , something is missing, something doesn't add up, Michael should have millions of fans or admirers of 50 to 70 year old given that he was super successful when these people were young adults themselves. I do wonder where they are...
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The allegations have played a massive part sadly.

I think the older generation (og fans) will have kids/grandkids of their own and perhaps see MJ in a different light looking back at his behaviour.
 
SeriousEffect. said:
People grow up and stop obsessing over celebrities.
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That answer is too simple imo, it also is quite negative. I for example never obsessed about Michael, I do about his music but not about him as a personality.

I don't see how growing up makes you less enthusiastic about something. Enrico Rava the Italian classical composer became an MJ fan in his late 60s early 70s through the influence of his wife. But people like him seems to be pretty rare.
From what I gather gaming is also very popular among older people so no it doesn't add for me.
 
filmandmusic said:
I don't know , something is missing, something doesn't add up, Michael should have millions of fans or admirers of 50 to 70 year old given that he was super successful when these people were young adults themselves. I do wonder where they are...
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The difference is that other acts have released a lot of music, and some have many unreleased songs like Prince. Mike has very little material that the general public pays attention to and/or is promoted, and the majority of that is from the 3 Quincy Jones produced albums. The only song I still hear on the radio from HIStory is You Are Not Alone. The Jacksons/J5 are not really a thing with today's mainstream audience. It's like The Beatles are still popular now, but Wings not as much. Classic rock acts like The Rolling Stones have a lot of albums and they just released a new one. Hip hop is the main music with younger mainstream listeners, Mike isn't that. This year, there has been the celebration of 50 years of hip hop. You mentioned Elvis, he has over 30 movies that are shown a lot on TV, Mike doesn't have that. I even see Purple Rain broadcast on TV more often than The Wiz.

In general, oldies acts & songs tend to get new audiences if they are still promoted in some kind of way. There's a lot of mostly forgotten old hits and/or acts. But songs like Black In Black by AC/DC are still heard in a lot of places and that song was not a big Top 40 hit when originally released. The movie It's A Wonderful Life was a flop when it first came out. It became really popular decades later when TV stations started showing it all the time.
 
filmandmusic said:
Add 40 years post thriller, this makes the fans then now in their late 50s to late 60s.
Now where are those fans? I don’t know anyone of that age bracket being an MJ fan and it seems there aren’t a lot of them here on the forum either. It is possible people of that age don’t spend their time online of course so
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This. I think this is the reason. You've answered your own question. In short, this forum (or the internet in general) simply cannot be used as a barometer for anything.

People in their 40s don't spend time discussing music on message boards. People in their 50s/60s/70s are far less likely even to use the internet at all.

Just because you don't see them doesn't mean there aren't people in that age group who like MJ. But maybe they don't have the time to listen, and they definitely don't have the time to discuss.

Especially when the singer is dead. Like, what is there to discuss?!

DuranDuran said:
Mike has very little material that the general public pays attention to and/or is promoted, and the majority of that is from the 3 Quincy Jones produced albums.
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This is another good point. At least, I think it's partly true.

The Beatles had 12 albums in 7 years (ie one album release every 7 months on average). MJ had 10 albums in 29 years (ie one album every 3 years on average). That's simply too long between releases. This apparent lack of quantity really hurts his overall catalogue.
 
DuranDuran said:
The difference is that other acts have released a lot of music, and some have many unreleased songs like Prince. Mike has very little material that the general public pays attention to and/or is promoted, and the majority of that is from the 3 Quincy Jones produced albums.
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This is not relevant imo
DuranDuran said:
The only song I still hear on the radio from HIStory is You Are Not Alone.
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Depending the region, YANA is never on the radio where I live but Earth Song and TDCAU frequently
DuranDuran said:
The Jacksons/J5 are not really a thing with today's mainstream audience. It's like The Beatles are still popular now, but Wings not as much.
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agreed
DuranDuran said:
Classic rock acts like The Rolling Stones have a lot of albums and they just released a new one.
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good point
DuranDuran said:
Hip hop is the main music with younger mainstream listeners, Mike isn't that. This year, there has been the celebration of 50 years of hip hop.
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Not relevant
DuranDuran said:
You mentioned Elvis, he has over 30 movies that are shown a lot on TV, Mike doesn't have that. I even see Purple Rain broadcast on TV more often than The Wiz.
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Never seen any Elvis film on tv here, Purple Rain once, the day Prince died. I have seen this is it a handful of times since 2009 on tv
DuranDuran said:
In general, oldies acts & songs tend to get new audiences if they are still promoted in some kind of way. There's a lot of mostly forgotten old hits and/or acts. But songs like Black In Black by AC/DC are still heard in a lot of places and that song was not a big Top 40 hit when originally released.
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Not relevant
DuranDuran said:
The movie It's A Wonderful Life was a flop when it first came out. It became really popular decades later when TV stations started showing it all the time.
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Oh really? I did not know that. True classic.
 
filmandmusic said:
Not relevant
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It is relevant. If something is not promoted, then people are less likely to know about it. Black In Black by AC/DC is still promoted. I Am Love by the Jackson 5 isn't. Go to Youtube and see which of the 2 songs have the most views. One of them also have more reaction videos than the other. Why does Take On Me by A-ha have close to 2 billion views? Because it is promoted today. Take On Me is in a lot of movies, TV shows, & commercials and also oldies radio stations. I Am Love was a single just like Take On Me. Just because something was popular once does not mean it will always be. The Beatles are still popular because they are still promoted. When magazines write about them and people continue to write books about them that's promotion.

That's also true of people who were around when the music was originally released. I see comments on reaction videos saying things like "I forgot about this song. I haven't heard it in 30 years."
 
My mom was a huge MJ fan. Nowadays she just doesn't like him much, but she doesn't really listen to any secular music like that, except jazz. Still she respects him.

My dad was/is a Prince fan.
 
I haven't been to the MJ Musical yet, but I'm sure there are probably a lot of people 40,50+ going. Older people are just generally not so much on social media etc. I also believe MJ has a lot of "closeted" fans now (again) after LN. Just look how everyone "came out" after his death. Like the world was a big MJ family all of a sudden.
 
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librariangirl:) said:
I also believe MJ has a lot of "closeted" fans now (again) after LN. Just look how everyone "came out" after his death. Like the world was a big MJ family all of a sudden.
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You can't compare LN with after his death! 2 completely different situations. There are no bandwagon fans after LN like there was when he died.
People who don't know any better, who watch LN and don't do any research about it, will auomatically believe he is guilty. Why would they suddenly become fans of someone who they believe is a child molester?
 
To be honest I think a fandom/supporter mindset starts and stops when you want it , that's if you ever want it to begin.
Something has to resonate.
The thrilled/ nostalgic / contented comments that are on the new Beatles video are from many people who are in the age ranges which are being suggested here.
 
filmandmusic said:
That answer is too simple imo, it also is quite negative. I for example never obsessed about Michael, I do about his music but not about him as a personality.

I don't see how growing up makes you less enthusiastic about something. Enrico Rava the Italian classical composer became an MJ fan in his late 60s early 70s through the influence of his wife. But people like him seems to be pretty rare.
From what I gather gaming is also very popular among older people so no it doesn't add for me.
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I wasn't intending for it to be negative.

I use myself as an example, I liked Moonwalker as a kid when I was around 4 or 5, but went crazy about Michael in the early 2000s as a teenager after the MSG show.

Liking Michael was my personality to the point where if anything happened with Michael in the news all my friends and family were calling me asking questions, etc. Every online profile I had was some variation of something tied to Michael and I spent all day listening to his music and doing research about anything I could to learn more about him. It was obsessive.

Now I'm 35 and I consider myself a passive fan. I still listen to MJ, but not for hours on end every day. I still defend MJ, but I don't go out of my way looking for opportunities to educate the general public. Aside from this forum not much of any of my identity is as tied to MJ as it was when I was younger.
 
filmandmusic said:
the age group you’d expect him to have most fans?

Let me clarify. How come it seems MJ’s biggest fanbase are 30 to 40 somethings?
MJ’s peak was in the early 80s, his music was very influential with teenagers. Add 40 years post thriller, this makes the fans then now in their late 50s to late 60s.
Now where are those fans? I don’t know anyone of that age bracket being an MJ fan and it seems there aren’t a lot of them here on the forum either. It is possible people of that age don’t spend their time online of course so maybe they are a silent majority? They’re surely still fans or did they drop off along the years?

I did not research all of this it is just based on gut feeling. In the media for example I see MJ fans ranging from 25 to 45 or so but never really older.
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I see Michael fans of all ages especially at MJ fan event’s maybe just not everyone is on here but Michael does have over 5 billion fans worldwide of all ages and all races both men and women he appeals universally
 
Mister_Jay_Tee said:
I was talking about older fans. But alright!
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Lol thanks for clarifying makes sense now! I’m sure there r some young ppl listening & commenting to J5 songs which is nice to know, I myself randomly listened to J5’s “I want you back” this morning lol 😄
 
48, think I started listening to MJ when I was around 9-10 (Thriller/Off The Wall/We Are The World) and continued to follow him after that (went to the Bad Tour in 88).
 
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