How exactly does MJ content gets leaked?

[Lord Jackson]

The only one I really understand, is the LQ leaks we get, which are (most) from Kingvention or some other convention where people who worked with MJ will let the people there listen to some Outtakes that are secretly recorded then uploaded on the Internet

But what about Mastered stuff?
Like the Dangerous acetate with Serious Effect, Work That Body and the rest?
I'd be very surprised if Bernie Grundman leaked them, as if he did he would have gotten his ass sued by the Estate
But somehow, somebody had access to it and leaked it
Any idea on how that happens?

Bonus Question:
Is hacking a possible answer?
Like if someone had the music on a server (or something alike) and it got hacked then leaked

 

[AlwaysThere]

Oftentimes, it’s just a matter of a song falling into the wrong hands. Albums and singles travel through dozens of people before we ever hear them — songwriters, producers, musicians, vocalists, recording studio personnel, managers, agents, label reps, A&R reps, marketing companies, legal teams, trusted friends and family, etc. Somebody’s bound to let it slip for one reason or another.

If I’m not mistaken, “Xscape” leaked because Stuart Brawley (a recording engineer who worked on Invincible) got ahold of a CD copy and sold/gave it to a fan, who uploaded it online.

Hacking is also a culprit. The Sony servers were hacked a few years ago, and I think some of the leaks stemmed from there.

 

[Lord Jackson]

If I’m not mistaken, “Xscape” leaked because Stuart Brawley (a recording engineer who worked on Invincible) got ahold of a CD copy and sold/gave it to a fan, who uploaded it online.

Well, didn't he get sued to Oblivion then?

 

[SmoothGangsta]

Usually passes through people's hands until it's in the trading market, then someone screws someone over and a leak results lol. Most of the time if trading goes well nobody outside hears it. Stuff can also be leaked when too many people have it and it's no longer valuable.

 

[mj_frenzy]

Hacking is in many cases the main culprit.

Madonna for example had her computer hacked by an Israeli man who leaked songs from her upcoming 'Rebel Heart' album before the album's official release.

Also, certain servers from very big artists (in which mastered stuff is stored) are often targeted by hackers because these servers are considered to be gold mine due to their valuable, stored stuff.

This actually happened to Michael Jackson in 2011 when hackers broke into Sony Music's servers and downloaded more than 50,000 music files that contained thousands of Michael Jackson tracks (released songs, unreleased songs, multi-tracks, etc) with a view to illegally later sell them.

In other cases, disgruntled or unpaid collaborators (with access to certain unreleased songs) get their revenge by later leaking them.

 

[Lord Jackson]

downloaded thousands of Michael Jackson tracks (released songs, unreleased songs, multi-tracks, etc) with a view to illegally later sell them.

I'm surprised we didn't get more of those by now
that was a decade ago

 

[SmoothGangsta]

I'm surprised we didn't get more of those by now
that was a decade ago

Not surprising tbh. When someone pays a lot of money for something they're unlikely to want to share it for free. Also, I'm not sure of the validity of "thousands" of tracks being downloaded. The Sony hack wasn't just MJ songs if I recall correctly. There were other artist's material on those servers also.

 

[dam2040]

The Immortal soundtrack creation led to the wave of multi-tracks available now from my understanding.