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Is MJ a Socially Aware Black Artist to You or Not Really?

filmandmusic said:
Michael was never and will never be seen as a serious songwriter so as a result you won’t find his name next to Marvin Gaye, Curtis Mayfield and Stevie Wonder in regard of social awareness. It is basically the curse of a pop artist who has a legion of screaming fans running behind him.
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It's so strange because Michael has written some of the greatest pop music ever in the history of the business.
 
Blues_Away2023 said:
It's so strange because Michael has written some of the greatest pop music ever in the history of the business.
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I do think there's a difference, though, between Michael and the other three. I think of Michael as being very socially and politically aware and it shows in many of his lyrics. But I think of the other three as being Political, with a capital 'p'. Stevie Wonder especially. He was our voice, where I grew up, that's how we thought of him. I don't want to diminish Michael's work bc I think he's brilliant, musically and lyrically, but for political comment / observation / criticism I do think the others have got something extra.

I'm crap at explaining this stuff, though, so I'll leave it there. :D
 
He was in his lyrics and performances, but he rarely gave interviews, rarely spoke publicly and the only time he might have mentioned something that was stronger and more obvious and more in-your-face in content was in that 90s era of his that everything went wrong so messaging would not get through. Yes and I'm talking about HIStory era.

But throughout his career and songs and performances, you'd see tidbits of that here and there.

Plus he was a pop star and critics tend to not take these seriously.
 
To be honest, to me he wasn't. I think he was aware of what black people and in particular, black Americans face in the US and other countries because he was black but I think he tried his best not to show to much preference for black people, he just was socially aware in general. I know he gave a lot to black charities but he was very strategic when it came to his career and he wanted to be known as the guy who loved and helped children regardless of race. He was not like Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye or Curtis Mayfield, but he did his part in other ways, he helped many black famous men see what they could accomplish if they were smart. I still side eye the non-black children and wives but what can I say, he knew what he wanted and went for it.
 
Michael supporting women.

In 1984 Michael spent the night at the White House. In the White House there is a door which contains a quote that president J. Adams wrote in 1800. Michael did a sketch of the door and altered the quote by adding two words, “or Women.”

“May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof.” - US President John Adams

Michael's sketch (below) of the White House doors including the quote from John Adams: “I pray heaven to bestow the best of blessings on this house and all that shall inhabit it. May none but honest and wise men or women rule under this roof.”

mj-art-studio-9.jpg
 
Michael was always very proud of his heritage, and routinely fired back whenever some idiot said things like, "he hates being black", or "he's trying to be white". For the last time, you imbeciles - the man had a very dangerous skin condition! He wrestled with it for the second half of his life, and dealt with it the best he could. The diagnosis of "vitiligo" was confirmed by his autopsy; what more proof do you need?
 
Also, I read somewhere that at one point, Jermaine actually contracted vitiligo. But it was detected very early, so he was able to treat it before it spread. Sadly, Michael wasn't so fortunate.
 
Mister_Jay_Tee said:
You can't contract vitiligo. It's genetic.
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A large consensus hasn't been completely reached on that, at least by many in the scientific field. One website I saw said that about 7% of people genetically linked to a person with vitiligo will also have the condition. But some also believe various environmental factors may also contribute to the disease. Vitiligo itself is also pretty rare, affecting only about 0.5% to 1% of the world's population. So in general, its still being studied and debated. I actually met three people when I was living in Dallas, who all had it to varying degrees. Two of them were grocery clerks, and the other I saw at a bus stop.
 
Moviefan2k4 said:
A large consensus hasn't been completely reached on that, at least by many in the scientific field. One website I saw said that about 7% of people genetically linked to a person with vitiligo will also have the condition. But some also believe various environmental factors may also contribute to the disease. Vitiligo itself is also pretty rare, affecting only about 0.5% to 1% of the world's population. So in general, its still being studied and debated. I actually met three people when I was living in Dallas, who all had it to varying degrees. Two of them were grocery clerks, and the other I saw at a bus stop.
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Vitiligo can be triggered by:
A severe sunburn
Injured skin (cut, scrape, burn)
Getting a strong chemical like phenol on your skin

This is according to Google. So maybe we're both right. It can't be contracted from another person tho.
 
Moviefan2k4 said:
Michael was always very proud of his heritage, and routinely fired back whenever some idiot said things like, "he hates being black", or "he's trying to be white". For the last time, you imbeciles - the man had a very dangerous skin condition! He wrestled with it for the second half of his life, and dealt with it the best he could. The diagnosis of "vitiligo" was confirmed by his autopsy; what more proof do you need?
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That's a bit of a sweeping statement, don't you think? Many of us are well aware of Michael's health issues including the vitiligo. I haven't read all the way through this thread in a while but the discussion, iirc, was pretty wide-ranging. And even if people feel that Michael's lyrics aren't strongly political that doesn't mean they think he was rejecting his ethnic heritage.

It is possible, I suppose, that some newer fans might not be fully aware of Michael's struggles with the vitiligo and the lupus but I would imagine they are in the minority. It doesn't take long for his health to crop up as a subject for discussion. People are not always aware of the difficult medical complications that can arise from either of these medical conditions. But that doesn't make them 'imbeciles'.
 
zinniabooklover said:
That's a bit of a sweeping statement, don't you think? Many of us are well aware of Michael's health issues including the vitiligo. I haven't read all the way through this thread in a while but the discussion, iirc, was pretty wide-ranging. And even if people feel that Michael's lyrics aren't strongly political that doesn't mean they think he was rejecting his ethnic heritage.

It is possible, I suppose, that some newer fans might not be fully aware of Michael's struggles with the vitiligo and the lupus but I would imagine they are in the minority. It doesn't take long for his health to crop up as a subject for discussion. People are not always aware of the difficult medical complications that can arise from either of these medical conditions. But that doesn't make them 'imbeciles'.
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I was mainly referring to the press and other naysayers with that comment, not anyone on the forum. My apologies; I should've been more clear.
 
Moviefan2k4 said:
I was mainly referring to the press and other naysayers with that comment, not anyone on the forum. My apologies; I should've been more clear.
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Fair enough. It was very misleading (imo) the way it was written.

As for the press, I don't even bother. They will always do their thing. I just read a glowing 4 star review of the musical in London. Fabulous stuff as long as you ignore the stupid headline. 🙄
 
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