What kind of music does Michael Jackson listen too?

Alot of classical. I spotted an entire Simon & Garfunkel collection when i was in his room. Supremes too.
 
What kind of music "does" Michael Jackson listen to? 😩

Why bump a thread from 13 years ago dude?

Man, l was buzzing to get my This is it tickets. I remember getting a text message with the presale code the day before.

Never did get to see MJ live.
 
Why bump a thread from 13 years ago dude?
Because like I mentioned I was reading a book and I didn't see any point in starting a thread just about the comment. I'm not like some people here who make a new thread when there's 10 other ones about the same thing. 😀 I use the search box. I remember the older threads, because I was here when they were created and/or posted in them.
 
I'm reading a book called Nöthin' But A Good Time: The Uncensored History Of The '80s Hard Rock Explosion. It was released in 2021 and is primarily about glam metal bands, but does speak about other types of hard rock acts. Here's a comment in the book from Rikki Rockett, who is the drummer for Poison talking about their music video for Talk Dirty To Me:

"I only realized what we had accomplished with that video years later when I met Michael Jackson. I said 'Listen, I don't know if you know anything about our band, but I'm the drummer for Poison. I just wanted to say hi.' He turns around and he goes, 'Man, every time your video comes on, I sit down because you're having such a good time. I don't want to miss a second of it.' So if some dude says 'Oh you guys suck', it's like, Who fu----- cares? Michael Jackson saw the value in Poison. How cool is that?"
I love this. Ngl, Poison are not for me. They always seemed like a poor man's Bon Jovi. That said, I can see what Michael means about them having loads of fun in that video. And I *loved* the guy's quote about Michael seeing the value in Poison. Rock musicians usually 'get' Michael and he clearly 'gets' them.

"Michael Jackson saw the value in Poison". LOVE that. :D
 
Because like I mentioned I was reading a book and I didn't see any point in starting a thread just about the comment. I'm not like some people here who make a new thread when there's 10 other ones about the same thing. 😀 I use the search box. I remember the older threads, because I was here when they were created and/or posted in them.
Lol I know @zinniabooklover loves to bump old photo threads (not a complaint!!) so I can guarantee you're not alone! I actually like it, it's not like the threads are locked and a lot of them remain relevant over time.

Meanwhile I still need to... improve my own search box skills. 😵😅
 
Lol I know @zinniabooklover loves to bump old photo threads (not a complaint!!) so I can guarantee you're not alone! I actually like it, it's not like the threads are locked and a lot of them remain relevant over time.
I've bumped lots of different threads. Turns out, not everyone is up for that. Who knew? Not me, that's for sure. There was a bit of a kerfuffle about the bumping over the summer. Some people complained about it which was surprising to me bc if you read the 'guidance' notes from Gaz, they *specifically* state that you should check first to make sure the subject you want to discuss doesn't already have a thread. If one already exists, you are encouraged to reactivate the old thread. It's a pretty clear instruction. He also mentioned this in the live chat.

I've learnt so much from the old threads. The original version of DD being 7 minutes long with a big guitar solo from Stevie Stevens. A fab interview with Alex Al, bass player who worked with Michael for years. That thread had some lovely little stories in it. Another thread which led me to re-discovering the Smash Hits interview that Michael did in Jan 1983. His last ever UK interview, as it happens. I had forgotten all about it.

There is gold on this board. Absolute gold. Funnily enough, I don't bump that many threads. For every one I've bumped there's probably 10 or 20 that I didn't bother with. Too short, not interesting enough, too emotional - lots of reasons. I'm not obsessed with old threads but there is some seriously good stuff here. It's like Aladdin's cave, lol.
 
Because like I mentioned I was reading a book and I didn't see any point in starting a thread just about the comment. I'm not like some people here who make a new thread when there's 10 other ones about the same thing. 😀 I use the search box. I remember the older threads, because I was here when they were created and/or posted in them.
I was also here back then too although under a different name and don't remember that thread.

Each to their own though 😀
 
Michael Jackson liked listening to hip hop, but he liked the music itself, and not the dancing which looked like doing aerobics (according to his own words).

He also liked listening to the early Motown (soulful) stuff, such as Stevie Wonder, Sammy Davis Jr., and Gene Kelly.

Michael Jackson also liked listening to Whitney Houston, Barbra Streisand, Nat King Cole, and Sam Cooke.

He even liked listening to Johnny Mathis' music.

But first and foremost, Michael Jackson liked listening to classical music.

That is why he used to expose people to classical music so often, not just at his Neverland Ranch, but also through certain of his songs and tours (especially through his HIStory Tour).
 
I've learnt so much from the old threads. The original version of DD being 7 minutes long with a big guitar solo from Stevie Stevens.
Just revisited the Stevie Stevens interview. I'd forgotten that Michael asked Stevie if he knew Motley Crue so I guess Michael liked their music. Or had some interest in them. Motley Crue were a bit wild. Maybe that appealed to him. Who knows but it's interesting to me.

😲 Oohh, very off-topic but I'd love to see that one released! 😍
I really wanna see that footage. It's out there, somewhere. 👀
 
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Here's a link to another thread listing things Michael liked. The OP has listed various things including music and composers. The info came from interviews, books or comments made by other people.

 
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Nine Inch Nails - I'm sure I read somewhere (can't remember where) that he particularly loved The Downward Spiral which is easy to believe.
this info comes from Rob Hoffman, it was a thread online where people that worked with MJ talked about their experiences with him in the studio

quote:
"He was a huge fan of Nine Inch Nails Downward Spiral"

Me too Michael, me too 🙏
 
Michael definitely had his ear to what was going on. Based on the stories I hear by some artists I follow, who r mainly Hip Hop/R&B artists, they're usually surprised to find out how much he knows their music lol. Told Pharrell (indirectly) that he wants something that sounded like Super Thug by N.O.R.E. Even R&B artists like Ne Yo & others have stories about either meeting him or being on the phone with him & he would sing a little bit of a song the artist made to them
 
He didn't sing along.
Which usually anyone that hears it does 😂
 
Here's another part of the book that mentions Mike. This particular chapter is about the clothing designers for the rock bands/singers.

Al Bane (leather designer): With Warrant we kind of built a cleaner sleazy look, if you will. Back then Poison was out there. L.A. Guns and Pretty Boy Floyd, all these bands were kind of competing against each other. And here comes Warrant. So what can we do? Well, we didn't do much different from what everybody else was doing—we just applied ourselves a little bit.

Joey Allen (Warrant guitarist): Al Bane made all the cool buckle-y stuff that Jani [Lane - Warrant lead singer] used to wear. In fact he made the Bad jacket for Michael Jackson. And he pretty much, in my eyes, I mean you'd have to ask Al Bane, but he ripped that off from Jani.

Al Bane: I gotta rewind the story a little bit. One day I got a phone call at my mom's house— "They're gonna send a car to pick you up". I'm twenty, twenty-one years old, whatever. This limo pulls up, I get in, and we drive to Universal Studios. They frisk me and we walk into this room. And way on the other side of this room is a stage. You can hear sound, there's lighting going on, it's a dress rehearsal. They make me wait in this little area and then these people drive up in a little golf cart. I recognize one guy, it's Quincy Jones. And this guy in a robe, with a hood over his head, it's clear he's just gotten off the stage. They put him on a sitting pedestal, it looks like a wedding cake. Then they bring me up to approach the guy, and he pulls his hood off and it's freaking Michael Jackson! I'm looking at him going, "Oh my god." The Michael Jackson reaches into his pocket and he brings out a crumpled-up Warrant flyer. And he goes [in high voice] "Are you Al Bane, the man with the leather?"

So Michael Jackson copied Warrant's look for Bad. Go look at the cover—the black cotton jacket with a bunch of belt buckles on it. Only with Warrant it was a cheap pin-star concho belt thing instead of custom-made rhinestones, you know what I mean? It's Michael Jackson versus unsigned Warrant.

One thing that happened with Michael Jackson was that after he pulled out that Warrant flyer, somebody says, "go get the TV." They roll in a big 1970s TV on a fu--ing cart, like in your junior high school, they put a videotape in the VCR and...there's Warrant onstage! And Michael says, "They jump around like circus performers, and they do it everyday. Where my stuff [clothes] is falling apart during one dress rehearsal." Michael goes through half a song and the crotch is blown out on his pants. Meanwhile, the Warrant guys are doing everything they do and the pants are holding up every night. So what's the difference? Why can't Michael Jackson's clothes stay together and Warrant's did?
 
Here's another part of the book that mentions Mike. This particular chapter is about the clothing designers for the rock bands/singers.

Al Bane (leather designer): With Warrant we kind of built a cleaner sleazy look, if you will. Back then Poison was out there. L.A. Guns and Pretty Boy Floyd, all these bands were kind of competing against each other. And here comes Warrant. So what can we do? Well, we didn't do much different from what everybody else was doing—we just applied ourselves a little bit.

Joey Allen (Warrant guitarist): Al Bane made all the cool buckle-y stuff that Jani [Lane - Warrant lead singer] used to wear. In fact he made the Bad jacket for Michael Jackson. And he pretty much, in my eyes, I mean you'd have to ask Al Bane, but he ripped that off from Jani.

Al Bane: I gotta rewind the story a little bit. One day I got a phone call at my mom's house— "They're gonna send a car to pick you up". I'm twenty, twenty-one years old, whatever. This limo pulls up, I get in, and we drive to Universal Studios. They frisk me and we walk into this room. And way on the other side of this room is a stage. You can hear sound, there's lighting going on, it's a dress rehearsal. They make me wait in this little area and then these people drive up in a little golf cart. I recognize one guy, it's Quincy Jones. And this guy in a robe, with a hood over his head, it's clear he's just gotten off the stage. They put him on a sitting pedestal, it looks like a wedding cake. Then they bring me up to approach the guy, and he pulls his hood off and it's freaking Michael Jackson! I'm looking at him going, "Oh my god." The Michael Jackson reaches into his pocket and he brings out a crumpled-up Warrant flyer. And he goes [in high voice] "Are you Al Bane, the man with the leather?"

So Michael Jackson copied Warrant's look for Bad. Go look at the cover—the black cotton jacket with a bunch of belt buckles on it. Only with Warrant it was a cheap pin-star concho belt thing instead of custom-made rhinestones, you know what I mean? It's Michael Jackson versus unsigned Warrant.

One thing that happened with Michael Jackson was that after he pulled out that Warrant flyer, somebody says, "go get the TV." They roll in a big 1970s TV on a fu--ing cart, like in your junior high school, they put a videotape in the VCR and...there's Warrant onstage! And Michael says, "They jump around like circus performers, and they do it everyday. Where my stuff [clothes] is falling apart during one dress rehearsal." Michael goes through half a song and the crotch is blown out on his pants. Meanwhile, the Warrant guys are doing everything they do and the pants are holding up every night. So what's the difference? Why can't Michael Jackson's clothes stay together and Warrant's did?
He's my cherry pie. Also Jani Lane was cool. Nice nice.
 
I'm reading a book called Nöthin' But A Good Time: The Uncensored History Of The '80s Hard Rock Explosion. It was released in 2021 and is primarily about glam metal bands, but does speak about other types of hard rock acts. Here's a comment in the book from Rikki Rockett, who is the drummer for Poison talking about their music video for Talk Dirty To Me:

"I only realized what we had accomplished with that video years later when I met Michael Jackson. I said 'Listen, I don't know if you know anything about our band, but I'm the drummer for Poison. I just wanted to say hi.' He turns around and he goes, 'Man, every time your video comes on, I sit down because you're having such a good time. I don't want to miss a second of it.' So if some dude says 'Oh you guys suck', it's like, Who fu----- cares? Michael Jackson saw the value in Poison. How cool is that?"
Keep us posted with any more Michaely bits in the book would you @DuranDuran ? . sounds like a reallly good read.
 



Nicely done fan video with photos of Michael and audio quotes from him about some of his favourite pieces of classical music. The various pieces of music are included. None of the quotes are new, I don't think, but it's a nice collection.

A very peaceful, soothing video to watch and listen to. Michael's voice and classical music - a wonderful combination. :)

Debussy / Clair de Lune
3m 10s - Debussy / (Prelude to the) Afternoon of a Faun
4m 50s - Tchaikovsky / The Nutcracker - Waltz of the Flowers
6m - Tchaikovsky / The Nutcracker - Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy
7m 47s - Tchaikovsky / The Nutcracker - Sugar Plum pas de deux
 
We know he liked Lady Gaga, Ne-Yo. also björk according to a email he sent in 2003.

MJ was up to date on artists by the time he passed, so there's a chance that there are more artists from the late 00's he liked.
 
There was a bit of a kerfuffle about the bumping over the summer. Some people complained about it which was surprising to me bc if you read the 'guidance' notes from Gaz, they *specifically* state that you should check first to make sure the subject you want to discuss doesn't already have a thread. If one already exists, you are encouraged to reactivate the old thread. It's a pretty clear instruction. He also mentioned this in the live chat.
It's good to know I was right about Necro bumping. Funny that the guy who "steals" music illegally called me out for breaking a rule, which isn't even the case lol.
 
The video clip posted above by @Agonum comes from an interview that I have never watched all the way through.

As far as I can tell, this clip I'm posting seems to be an audio of that same interview interspersed with snippets from various songs that Michael mentions. I would have loved to interview him about the music he listened to growing up, especially the stuff from the 60's. I wish someone had done a proper job on this subject. This is OK, though. Better than nothing.

Fan-made with lots of lovely photos.

13m 40s

 
I think he also loves disco very much ’cause as we know Off the Wall is all about disco and for an example in 1996 HIStory tour when he performed the off the wall medley he sayed ”next up we’re gonna do some of my favourite songs and hopefully some of yours as well” so i think it’s not only off the wall but also disco from other artists.
 
Lol I know @zinniabooklover loves to bump old photo threads (not a complaint!!) so I can guarantee you're not alone! I actually like it, it's not like the threads are locked and a lot of them remain relevant over time.

Meanwhile I still need to... improve my own search box skills. 😵😅
I've bumped lots of different threads. Turns out, not everyone is up for that. Who knew? Not me, that's for sure. There was a bit of a kerfuffle about the bumping over the summer.
NECROBUMPING 😂 😂 😂

I'm sorry, I still laugh so much every time this topic gets brought up because I think of someone throwing around the term necrobumping and I thought that was the silliest, most hilarious word in the world. Clearly I still do as I am chuckling wildly to myself as I type this.

Also, the irony of me responding to this thread by replying to comments posted almost 5 months ago instead of a few hours ago is not lost on me...

Woodie Guthrie also.
Woodie Guthrie??? I had never heard he was a fan of Woodie Guthrie! My dog is named after him lol. I really want to know more about this.

Alot of classical. I spotted an entire Simon & Garfunkel collection when i was in his room. Supremes too.
Also about this. But it might be better for my mental health if I don't 😛
 
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