Would you say Michael (both in life and death) was popular with Millennials (people born between 1981 and 1996)?

[wendijane]

I'd say the real lucky MJ fans are all Gen X ,

*emotional*

they were the ones who put MJ on the map and who made Thriller the biggest selling album of all time.

They did for his solo career. thanks to those kids. Then , for Dangerous era - 1990 - 1993/4 my lot come in the 1990s kids.

Prob at a prime age to really appreciate MJ on tour and

yeah

actually remember it well.

Yeah !

I'd imagine that a lot of those Gen X fans are probably not so much fans anymore.

They 'grew up' . Fandom is strange. it can be a very fickle place.

Music is all about the youth.

I'm not sure if i can agree with that.

MJ's core fanbase now is probably made up of a mix between Millennials and

That is good to read

Gen Z who are discovering him.

*gets emotional*

Michael no longer has a gigantic and active fanbase compared to his peak years , the man has been gone 14 years ,

.........................

the spark is out.

Time & technology ..i don't what i want 2 say here.

 

[Blues_Away2023]

*emotional*

They did for his solo career. thanks to those kids. Then , for Dangerous era - 1990 - 1993/4 my lot come in the 1990s kids.

yeah

Yeah !

They 'grew up' . Fandom is strange. it can be a very fickle place.

I'm not sure if i can agree with that.

That is good to read

*gets emotional*

.........................

Time & technology ..i don't what i want 2 say here.

To think all those millions and millions of fans who seen MJ live on tour - where are they all now.

I often wonder about those things when I see the faces in the crowd. The famous Waldo is a great example, seeing his face at so many different concerts is so cool

 

[zinniabooklover]

I need to use my father as an example, born in the 60s and only a few years younger than Michael.

He remembers watching the J5 television show as a child and following the career of MJ all the way up to present times.

Got to experience every adult MJ album at the time of release, every moment , Motown 25, Thriller video etc - seeing him live on BAD Tour and Dangerous on many occasions.

I'm jealous

Sure, but those of us a few years ahead of your Dad's generation are the ones who 'put Michael on the map'. Bc we were out at work and had much greater spending power than the teenagers.

Just to be clear, I didn't buy any of Michael's records until after he died (apart from Can You Feel It) but it was my contemporaries who were out there buying J5 / Jacksons / Michael from day dot. I couldn't go into a house without being dragged in front of the tv to watch some random section of Moonwalker. A car going down the street blasting Michael Jackson? That wasn't teenagers, they were too young to drive. Michael blasting out of every other house on the street? That was us. At least, it was where I come from. I mean, tbf, you would hear James and Funkadelic and Parliament as well. But lots and lots and lots of Michael. I never really liked OTW which was a shame bc, by god, I got to hear it endlessly just walking down the street, lol.

Not having a go, btw, but I've gotta stand up for my people, lol. That was us. We did that.

<starts singing The Who>

Got to experience every adult MJ album at the time of release, every moment , Motown 25, Thriller video etc - seeing him live on BAD Tour and Dangerous on many occasions.

Can you remember which BWT shows your Dad went to? Did he do any BWT 1987?

 

[wendijane]

To think all those millions and millions of fans who seen MJ live on tour

I know it is a very powerful & emotional thought

- where are they all now.

They grew up darling or they you know, ..depending on how life treated those kids.

I often wonder about those things when I see the faces in the crowd.

I think [would like to think] m knew so many of us.

The famous Waldo is a great example, seeing his face at so many different concerts is so cool

Ah yeah Waldo. ~Michael named him i think ?.. He was really dedicated. Hope he is doing fine. @xscape guy 2003 he has a cool story to tell too if i can recall. Michael gave him a name too.

 

[Mister_Jay_Tee]

I'd love to hear Off The Wall blasting.

 

[zinniabooklover]

I'd love to hear Off The Wall blasting.

You would have loved it, Mr JT. I was very blase about it and took it for granted, ngl.

 

[Blues_Away2023]

Sure, but those of us a few years ahead of your Dad's generation are the ones who 'put Michael on the map'. Bc we were out at work and had much greater spending power than the teenagers.

Just to be clear, I didn't buy any of Michael's records until after he died (apart from Can You Feel It) but it was my contemporaries who were out there buying J5 / Jacksons / Michael from day dot. I couldn't go into a house without being dragged in front of the tv to watch some random section of Moonwalker. A car going down the street blasting Michael Jackson? That wasn't teenagers, they were too young to drive. Michael blasting out of every other house on the street? That was us. At least, it was where I come from. I mean, tbf, you would hear James and Funkadelic and Parliament as well. But lots and lots and lots of Michael. I never really liked OTW which was a shame bc, by god, I got to hear it endlessly just walking down the street, lol.

Not having a go, btw, but I've gotta stand up for my people, lol. That was us. We did that.

<starts singing The Who>


Can you remember which BWT shows your Dad went to? Did he do any BWT 1987?

Ohh I thought you were younger tbh , you're certainly not having a go, it's all good

It was all UK shows he went to , for BAD he was at one of the Wembley shows , Liverpool and also Leeds.

 

[zinniabooklover]

Ohh I thought you were younger tbh ,

I'm the same age as Michael. That's why I referenced The Who, lol.

"Talkin' bout my generation ..."

you're certainly not having a go, it's all good

I was into Michael from day dot but rock music is my real love. I have always taken Michael for granted. He was always there. I've said it before, he was almost like a cousin, if that makes any sense.

It was all UK shows he went to , for BAD he was at one of the Wembley shows , Liverpool and also Leeds.

Your Dad went to the Aintree show?

Amongst all of the many awesome things about Michael there are two that constantly blow my mind. One is younger people like @@mjfanatic777 getting into him. And the other is the way a whole family will be into him. One of the reports I saw of one of the UK gigs (Sheffield?) mentioned that entire families were going to the show together. The love for him seems to cascade down the generations. That's just so cool.

 

[Hot_Street]

Would you say Michael (both in life and death) was popular with Millennials (people born between 1981 and 1996)?​

 

[Mister_Jay_Tee]

You would have loved it, Mr JT. I was very blase about it and took it for granted, ngl.

Watch me blast down the street on my Suzuki lol

 

[zinniabooklover]

Watch me blast down the street on my Suzuki lol

I'd be like, 'For fark's sake, some of us are trying to listen to Black Sabbath!'

 

[zinniabooklover]

 

[zinniabooklover]

 

[wendijane]

I took BAD for granted. Ah that's a ticket cool post

 

[wendijane]

Big glossy pin up poster
fifty pence ...

 

[Blues_Away2023]

I'm the same age as Michael. That's why I referenced The Who, lol.

"Talkin' bout my generation ..."


I was into Michael from day dot but rock music is my real love. I have always taken Michael for granted. He was always there. I've said it before, he was almost like a cousin, if that makes any sense.


Your Dad went to the Aintree show?

Amongst all of the many awesome things about Michael there are two that constantly blow my mind. One is younger people like @@mjfanatic777 getting into him. And the other is the way a whole family will be into him. One of the reports I saw of one of the UK gigs (Sheffield?) mentioned that entire families were going to the show together. The love for him seems to cascade down the generations. That's just so cool.

Ohh very nice then , that's cool you're the same age as Michael

Yes he was at the Aintree show , although it wasn't his favourite , not because of the actual show but his own experience - he was miles from the stage ha, says there was simply too many people!

The closest I ever got was This is it, I got my ticket at least and have unused tickets from his other solo tours.

 

[zinniabooklover]

Ohh very nice then , that's cool you're the same age as Michael

Yes he was at the Aintree show , although it wasn't his favourite , not because of the actual show but his own experience - he was miles from the stage ha, says there was simply too many people!

Looks a bit intense! Just a bit.

 

[Blues_Away2023]

Looks a bit intense! Just a bit.

Crazy crowd! I've heard the opening of the History tour (Prague) was equally as big.

 

[zinniabooklover]

Crazy crowd! I've heard the opening of the History tour (Prague) was equally as big.

Really? Didn't know that. Aintree is always claimed to be 125,000 although I don't know if that's totally accurate. Was Prague an outside show? Bc if it was a stadium I can't see how it could be similar in size. I'm not good with DWT or HWT, tbh. I mostly stick to BWT 1987.

EDIT - Just looked up Prague. I see what you mean.

 

[Blues_Away2023]

Really? Didn't know that. Aintree is always claimed to be 125,000 although I don't know if that's totally accurate. Was Prague an outside show? Bc if it was a stadium I can't see how it could be similar in size. I'm not good with DWT or HWT, tbh. I mostly stick to BWT 1987.

EDIT - Just looked up Prague. I see what you mean.

Yeah Prague apparently 125,000 also

 

[zinniabooklover]

 

[zinniabooklover]

[...] It was all UK shows he went to , for BAD he was at one of the Wembley shows , Liverpool and also Leeds.

Thought you might enjoy this tweetX from a Bad thread earlier this year.

"Me still explaining to my mother she’s personally responsible for not birthing me earlier so I could see this tour."

 

[filmandmusic]

Slightly off topic but I have always wondered if the hardcore fans of the very beginning 1969-1972 are still huge fans of Michael. I wonder if all the Jackson 5 fans kept following Michael after 1984.

There was Mikky Dee here who was there and a big fan in the early 70s but it seems to be a rarity.

 

[Blues_Away2023]

Thought you might enjoy this tweetX from a Bad thread earlier this year.

"Me still explaining to my mother she’s personally responsible for not birthing me earlier so I could see this tour."

That is so true!!!

Still rage at him for not taking me to at least the History tour! , I would have been 10

 

[IhateTheMedia]

CNN claimed a couple years back (2019) that he had the largest fanbase in the world, so i wouldn't expect it to be different now. He's the king of pop for a reason

 

[zinniabooklover]

Slightly off topic but I have always wondered if the hardcore fans of the very beginning 1969-1972 are still huge fans of Michael. I wonder if all the Jackson 5 fans kept following Michael after 1984.

There was Mikky Dee here who was there and a big fan in the early 70s but it seems to be a rarity.

Good account here from Mikky Dee from when she saw J5 back in the day. Just in case any new people haven't seen this, yet.

THE JACKSON 5 - I Will Never Forget 23rd June, 1973

The Jackson Five Date: Saturday 23rd June 1973 Season: First month of winter Venue: Festival Hall City: Brisbane Country: Australia The title states that I will never forget....and that is definitely true, because there are moments from my very first BIG concert experience that are...

www.mjjcommunity.com

 

[@mjfanatic777]

Michael is pleased!

Yay!

 

[xscape guy 2003]

Yes Wendijane. So lucky!

*beatlesboy*

 

[staywild23]

This is a fascinating thread. As a millennial (born in '88) I actually reflected on this exact topic quite recently. I feel that for a lot of millennials, MJ's image was tarnished *tremendously* in a way that some millennials struggle to get past to this day. For example, if you were born late 80s or early 90s, most of the media coverage you remember about Michael would have been extremely negative. Unless your parents were a fan, or you grew up in a community that loved Michael (I did not have either of these things), then you were most likely brainwashed from a young age to see Michael in a very negative light. By the time you would have reached puberty/teen years, Michael's image was really terrible and openly being a fan would have been really, really hard. One of my best friends in high school was a huge fan and it was tough for her. So many cruel jokes about him, terrible media coverage, just everything so mean-spirited, especially post-2000. He was still respected/acknowledged as the king of pop, but the media circus became the bigger focus than his talent. At least until he died.

My point is, the implicit bias against him was formed during that time frame. So I think a lot of millennials still carry that. Let's put it this way, the only people who have ever questioned me on my love for Michael have been millennials. Boomer/GenX and Gen Z all embrace him more, from what I can tell. His popularity on TikTok and just in general the positive association a lot of people seem to have with him now is so much more than when I was growing up, at least from what I have observed. Of course, I only became a fan in early 2022, so I have no idea how much more positive it was before LN. But Millennials are the last generation who were *heavily* influenced by mainstream media. So because of that, I think there are some lasting wounds that need to be mended. With Gen Z and eventually with Alpha, I see a lot of that negativity falling away and Michael being regarded in extremely positive terms.

Another example, I recently overheard two of my female students (college freshmen) talking about Michael Jackson being hot and "so beautiful." You would never have heard two millennial girls saying that, even if they thought it.