Over the last week, a number of previously-unreleased Michael Jackson demos have found their way into the public domain, leaking online via media-sharing websites such as YouTube, MEGA and SoundCloud.
The newly-leaked tracks include Jackson’s work-in-progress demos of “Days In Gloucestershire“, “Hollywood Tonight” and “People Of The World,” plus an alternate interpretation of “The Way You Love Me” – a song which previously appeared on the King of Pop’s The Ultimate Collection box set in 2004 and Epic Records’ Michael album in 2010.
Reactions among Jackson fans have been mixed – about both the quality of the material, and the fact that it has been leaked in the first place.
In this article I will attempt to put the past week’s events into context and perspective, give some additional background information on the origins of the leaked material, and personally address where I stand on the issue. I will also touch on the use of Jackson’s unreleased music in Sony Mobile’s Xperia Z2 campaign, and the speculation regarding the impending release of a new album.
Regarding the unauthorised leaking of unpublished Michael Jackson material, I often use this analogy: If a new, unseen Picasso piece was discovered, how would it be unveiled to the world – if at all? Would someone take a snapshot or scan of the artwork and upload it to Instagram or Facebook to then share the link with their social network of friends online? I’d certainly like to think not. The likelihood is that, assuming the piece’s authenticity could be verified, it would be sold and either showcased and preserved in a museum, gallery or exhibition, or perhaps kept privately in someone’s personal art collection.
The parallels between Picasso and Jackson are many. Both men are arguably the most recognisable figures of the 20th century in their respective artistic fields. Picasso was highly conscious of his relevance and importance in the history of art, as was Jackson about his place in music, dance and entertainment history. Both kept copious handwritten notes about their work, and were highly selective and protective about which pieces would be seen by the public. Picasso was known to have placed bids on his own pieces at auction in order to retain personal possession of them, while Jackson frequently stated that his perfectionism meant he was never truly satisfied with anything he did.
That perfectionism also applied to the new album Jackson was working on at the time of his death – the very album that some of the recently leaked tracks were being developed by Jackson for.
“He’s taking his time on it and being extra, extra picky,” explained Ne-yo, who ultimately spent two years (2007 – 2009) writing and submitting ideas for the ill-fated album.
“If he doesn’t like something, he’ll explain to me why he doesn’t like it,” continued Ne-yo. “He’ll say, ‘I just think the melody could be better’ or ‘I think that a stronger lyric could go here.’ … He’s never told me he didn’t like something and not given me a reason as to why. This is going to be a big album for him, so he’s taking his time. We want to get the music right.”
However, as with most of the material Jackson worked on in the final years of his life – both alone and with others – no vocals were ever recorded on any of Ne-yo’s ideas.
Another artist who knows of Jackson’s perfectionism, and the limitations it had on his productivity, is Akon. He too was working on what would have been Jackson’s next album.
“He was never satisfied,” recalls Akon. “We passed up ideas that I know for a fact in my heart were smashes. He’d be like: ‘Nah, nah we’ve got to come up with something better!’ I’d be like: ‘Mike you can’t get no better than this – what do you mean?’ to which Michael would respond: ‘No, trust me. If we can create this, we can create better!’ And I promise you, as soon as we create something better than that, he’d say: ‘We can do better!’ So we could never do better, because his expectation was so high.”
“I think that was one of the main reasons why it took so long for him to create a project and for him to be happy with it; because he was so hard on himself and such a perfectionist to a point where no matter how incredible the record was, he believed it could get more incredible. Like, we never finished!”
“With me music was always fun. But with him it was a legacy, and a reputation, and a standard that he had to continually match or get beyond, because he had accomplished and done so much, to a point where he had to expand higher than where he was already at. He created a standard so high for himself that he could not see himself lose.”
Perfectionism aside, another thing that stood between Jackson and the completion and delivery of unreleased music on his preferred terms, timeframe and platform, was unauthorised leaks.
The last decade of Jackson’s career was plagued by leaks – some more prolific than others. A collection of unreleased songs and demos from both the ‘Thriller’ and ‘Dangerous’ album recording sessions became available online at different stages, as well as an assortment of other illegitimately shared tracks.
But perhaps the most damaging leaks of his career, and those that upset Jackson the most, were that of “Escape” in 2002 and “Hold My Hand” in 2008.
When “Escape” (a.k.a. “Xscape”) began circulating online, just fourteen months after the release of the ‘Invincible’ album, Jackson was said to be furious. So much so that he had his team issue takedown notices to any website sharing a link to download the track, and issued a statement discouraging fans from engaging in the piracy of his unreleased materials.
Jackson’s exact plans for “Escape” were never realised and have never been made completely clear. The song itself, a collaboration between Jackson and producer Rodney Jerkins, remains officially unreleased to this day. (Note: Since publishing this article, “Xscape” has been officially released by Epic Records and The Estate)
Fast-forward five years, and Jackson is preparing his first new album in seven years. “Hold My Hand,” one of only two completed collaborative efforts between Jackson and Akon (the other being “Wanna Be Startin’ Something 2008 from Thriller 25) was, according to Akon, set to be the lead single from the project.
Jackson was well-known for keeping his unreleased music projects under lock and key, sharing his material with a very select group of trusted friends and family. One of those privileged enough to hear the track before it leaked was his nephew, Taj Jackson.
“’Hold My Hand’ was the last song my uncle Michael ever played to me in person,” Taj remembers. “He was so proud of it. I’ll never forget that smile he had on his face as the song played through the speakers (in his room) at the Palms Hotel in Vegas. After the song was over, he asked me what I honestly thought of it. I told him it was a worldwide number one song and that it was going to be huge. He was so happy to hear that.”
“Mike came up with this brilliant marketing launch for the record,” recalls Akon. “You know, he’s the best at launching a record. He’d have the whole world paying attention in two minutes.”
But unfortunately for Jackson, and Akon, the song leaked prematurely online in June of 2008, preventing them from bringing the track to completion and derailing plans to release it as a single.
Following these leaks Jackson became wary of the potential security breaches that come with recording in public studios. This resulted in far less vocals being recorded during the final years of Jackson’s life, and far less time spent in actual recording studios, with collaborative sessions being moved to makeshift studios in houses, bungalows and hotel rooms more often than they had been in the past.
Since Jackson’s death on June 25, 2009 leaks have become a major problem for The Michael Jackson Estate and Sony Music/Epic Records. Within a fortnight of his passing a snippet of the song “A Place With No Name” had surfaced courtesy of TMZ. The complete track would later hit the internet. A snippet of Jackson’s collaboration with Lenny Kravitz, “Another Day,” leaked in early 2010, and by the end of the year a bunch of other songs including “Blue Gangster,” “Slave To The Rhythm,” and “Do You Know Where Your Children Are” had all emerged online, free-of-charge, outside of officially sanctioned Michael Jackson releases.
More recently some of Jackson’s less-complete materials have hit the web, including “I Am A Loser” in September 2013 and now “Days In Gloucestershire,” “People Of The World,” “Hollywood Tonight,” and an alternate mix of “The Way You Love Me” – as previously mentioned in this article.
“People Of The World” is a song Jackson wrote and recorded a demo for in 1998. The song was written by Jackson for J-Friends, a Japanese recording group comprised of the existing groups Tokio, V6, and KinKi Kids. J-Friends was formed to raise funds for the education of children involved in the Great Hanshin Earthquake of 1995. On January 13, 1999 a complete version of the track was released by the group.
“The Way You Love Me” and “Hollywood Tonight” both originate from the early Invincible sessions, with re-mixed versions of both tracks released over a decade later on the Epic Records album Michael in December 2010.
“The Way You Love Me” was originally referred to as “Hanson” and was being co-written by Jackson and Brad Buxer as a demo for the group Hanson in 1998. (You know.. MMMBop!) Jackson, however, took too long to complete the demo, and the chance to present the song to Hanson had come and gone. So, he kept the track for himself. The version of “The Way You Love Me” that leaked this week is not a version that Jackson or his collaborative team had worked on during his life.
“The Way You Love Me,” “Days In Gloucestershire,” and a bunch of other previously-recorded unreleased tracks dating back as far as the 80s, including “Throwin’ Your Life Away” and “Don’t Be Messin’ Round”, were given to producer Neff-U in 2008 to see what direction he could take them in. Since then, a Bad-era version of “Don’t Be Messin’ Round” has appeared on the 25th anniversary re-issue of the Bad album.
With anticipation of a new album starting to build in the fan community, Sony has announced the advertising campaign for their new Xperia Z2 mobile phone. Front and centre in their debut video ad is a brand new remix of Jackson’s unreleased track “Slave To The Rhythm” – produced by Timbaland (see below).
Timbaland’s is the third different version of “Slave To The Rhythm” that fans have heard over the last three years. First, fans heard Tricky Stewart’s interpretation of the track. For reasons unknown, that version failed to make the Michael album in 2010. In August 2013 a fresh new version produced by Max Method featuring Justin Bieber’s vocals in a duet with Jackson hit the internet. The Jackson/Bieber version wound up on radio for a day or two, until the Estate denounced the track.
Despite having heard three separate versions of “Slave To The Rhythm” in as many years, Jackson’s fans are still yet to hear the original version of the track – the way the King of Pop himself last heard it. However, if Epic Records still intends on releasing the album it had in mind late last year, that might change – with both the remix and original versions set to be included.
But what do all these leaks mean for the new album? Will the fact that fans already possess the tracks that have leaked deter Epic Records and The Estate from including those tracks in the new album? Is there even any unreleased material with complete enough vocals that fans don’t already know about? Can we expect any surprises on the new album?
If history is anything to go by, the fact that things have been available to fans for quite some time won’t deter them at all. Of the ten tracks on the 2010 Michael album, one (“The Way You Love Me”) had been previously released on 2004’s The Ultimate Collection, one (“Hold My Hand”) had been leaked in full since 2008, one (“Another Day”) had been partially leaked since earlier that year and had also been previously-released by Lenny Kravitz under the title “Stormm” one (“Behind The Mask”) had been previously-released by both Eric Clapton and Greg Phillinganes, and the vocals on three (“Breaking News”, “Monster” and “Keep Your Head Up”) are deemed to be fake by Jackson’s entire family and the majority of Jackson-enthusiasts.
Aside from the vast number of already-leaked tracks, there are some items of interest that Jackson fans have not yet heard that do include complete vocals – like “She Was Lovin’ Me,” for example. Unfortunately for fans, however, that kind of material is edging closer and closer to extinction.
The harsh fact of the matter is that fans themselves are somewhat responsible for the lack of unheard material. When a song is leaked, most of the time it has leaked via a fan. It is then posted on fan sites, shared with fans, and downloaded by fans. Fans are the ones whose appetite craves unreleased Michael Jackson material. Fans are the ones who seek it out. And fans are the ones who leak it. Then, when an album comes out, fans are the first ones who complain that “we’ve heard half of this stuff before.”
In my personal opinion, these leaks are a big problem and I do not support them. To take it a step further, in my opinion, releasing these things at all is a problem. It just doesn’t sit well with me at all.
Sure, it’s nice to hear Michael’s unreleased songs and his work-in-progress demos. But that’s coming from a fan of the King of Pop with that previously-mentioned appetite for his material.
But what about how Michael Jackson feels? Michael Jackson the perfectionist, the man who always wanted to do better, to continue his legacy, to maintain his reputation, and to match or go beyond the personal standards he set for himself. Do we, the very people who claim to “love” Michael, care about that? I certainly do!
The reality of the situation is that Michael Jackson did not want us to hear this material in the state it was in when he died, or in any state not personally put under the microscope for him to dissect, perfect and approve. Now, that’s not to say Michael never wanted us to hear his new music – he clearly did! That’s why he was working so hard on it. But he never completed it to a standard in which he wanted us to experience it.
Michael Jackson did not work on “Hollywood Tonight” over the course of ten years, write additional verses and a bridge (that, unfortunately, he never got record), for Teddy Riley, someone who played absolutely no role in the song’s conception or evolution, to come in last minute and flip the entire track on it’s head while taking away all context and meaning that Jackson worked so hard to build within the track. But that’s exactly what happened.
I’ll revert back to the Picasso comparisons for one moment here. If an unseen Picasso draft or sketch was discovered, but it was only partially complete, would it be acceptable for one of today’s artists to come in, fill the gaps, choose the colours, the thickness of the brush strokes, the mood of the piece, the style, the types of paint used and “complete” the painting? No, it would absolutely not be acceptable.
Yet with Jackson’s art, this is happening all the time. In fact, many of us encourage it to happen out of our own personal greed-fuelled desires to obtain and cling to any minuscule iota of “Michael Jackson” material we have not yet looted.
I mentioned earlier in this article that in the case of a Picasso piece, it might be displayed in a gallery, a museum or an exhibition of some description. It certainly wouldn’t be uploaded via Instagram the way Jackson’s songs are leaked via YouTube.
So what is the solution?
If I believe Michael Jackson’s unpublished work should not be leaked, or even “officially” released, is there any way that I believe it would be appropriate in which to showcase this work to the public? Yes. There is. And it already exists.
Brad Sundberg was Michael Jackson’s longtime studio technical director. He made sure that Jackson was happy with the way his recording studios were set up, and that everything sounded perfect. And now, he’s taking his knowledge of Jackson’s standards and applying them to studio settings all over the world with his In The Studio With MJ seminars.
For me, this is the as close to a museum or a gallery as you can get – if not closer! And I believe this would be the most appropriate way for Michael Jackson’s unpublished materials to be showcased.
Now, Sundberg’s current seminars don’t completely eliminate the possibility of leaks and online file sharing. In fact, attendees of some of his recent seminars have betrayed his trust by secretly recording portions of his audiovisual presentation. As a consequence, there is a possibility that those recordings will make their way online. A couple of them already have! The implementation of a basic metal detector examination prior to entry (like at the airport) and the compulsory surrender of all electronic devices would certainly nip that issue in the bud for future seminars.
Okay, back to reality now.
In 2010 The Michael Jackson Estate signed a $250 million, 7-year, 10-project deal with Sony Music Entertainment, allowing the record label the exclusive rights to publish Jackson’s entire discography, including both previously-released and unreleased materials, until 2017. There is no way in hell they are going to stop publishing Jackson’s unreleased materials – especially while fans are more than happy to throw their money at them for it.
As a compromise, I’d simply urge fans to stop leaking previously-unpublished materials to the public. I’d also ask the record label and Estate to bring in the people that Jackson was working with – not random big shot producers who are strangers to the material. If Jackson left notes or instructions, follow those notes or instructions – don’t defy them they way you have in the past. And with everything you do, be diligent, be thorough, be transparent with fans, and provide as much background information as possible.
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Do you agree or disagree? Feedback and discussion is welcome below. Please keep in mind that this is simply an opinion piece.
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Great article, Damien!
It still baffles me why people think it’s acceptable to remix the work of deceased pop and hip-hop artists, in a way that would never happen with rock artists. Do you think anyone would dare to touch the unreleased work of Hendrix, or Nirvana? Not a chance! I predicted this would happen with Michael’s work. Just because he wasn’t physically playing the instruments, doesn’t mean he wasn’t in complete control of the musical creative process.
I witnessed first-hand this same thing happening with the Tupac Estate. After I made a documentary about Tupac for the BBC, I became very close to some of his friends and associates. I witnessed anger, frustration, and actual tears from people who were very close to him about how his legacy was being destroyed by the likes of Eminem being called in to remix his songs. This event tore the fan community apart, and the end result is that a previously healthy posthumous legacy (the first few posthumous Tupac albums were completely tastefully, largely by the original producers) was completely decimated, and there now hasn’t been another posthumous Tupac album for the better part of a decade, despite there being literally dozens more unreleased songs.
It’s just absolutely disgusting how this was allowed to happen to Michael straight away. Brad Buxer should have finished Hollywood Tonight, and nobody else. Quincy and Greg Phillinganes should have finished Behind The Mask, and nobody else. Let’s not even mention the debacle with the fake, phony Cascio songs performed by a weak imitator. And now, this nonsense with Timbaland.
Regarding the leaks, everyone is subject to leaks – alive or dead. And let’s be honest – there isn’t enough on a demo like “Days In Gloucestershire” in order to complete the song. So unless they plan on releasing a loose collection of unreleased songs, this leak may have been our only opportunity to hear it.
You raise valid points about how unreleased material should be presented – but when the Estate can’t even get it right with their official releases, a leak really isn’t much worse.
Good point about pop vs. rock artists. It’s a shame that MJ’s work is treated like this. Like a commodity 🙁 I understand the need to pay the debt and support his family, but it shouldn’t be at the expense а his art. If you have to modernize or remix the song for a better chart success – fine, but it must be done AFTER the original was presented to the public, not BEFORE (like it happened with Slave To The Rhythm) and not (God forbid) INSTEAD like it happened with “Michel” album.
while what you say about Days in Gloucestershire in the available form is true…how are we to know that there isn’t a more complete version somewhere in the so called “vault”
I personally think MJ would have been fine with official releases of unfinished and unreleased material if it were to be a commercial success. A MJ demo is in most cases a complete track by other artists anyway, as Bruce Swedien has noted. So I can’t understand why there are fans who don’t want to hear anymore of MJs unreleased music. As for MJs legacy goes, I think most reasonable people would acknowledge that it should be judged by the 7 Epic records he made between 1979 and 2001. In my opinion, what he did before that, with Motown, and after Invincible, are mere supplements, for different reasons, as it didn’t have the “MJ-stamp” on it.
The things with leaks are they become a double edged sword. Motivation for the leaks might be to stop or hamper Sony’s efforts. But in turn these same fans would be the first to complain that an MJ album isn’t charting well or being supported by promotion or even the fans due to the songs “already being available”. The end result outside of the fan community is news of a Michael Jackson album being released, flopping and fading from wider recognition.
I’ve always supported the release of new music with the proviso that the original demo’s also be made available either in a digital exclusive or a deluxe 2 disc release. This seems to be the no brainer option as it allows fans to hear MJ songs as he left them and also see how they have been completed or reimagined. Michael himself wasn’t beyond releasing unfinished works with several demo versions of songs making it onto The Ultimate Collection.
At the end of the day, hungry fans will clamour for an instant hit of new MJ music and perhaps might feel that listening, and trading in what is essentially “stolen” works strikes a blow against The Estate or Sony. But in the long run we may be potentially limiting the amount of output and success of new releases.
Aside from the few demos he did authorize for official release in his lifetime (ie: the demos on The Ultimate Collection), do we really know how Michael felt about the handling and release of his incomplete works from the vault?
With all that material, he must have had wishes or an opinion of what should happen to these recordings after his death?
He must have mentioned this in a document or will? Or a handwritten note, or an interview, or to a friend or family member?
It seems very hard to believe that he would have never mentioned his wishes regarding this before he died.
Brad’s seminars already include a compulsory handing over of cellphones, etc. which you don’t get back until it is official time to take pictures. The fact that people have violated his trust is outrageous to me. I’ve attended two seminars and know that fans are blessed to have someone like Brad offer such a genuine immersion into what it was like to be in the studio with Michael. It pains me deeply to imagine that some attendee is responsible for secretly recording and/or sharing the treasures that Brad is kind enough to allow us to experience. Thanks for the post Damien. As always, very informative. I will say that as a historian I agree that Michael’s work belongs in a museum or archive type setting so it can be preserved for posterity rather than used as a short term means of producing income for individuals or even the Estate. In my estimation, his unreleased works should be available but not necessarily in the manner of a commodity but, rather as a historical artifact. Michael’s perfectionism and not wanting things released in his lifetime, frankly, is not so relevant to me. Again, as a historian, the fact that he did not want the music released can’t be totally honored. Part of what scholars, musicians, artists, etc will need/want to do 25, 50, 100, 200 years from now is to understand Michael’s music, his process, etc and all the unfinished work tells a story that will remain valuable forever to those interested in understanding his genius and why he will remain relevant and studied for centuries to come!
Agree 100%
Terrific and thorough post Damien, well done. You’ve hit so many nails on the head, from the Fans own responsibility and avoidance of blame, to the poor efforts from the Estate on the destructive ‘Michael’ album of nightmares, to possible future avenues. Well done. -Q.
The idea with Brad’s seminar being a “museum” is good, but unfortunately not all people can afford to attend those seminars. As not all people can afford to travel to Louvre to see Gioconda. And those who cannot, can buy a reproduction instead. That’s an analogue of YouTube, or a CD for you. A “museum” may be good for unveiling the original work of art, but ultimately the art should be accessible to people. And that’s the problem with MJ releases (“Michael” album at least): the art was not unveiled to anyone at all; what was offered was not art but a surrogate instead.
I would absolutely be against leaks if we only had a guarantee that eventually we would hear all those demos and unfinished material – as Michael left it. Better yet, in multiple versions, as it was being developed by Michael. If you had a chance to hear Brad’s recording of “Give In To Me” session, you’ll agree that this magical process of the birth of a song is an absolutely invaluable, unique, one of a kind testimony to a genius. This is the core of MJ, his art, his talent. This is what bears the biggest value now for the American – and world – culture; not Timbaland’s modern renditions. But unfortunately, we don’t have any indication that all those demos will ever be heard – that we’ll get those insights into the genius. All we have is a rumor about the next album. It’s still a rumor, nobody still knows how much material exists out there, and we still haven’t heard half of the songs from “Michael” album in their original condition. Will we ever hear them? If “Hollywood” hadn’t leak, would we have ever known how Michael envisioned it? Probably not. And I think it’s a tragedy. He was a rare genius, and the mankind has know, and study, and respect his work.
As for Michael’s own perfectionism and the attitude to releases, it’s a double-sided coin. Michael didn’t want people to hear his unfinished work during his life, and the reasons for that are perfectly clear. He was doing what he could to secure his place in history during his lifetime, he strived to deliver only the best. But what did he envision for his art after he would be gone? We don’t know (and it’s a shame that nobody ever asked him, really). As much as Michael was a perfectionist, he was also an avid student of art, of culture, of the greats. He dissected the art of his predecessors, he listened to multitracks to understand how songs were made and what sounds were used. If he wasn’t completely open to the idea of his unfinished music to be someday available to people, I think he at least could relate to fans’ desire to hear the work-in-progress and understand how it was done. And as he used to study from James Brown, Sly and the Family Stone, Stevie Wonder, and the Bee Gees, I think he would appreciate the new generation’s desire to use his work to study from him.
There are legal implications here, too. The Michael Jackson Estate signed a deal with Sony Records to manage the catalogue until 2017. One of those two entities has blatantly failed in this regard. Someone is liable for these leaks being made. The Michael Jackson Estate should sue Sony for allowing this to happen. What chances of that?
I’m glad to see so many people defend Michael’s original demos and call out on the Estate for butchering his music to turn it into something fans of Katy Perry could like. In the Estate’s multiple awful attempts at trying to make MJ seem current, they have only harmed and cheapened his legacy. On sites like MJJC you will have fans that blindly love the Estate and don’t care how his music is presented.
Some fans even want Michael’s music redone by Timbaland because they believe it can earn Michael a hit and new fans. However, this thought is toxic as it involves turning someone’s art into something it is not. I don’t care if Timbaland is good for making Justin Timberlake tracks or hits. Michael’s surviving art and vision can not be skewed to sell to people who only like radio hits, this is an insult to Michael, his fans, and even those that like contempary music. There is no benefit to changing Michael’s vision.
As for leaks, the amount that have came out recently is overkill. However, as long as the Estate feels the need to destroy the original production Michael and his team worked so hard on, I will be in support of them. The Estate also has used bad mastering and compression on their releases. Honestly at this point the leaks are doing a better job of keeping Michael’s legacy alive than those in charge of his legacy.
Thank you for starting a discourse about Michael unfinished work as a piece of art vs a product that needs to be marketed.
Any option is arbitrary whether it is following what Michael would have wanted, which in iself is debatable, who should finish his demos , should they be finished anyway , how should they sound , and the same goes for the stance that his work shoukd be a national treasure and put in a museum , which means releasing each and every recording no matter its quality.
We dont know for sure what Michael wanted and we may agree or disagree that what he wanted is irrelevant. But since the music is there and will come out sometime , the least that can be done is treat it with respect and integrity, like any other artform. One good thing that came out of the Michael album is that people are more aware of what can be done to ones art . But imo art and commerce are not mutually exclusive . As long as its handled with care. Most people want to hear the authentic music the way the artist left it , but many also want the finished work in a way that does it justice.
Why not do both. Like the Off the Wall special edition with parts of the demo’s and QJs explanation of the creative process. If done the right way the estate will also reap the fruit of his work . In the end Michael was not only an artist but also a provider. His work was music.
Its interesting that Brad Buxter is taking measures to protect his work from leaking, so as not to lose its exclusivity, but ironically Michaels own work is a free for all.
correction : Brad Sundberg
Hi from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil!
I am happy to know that there are people who do care about Michael’s legacy like you out there. It is a shame all we, real fans, have to cope with is low-quality snippets of songs that may not be properly released. Your idea of a studio listening experience would be amazing but very restrictive. Would there be a world tour of studio personnel so that more people could have a feel of what it is like to hear Michael’s music in high quality?
The leaking of songs is a reality, and we have to deal with it. If people don’t like it, they don’t need to listen to them.
One thing that puzzles me is that it is 2014 already and Sony’s last release of Michael material was 2012 (Bad 25). Only six songs were previously unreleased, that is, novelties to us. And that is about it. That poorly made DVD with the concert is very exciting to me, but the image quality definitely deserved attention. Where is the Blu-Ray release?
I might be wrong, but I’ve heard that there would be continuous releases until 2017. Maybe it is me dreaming that there would be at least some material every year until the end of the contract, which will be ending soon and maybe we will have to deal with ‘previously leaked’ songs on CDs, and that’s about it.
What I miss the most about good Michael releases is ways of portraying how he and his musicians team cam up with so many beautiful songs. I miss recorded interviews, making-of videos, things that would showcase the genius of Michael and his team.
I disagree completely. Michael recorded hundreds of songs, so I don’t see a problem with it. The only complaint I have is that if certain songs exist in a complete form, leak those instead of demos. But I am fine with leaks because of the abundance and Sony themselves. If they would just give us unreleased material, instead of recycling old Mj music and remixes there would be no need. But no, they refuse to help us out, but giving me an album of things I heaven’t heard before. Personally, I would probably leak an albums worth of songs over a few months/weeks if I had the chance. I believe they said an unreleased album every year, until 2017… We’ve had 1 unreleased album with leaks, and remixes, and songs that may no even be him, with minimal new content, and it was only 10 songs! If they do right by men, I would do the same for them.
Pretty sure we’ve had more than one Michael Jackson album as part of that deal: ‘Michael’, ‘Immortal’, ‘Icon’, ‘Bad 25’, ‘The Ultimate Fan Extras Collection’, ‘The Indispensable Collection’ and ‘Xscape’. ‘Michael’, ‘Bad 25’ and ‘Xscape’ featured previously unreleased material and ‘The Ultimate Fan Extras Collection’ featured rarities such as b-sides and remixes (it even featured a new remix I believe). And that list isn’t including albums between ‘The Collection’ and ‘Michael’ e.g. ‘Michael Jackson’s This Is It’.
Damien, thank you for such a great article that us MJ fans are so passionate about. You have opened my mind to issues on Michael’s songs that I had not thought of before now. Thank you for that.
I have just 2 quick questions; First, since you mentioned Akon, I wondered if you know about Akon’s tribute song to Michael? Second, I was hoping that you could shed some light on the Tribute song which he composed and recorded on June 26th, 2009, titled Cry Out Of Joy. I was blessed, by sheer accident, to have run across it online, that very day and it is one of the most incredibly moving songs written in tribute for Michael, that I’ve ever heard. Sadly, Akon never released the song. Could you give us some thoughts on why you believe that Akon has not released it? I actually believed it would be on his latest album, but no. I understand that this article is regarding MJ’s leaked music, but was hoping to get some of Damien’s resourceful ideas about Cry Out Of Joy by Akon.
Blessings and Much L.O.V.E.
Pamela
As long as Estate refuses to release each and all of extant Michael´s recordings the way he himself left them, I will fully support these leaks and openly hope more stuff leaks.
They haven’t refused though. They messed up with prematurely releasing the Michael album mess, but never have they refused to releasing unheard songs (as made clear with Bad25). You’re being impatient.
I have to disagree here. I believe the material should be heard, as a fan I like to see what MJ was working on at a given time period and what made it onto an album versus what was left on the cutting room floor. I think a big mistake by the estate is that there hasn’t been a release of unreleased material in many years. If you don’t supply the demand than your customers will find other way to get what they want (ie. finding leaked demo’s, etc.)
Brad’s in the studio sessions are a great idea, however like someone mentioned previously, they are quite expensive, not made available to many fans (expanding to more locations would be needed) and not being able to listen to what you hear over and over again is a negative to me.
People keep forgetting that MJ has been gone for 5 years. Its taken other estates over a decade to find their groove.
Shields, great article among many great articles! Thanks for getting this conversation started. I hope you are continuing with “The Truth Untold.”
Leaks become leaks because there was a security breach and Sony is to blame for that. Collectors/traders get songs/concerts they truly don’t deserve because Sony didn’t protect the songs/concerts. Luckily someone leaks them to fans that would never have gotten access to these leaks unless Sony and the Estate release them. I don’t think fans should be responsible for Sony’s mistakes. Sony is very choosy about who they will go after regarding leaks. If they went after mostly everyone like NPG does for Prince, you wouldn’t see fans bragging and dangling leaks in front of other fans like carrots.
The Estate and Sony COMPLETELY ruined concert releases with the Wembly show so, they shouldn’t have any problem with concert leaks. The Estate and Sony didn’t remove leaks of the Victory Toronto show and that gave me reason to believe they have no interest in distributing that which is really unfortunate since they are limited in what they can distribute as far as performances go. What were Sony and the Estate going to do with DIG/POTW, really? Fans heard it so now at least it won’t rot in the vault or be destroyed by well meaning producers.
I don’t agree with fans frequenting Sunberg’s seminar as a way to hear MJ’s demos. It’s too limiting to MJ’s global fans and I don’t think Sunberg should be designated as the person to do it. MJ worked with many professionals and more documentaries like the one Spike Lee did and Sina’s examples above would be easier for fans to access than this seminar and – with permanent forms – could be accessed repeatedly like Jared Jones said.
Casey Rain, Danny: agree 100%
Neverland: I think the RnRHoF is made up of reasonable people who rightfully decided to acknowledge MJ’s work as a solo artist AND as part of J5. One misses a decade and a helluva lot of what made MJ the artist he still is by skipping to 1979!
Samhabib: Chances are 0%! ROFLMAO! They’re not going to sue Sunberg for his security breach either after giving him access to the demos.
I can only go what has been officially released. On the Michael album the only tracks I actually liked not loved were Hold My Hand & Much Too Soon & even I doubt whether MJ would have approved those versions. With Bad 25 those were better. That’s a good way to proceed & not disrespectful to his legacy. I have heard some of the online stuff nothing I have found exceptional. It will be interesting to see if the estate has anything great. I would prefer to hear it as is rather than people reproducing it.
reproducigurgitation
MJ apparently wanted ‘Hold My Hand’ to be the lead single of his next project.
Also I would like a duets album of the original ones even the tracks where he did back up back in the day & a collection of his slow songs.
The new album “XSCAPE” comes out May 13th and can be pre-ordered on iTunes April 1st! It will feature 8 previously unreleased tracks spanning from the over 4 decades of MJ’s career with production from L.A. Reid, Timbaland, and Jerome “JRoc” Harmon (just to name a few).
The deluxe edition will feature the unreleased songs in their original form while the new versions on the album will be “contemporized”
The ‘Xscape’ album was a success, in my opinion. I think it’s fair to say that in 2016, there will be a 25th anniversary reissue of ‘Dangerous’. Next year though, I would like an album either featuring the studio versions of songs MJ performed live (e.g. ‘HIStory Medley’, ‘Off The Wall Medley’, ‘You Were There’, ‘What More Can I Give’, ‘Elizabeth I Love You’) or an album featuring some songs that would’ve been on the 2003 cancelled ‘Resurrection’ album (e.g. ‘Ekam Satyam’). I say this because MJ clearly thought these songs were good enough to either perform live or to release (he wanted to release ‘Xscape’, but didn’t due to the leak i.e. he thought it was good enough).
Good article and some very legit views………my take on what songs get released whether leaked or modernized by the likes of Timberland or whoever…..i really don’t care………i just want to hear his voice…….selfish of me…….maybe……does any of the stuff we hear diminish his already legendary body of work??….umm nope……….Using the likes of Timbaland is hardly going against the grain……..Michael had already worked with the best in the business Teddy Riley,Rodney jerkins,Babyface Jimmy jam and Terry Lewis…so Timbo is really just another producer in that respect……in all honesty people should just shut the fuck up and enjoy his artistry……..Michael Jackson has been a very frustrating artist and his creative output very slow given his level of perfection and his difficulties in his personal life……..The latest album is amazing and finally an album i can just jam to without flicking past songs…..what ever happened to just enjoying the music…….no one can honestly say well the new songs wouldn’t have sounded the way they do because he is not here…….simply because we would never know.As long as the Estate releases the originals with the new stuff i don’t see a problem……as for rock music no one gives a shit lets be real……..
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