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MJ Doc 4

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Henintsoa Tojo Rakotoarivelo
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14 views

MJ Doc 4

Uploaded by

Henintsoa Tojo Rakotoarivelo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as TXT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Move to Epic and Off the Wall (1975–1981)

The Jackson siblings in 1977, without Jermaine. From left, back row: Jackie,
Michael, Tito, Marlon. Middle row: Randy, La Toya, Rebbie. Front row: Janet
The Jackson 5 left Motown in 1975, signing with Epic Records and renaming
themselves the Jacksons.[45] Their younger brother Randy joined the band around
this time; Jermaine stayed with Motown and pursued a solo career.[46] The Jacksons
continued to tour internationally, and released six more albums between 1976 and
1984. Michael, the group's main songwriter during this time, wrote songs such as
"Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)" (1978), "This Place Hotel" (1980), and "Can
You Feel It" (1980).[47]

In 1977, Jackson moved to New York City to star as the Scarecrow in The Wiz, a
musical film directed by Sidney Lumet, alongside Diana Ross, Nipsey Russell, and
Ted Ross.[48] The film was a box-office failure.[49] Its score was arranged by
Quincy Jones,[50] who later produced three of Jackson's solo albums.[51] During his
time in New York, Jackson frequented the Studio 54 nightclub, where he heard early
hip hop; this influenced his beatboxing on future tracks such as "Working Day and
Night".[52] In 1978, Jackson unsatisfied with his nose, decided to have a
rhinoplasty.[53] He was referred to Steven Hoefflin, who performed Jackson's
operations.[54]

Jackson's fifth solo album, Off the Wall (1979), established him as a solo
performer and helped him move from the bubblegum pop of his youth to more complex
sounds.[38] It produced four top 10 entries in the US: "Off the Wall", "She's Out
of My Life", and the chart-topping singles "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" and
"Rock with You".[55] The album reached number three on the US Billboard 200 and
sold over 20 million copies worldwide.[56] In 1980, Jackson won three American
Music Awards for his solo work: Favorite Soul/R&B Album, Favorite Soul/R&B Male
Artist, and Favorite Soul/R&B Single for "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough".[57][58]
He also won a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for 1979 with "Don't
Stop 'Til You Get Enough".[59] In 1981, Jackson was the American Music Awards
winner for Favorite Soul/R&B Album and Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist.[60] Jackson
felt Off the Wall should have made a bigger impact, and was determined to exceed
expectations with his next release.[61] In 1980, he secured the highest royalty
rate in the music industry: 37 percent of wholesale album profit.[62]

Thriller and Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever (1982–1983)


A sparkly jacket and gloves, displayed inside a transparent vertical tube.
The sequined jacket and white glove worn by Jackson at Motown 25: Yesterday, Today,
Forever. British Vogue called Jackson "a fashion pioneer [...] who gave new meaning
to moonwalking, immortalised solitary, [and] sparkly gloves".[63]
Jackson recorded with Queen's lead singer Freddie Mercury from 1981 to 1983,
recording demos of "State of Shock", "Victory" and "There Must Be More to Life Than
This". The recordings were intended for an album of duets but, according to Queen's
manager Jim Beach, the relationship soured when Jackson brought a llama into the
recording studio,[64] and Jackson was upset by Mercury's drug use.[65] "There Must
Be More to Life Than This" was released in 2014.[66] Jackson went on to record
"State of Shock" with Mick Jagger for the Jacksons' album Victory (1984).[67]

In 1982, Jackson contributed "Someone in the Dark" to the audiobook for the film
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Jackson's sixth album, Thriller, was released in late
1982. It was the bestselling album worldwide in 1983,[68][69] and became the
bestselling album of all time in the US[70] and the best-selling album of all time
worldwide, selling an estimated 70 million copies.[71][72] It topped the Billboard
200 chart for 37 weeks and was in the top 10 of the 200 for 80 consecutive weeks.
It was the first album to produce seven Billboard Hot 100 top-10 singles, including
"Billie Jean", "Beat It", and "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'".[73]

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