On the King of Pop’s 60th birth anniversary, After Hrs takes a look at a few of his memorable tracks
In a career spanning more than four decades, Michael Jackson emerged as one of the leading figures in pop culture, thanks to his insurmountable contribution to music, dance, and fashion.
He was one of the earliest artistes who redefined videos and gave us gems that were way ahead of their time. Here’s commemorating the King of Pop’s 60th birth anniversary with some of his most-talked-about tracks.
1. BILLIE JEAN
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A stunner from the Thriller album, Billie Jean sees the pop star grooving on the streets and pavements as a photographer follows his every move. In the video, Michael is sporting a black suit, pink shirt and a red bow tie that kicked off a fashion trend of sorts among school kids of the time. This video also helped MTV enter the mainstream arena and put the spotlight on Jackson.
2. THRILLER
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Before acclaimed filmmaker Christopher Nolan explored the concept of a dream within a dream, MJ dabbled with it in Thriller. The 14-minute video directed by American filmmaker John Landis had every trope from the horror genre — walking dead, disfigured faces, skeletons and a groovy track that gave you goosebumps. It was about a date night that turns into a fright night, leaving the viewer glued to the seat, winning it a special place in the hall of fame of music videos that made its way into pop culture history. In fact, it was voted the most influential music video of all time.
3. BLACK OR WHITE
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The singer reunited with his Thriller director to bring this video to life. His crotch-grabbing movies caused quite a furore and the morphing of faces ran up a tab of $100,000 and took a month to complete. The song has a cool message about understanding that it’s not your colour that defines who you are, it’s the person within that matters.
4. SMOOTH CRIMINAL
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Smooth Criminal was the highlight of the 1988 movie Moonwalker. Director Colin Chilvers and Michael came up with the gravity-defying lean that even today is remembered and associated with one of the latter’s signature moves. For those wondering, how the duo managed to pull it off, Chilvers affixed Jackson’s heels to the ground and kept him from toppling over with piano wire.
5. REMEMBER THE TIME
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This CGI-laden music video created magic on screen transporting you to Egypt. The video is set in a gold Egyptian palace, where MJ is a performer for the king and queen, played by Eddie Murphy and the model Iman. A nice melody and good production values were the highlight of this Dangerous album.
6. BEAT IT
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If Billie Jean set the stage, Beat It consolidated Michael’s position as a talented artiste on the international arena. In this video, he intervenes between two gangs who are ready to have a go at each other. Though the tune was catchy, initially it had no takers. MJ had to invest in it after his label refused to fund it. His red leather jacket and knife-fight climax coupled with the movie-music choreography makes this, one of Jackson’s most iconic music videos till date.
7. BAD
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Directed by Martin Scorsese, and inspired by the classic musical West Side Story, Bad had a lot going for it. Filming near condemned Harlem buildings, Scorsese paired the pop icon with a young Wesley Snipes for a dramatic black-and-white confrontation. Strongly influenced by the fighting gangs, Bad had an edgy vibe to it, which MJ personified in his all leather ensemble.
8. EARTH SONG
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It’s ironical that special effects brought the death and destruction of our planet to life in this track. Here, MJ prods people to look within and examine their actions and how that’s affecting others around them, the environment and the world. It has a haunting tune and the images stay with you.
