Michael Joseph Jackson, the ultimate king of pop, is undoubtedly the biggest superstar the world has ever witnessed. It is truly difficult to find another star with such a massive fan following from around the globe. Jackson was the closest to becoming a superhero and to ‘Heal The World’ with his music that moved the masses beyond mere entertainment. Hence, it is a no-brainer that MJ is the most-awarded artist of all time. All of this leads to his dynamic persona, which encompasses his soulful musicality and his impeccable dancing capabilities, adored and emulated by millions even after his demise more than a decade ago.
Madhulika Gupta | BeatCurry Team
Even today, millions of people listen to his music daily and continue to know more about the icon. Hence, here are some untold and unbelievable facts about the blue-eyed boy of the pop world that are lesser known to the public!
Jackson’s father forced him into doing music!
Michael Jackson was born to a family in Gary, Indiana. Jackson’s father, Joseph Jackson worked as a crane operator to make ends meet. However, he was also a steelworker, a boxer, and a guitarist and would take up part-time jobs for money. MJ’s mother worked at a departmental store and was a devout Jehovah’s witness.
According to an interview with Michael, his father Joseph was extremely strict when it came to music regarding all his siblings and himself. Any mistake in the musical note would lead to punishment, leading to a lot of pressure on the children. Joseph wanted to keep the kids away from the hostile gangs of the streets, where safety came at the cost of friendlessness. Being raised in such an environment, Michael was forced into doing the best that he could do musically.
Jackson gave his debut public performance at the age of 5!
The band “Jackson Brothers” formation in 1965 featured a young Michael with his brothers Tito, Jackie, and Jermaine. At the mere age of 5, the pop star made his debut with the song ‘Climb Every Mountain,’ succeeding with several hits such as ‘I’ll Be There, The Love You Save, Big Boy, I Want You Back, Got To Be There, just to name a few.
MJ used to live in a theme park!
Jackson bought a 2,700-acre property in Los Olivos, Calif, about 125 miles northwest of Los Angeles, for about $17 million in 1988. He named it Neverland Ranch, after the mythical island home of Peter Pan, the boy who never grew up.
The sprawling property features a 12,500-square-foot Normandy-style residence, guest quarters, a 3,700-square-foot pool house, barn, and a 50-seat movie theater building. Dream home or not? Michael Jackson turned his ranch into a half home half amusement park and named it Neverland inspired by Peter Pan.
He invested an additional $35 million to install amusement park-like experiences which included a petting zoo, roller coasters, railroads, bumper cars, a Ferris wheel, and a carousel. Despite it being strictly off-limits to the public and prohibited to entry, you could manage driving till the spot to look at the vastness of the estate, remember his legacy and probably click a few snaps!
MJ didn’t invent the Moonwalk!
While Michael Jackson is credited for renaming it ‘The Moonwalk’ and popularizing it, it wasn’t his invention, neither was it even called Moonwalk! Interestingly, it was the legendary dancer and singer, Jeffrey Daniel’s invention, who pioneered this move calling it a ‘backslide’ which he taught to MJ!
Nevertheless, a household name so synonymous with Moonwalking, created a landmark moment in the world of music and dance!
He got a special US patent grant for inventing ‘Gravity-Defying-Shoes’!
We are sure you are familiar with his ability to do a near-impossible 45 degree front-lean. The credit goes to his gravity-defying shoes. But before that, here’s some trivia! In 1988, he had made his debut in publicly doing the anti-gravity lean in the music video ‘Smooth Criminal’.
Although he had made use of wires and cables to do it, he was in search of an invisible method so as to perform the same steps in front of a live audience during his concerts. That’s exactly when he and two other partners invented the Gravity Defying shoes!
The heels would have a triangular slot which would fit smoothly into a retracting metallic holder on the stage. Right when the dance step happens, the retracting pegs pop up, and within a few seconds right after the lean, the pegs would go back inside the stage making it seem as if it all happened without any support! Well, that’s true. Michael and his two partners received a US Patent grant for their invention. Unfortunately, in 2005 as the owners missed on their payments, the patent expired that year making it replicable to imitators. Check out our latest YouTube Shorts video to find out more!
MJ-The MOST awarded artist!
Michael Jackson was one the rarest artists who received awards and accolades from every country around the world. Anyone might know who we are referring to as the King of Pop. Still, many might not be aware that Michael Jackson was the actual king of an Ivory Coast village, where later, his body was buried as per his request.
Unsurprisingly, MJ has the record number of awards given to an artist ever. Michael has set an unprecedented 39 Guinness world records, 40 Billboard Awards, 13 GRAMMYs and 26 American Music Awards! This makes him the most awarded artist to this date with 800+ awards.
Jackson tried his hand at playing ‘SpiderMan’ and eventually tried purchasing Marvel Comics!
Only a few are aware that this global superstar wanted to become the face of Spiderman! Stan Lee, the creator of Marvel Comics, mentioned in an interview how the star wanted to buy the rights to Spiderman and later offered to buy Marvel.
The main reason being, he wanted to feature as the lead role. Sure enough, the agreement did not pan out according to the star’s wishes, and only speculations were left behind.
Jackson had immense love for Indian culture, Disco Dancer and Jimmy Jimmy!
Michael Jackson visited India in 1996 as part of his tour and was keen to learn about India and its rich culture. His 83 show History Tour began from September 1996 and ended in October 1997, where on 1st November he performed a 17 song concert in Mumbai in front of around 35000 fans.
In his famous song “Black or White,” MJ takes a dig at the rampant racism and blatant questioning of his skin color. Jackson includes a part of India through its inclusion of an Odissi dancer dancing alongside the pop star, gradually both matching the steps to one another. Yamuna Sangarasivam, who featured alongside Michael Jackson, auditioned along with 3000 other dancers. According to her, this opportunity combined with her interest in the anthropology of music and dance, Odissi being her expertise.
Singers and composers like Bappi Lahiri and Nazia Hussian, and actors like Mithun Chakraborty, Prabhu Deva, Javed Jaffrey, and Hrithik Roshan all have shown heavy influences in their works paying homage to the greatest ever. The pop star was aware of his influence in India and once claimed to have loved the song ‘Jimmy Jimmy’ composed by Bappi Larihi for the movie “Disco Dancer.” No wonder Jackson wanted to re-visit India for his comeback tour in 2009, which, however was not possible due to the star’s untimely demise in June 2009.
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