The writer of this article is pulling at straws. He is saying that artists who were playing night clubs and hotels is the equal to playing and selling out a football stadium? The writer is also comparing regional popularity and in some cases national popularity to INTERNATIONAL fame.
Michael Jackson sung a song he wrote,entitled “You Were There”,in the late 80′s and dedicated it to Sammy David Jr. Michael Jackson was well aware of the people who came before him and the struggle they went through. While it is true that blacks where loved in America as entertainers there was no MEGA SUPERSTAR until Michael Jackson. White people had Elvis and black people had Michael Jackson. Michael Jackson planted the seeds of the presentation of black men as more then just ‘scary’ figures.
Michael Jackson did tear down the barrier for MTV as MTV would not play videos by black artists. Herbie Hancock’s ‘Rock It” video was played but he was not in the video and only appeared on a TV screen in the video. It was because of the videos of MJ (Beat, Billie Jean, and Thriller) that music video as a whole was taking to another level and that MTV could not ignore his music (and subsequently all black music) as they risked their entire network having some of their top videos by the top stars at the time being pulled down. Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre 50 Cent, Ciara, Beyonce, Usher, and any other artist of color OWES MJ that credit as that’s what him and his videos did.
Also. MJ changed the format of videos forever, not just because of him making short films of his videos, but also the dancing in them. NO ONE DID A VIDEO FEATURING CHOREOGRAPHY before Beat It and people have elaborate choreography in their videos today because of Beat It. No one was using celebrities in their videos or had movie directors directing their videos until Michael Jackson did it in the 80′s.
Michael Jackson was a black man from the ghetto who changed the world. Over 300 million dollars of his own money was giving to charity in his lifetime. During all of his major tours he would go to hospitals giving out toys to kids and singing a song. He co wrote We Are The World with Lionel Richie and raised 50 million dollars for hunger in Africa. Nothing of that scale had been done before that.
Not Groundbreaking? He was the first to combine James Brown/Street dancing/ Fred Astire and his own stuff into dance. The Victory tour was the HIGHEST grossing tour of all time when it happened in 1984 and then Bad was the highest grossing and then Dangerous. Michael Jackson was the first grab his crotch in videos (which TONS of artists to this day now do). He was the first to use the toaster effect on stage. The moonwalk was no invented by him and had been done before by The Electric Boogaloos, Jeffrey Daniel, and even Bill Bailey, but MJ brought it to the main stream with the style and right song. White sock, Rhinestone glove, flooded pants so you can see him feet when he dances (not done before him), wind machines on stage,The Smooth Criminal lean (though not first done by Jackson).
Singer,songwriter,producer,arranger, dancer, choreographer, actor, author, businessman, financier, and inventor is what Wikipedia has him listed as and all of that is true. Anyone who doesn’t see Michel Jackson as a genuis is ignoring the facts.
