Biography
Michael Jackson (1958 to 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, and dancer who rose to fame as a child in the Jackson 5 and became one of the best-selling solo artists in history.
During the Jackson 5 years, touring exposed him and his brothers to the intense, sometimes invasive attention of fans, an experience he later said informed "Billie Jean."[1]
His partnership with producer Quincy Jones began with Off the Wall and reached its peak with Thriller (1982), which became the best-selling album of all time and won a record eight Grammys.[2]
Jackson's 1983 performance of "Billie Jean" on the Motown 25 television special introduced the moonwalk to a mass audience, and his videos helped bring Black artists into heavy rotation on MTV.[1]
Bad (1987), his third and final album with Quincy Jones, arrived under the pressure of following Thriller. Jackson wrote all but two of its tracks, and the album produced five consecutive US number one singles, a record for a single album.[3]
One of the two outside songs, "Man in the Mirror", was written by Siedah Garrett and Glen Ballard. It reached number one on the Hot 100 in 1988 and became one of the best-known songs of his career.[4]
References
- Billie Jean (Wikipedia) — Overview of the song's composition, production, themes, music video, MTV, Motown 25, chart performance, and awards.
- Thriller (album) (Wikipedia) — Recording dates, release, themes, sales, Grammys, and critical reception for the parent album.
- Bad (album) (Wikipedia) — Recording history, Jackson's aims after Thriller, authorship of the album's tracks, singles and chart records.
- Man in the Mirror (Wikipedia) — Composition, recording personnel, key change, chart history, music video, and critical reception including Rolling Stone, The New York Times and Time.