_
_
The accusations that marked him since the nineties seemed destined to destroy his legacy, but the expectation that now surrounds the ‘biopic’ ‘Michael’ shows that the King of Pop remains a cultural phenomenon
One of Michael Jackson’s albums, the last one he published during his lifetime, is titled Invincible. Even though it is a most suitable nickname for the King of Pop, there is another that, judging by the high esteem that his image continues to provoke today, seems even more appropriate: incancellable. If he was invincible artistically, it is even more astonishing that he has been, morally and publicly, immune to the culture of cancellation; a creature that, having gone through storms that would have ruined others without remedy, remains upright in the collective memory as if the gale had barely touched its figure.
It was 1993, and the name of Michael Jackson, until then associated with an almost absolute dominance of popular culture, endearing by virtue of his past of precocious talent, began to sound in another, murkier register. Accusations of abuse by a minor transformed the scene into a theater of suspicion. Your ranch Neverland (in Santa Bárbara, California), that place conceived as a refuge and fantasy, became a place of investigations, searches and prying eyes. Where childhood was previously imagined as a playground, a shadow began to appear.
The scandal was neither brief nor light. It spread, fueled by public curiosity and the voracity of a media industry that found an inexhaustible vein in the contrast between pristine myth and accusation. The matter was apparently closed by means of an out-of-court agreement – for about 15 million dollars, 12.8 million euros – which avoided the trial, but not the unrest. That gesture, which in legal terms resolved the dispute, left open, in the public mind, a space of doubt that was difficult to close.
Years passed, and the story, far from fading, took shape again in 2005, when the artist had to sit on the bench in a Californian court to respond to new accusations. That time there was a trial, witnesses and a verdict: not guilty on 10 charges. Legal fact of the greatest importance, which, however, did not completely erase the suspicion, as if it, once sown, acquired a life of its own and refused to disappear.
Trailer for ‘Michael’
n
“}},”video_agency”:false,”alt_image”:”Trailer for ‘Michael'”},”url”:”https://cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/prisa/YM44SLIKCBBJBFIVVXZJTQWLXQ.webp”,”alt”:”Trailer for ‘Michael'”,”ogWidth”:16,”ogHeight”:9,”floating”:false});
02:39
Trailer for ‘Michael’
In view of such episodes, it does not seem an exaggeration to say that Michael Jackson met all the conditions to fall from grace. The seriousness of the accusations, the media exposure and the singularity of his behavior—often perceived as eccentric—composed a picture that, in our days, would have precipitated a sudden cancellation. And yet, history followed another course.
Because while the controversy was developing at the judicial and media levels, in another area, perhaps quieter but no less powerful, the music of Jackson, who died in 2009, continued on its path. The numbers are eloquent: this week in April the singer is the twenty-fourth most listened to artist on Spotify in the world. According to the platform, it has 68.9 million listeners each month; striking fact for an artist from another era (The Beatles is in position 148 with 36 million listeners; Elvis Presley, also recently honored in the cinema, is number 359, with 22.5 million listeners). Their albums continue to sell: the compilation Number Onesfrom 2003, has returned to the Billboard list (United States), where it currently occupies position 23. And it would not be strange for it to climb positions, given the unleashed furor that the premiere of the biopic is generating Michaelwhose arrival in theaters this week has been preceded by expectations typical of great events. Box office forecasts, which point to initial figures exceeding 50 million in the United States and a global collection that could approach 700 million, only corroborate that interest in his legend remains intact. Far from being diluted, the myth is reactivated.
This indissoluble recognition is also experienced in Spain. Last November the show sold out. This is Michaelwhich was performed at the Palacio Vistalegre in Madrid before an audience that, according to venue sources, brought together parents and children for an innocent weekend pastime. The show will soon pass through other Spanish cities and will return to the capital (and to the same venue) on November 6, and new sell-outs are expected.
Since his death in 2009, the artist’s estate has generated income in the billions, and the recent sale of part of his catalog for a sum exceeding 600 million dollars (513 million euros) confirms that his music is not just a memory, but a present asset. How can we explain, then, that an artist plagued by such controversies remains unscathed by cancellation, when others are called out for telling a joke in bad taste?
In the nineties there were no social networks; The Internet was a not very widespread tool. The information circulated, yes, but it did so with a different cadence, allowing the versions to settle, for the defenses to find their space and for the doubt not to become an immediate sentence. The media trial existed, but not with the current speed or forcefulness. On the other hand, the absence of a definitive judicial sentence left interpretation open. Compared to other episodes in which evidence closes the debate, in the Jackson matter ambiguity prevailed. For some, this idea was not unthinkable: perhaps this man really believed he was a child and interacted with others as one, without a hint of evil? At the age of seven he was already on stage with his brothers; perhaps his mind had remained anchored in those happy days. This made it easy for many to separate the work from the person, or at least suspend judgment in one of those gray areas where certainty does not prevail.
Although perhaps the decisive element lies in the magnitude of the work. Michael Jackson was not just another artist, not even one of the most successful. It was, in many ways, the axis around which a transformation of popular music revolved. Its ability to integrate genres, to turn the video clip into art and to take the show to an almost choreographic level of precision places it in a category where comparison becomes difficult. When his music plays, the debate stops, as if the aesthetic experience demanded, by itself, a truce.
Furthermore, the role of the industry in preserving its image should not be forgotten. Musicals, shows, and now the aforementioned film have consciously chosen to emphasize talent and minimize controversy. This is not a simple forgetfulness, but a strategy that responds to both economic interests and a clear perception: the public wants to continue listening to Michael Jackson, and the industry is responsible for facilitating that desire.
Finally, there remains the artist’s own character, that mixture of genius and strangeness that turned him into an almost literary figure. Michael Jackson did not allow himself to be reduced to a simple identity. He was, at the same time, a child and an adult, a star and a fragile creature, a global icon and a deeply singular being. This complexity, far from harming him, contributed to surrounding him with a fascination that not even the controversy managed to dissipate. Thus, while other names fade under the weight of their errors, his remains. Not because the doubt has disappeared, nor because the questions have been answered, but because his music, his image and his place in culture have built a fortress that is difficult to assault.
Filed Under