Michael Jackson

Michael Joseph Jackson, born August 29, 1958, in Gary, Indiana, known as the King of Pop, is the best-selling music artist of all time and one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century, a performer of unprecedented influence whose innovations in music, dance, music video production, and live performance redefined popular entertainment on a global scale. The seventh of nine children born to steelworker Joseph and pianist Katherine Jackson in Gary, Indiana, Michael was singing in the local church choir at age five and performing professionally with his siblings as the Jackson 5 by age six, developing his stage presence and vocal abilities under the demanding eye of his father Joseph, whose methods were severe but produced extraordinary results in his extraordinarily gifted youngest performing son. The Jackson 5 signed to Motown Records in 1968 and produced a string of number-one singles including I Want You Back, ABC, The Love You Save, and I'll Be There that made Michael, still a pre-teen, the most famous child entertainer in the world. His solo career launched while he was still a teenager with the albums Got to Be There (1972) and Ben (1972). Off the Wall (1979), produced by Quincy Jones, established him as a dominant solo force and won him a Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. Thriller (1982), also produced by Quincy Jones, remains the best-selling album in history with estimated sales exceeding 70 million copies, produced seven top-ten singles, and won a record eight Grammy Awards. The accompanying short films, particularly Thriller and Billie Jean, transformed the music video from a promotional tool into an art form and permanently redefined what was possible in that medium. Bad (1987), Dangerous (1991), HIStory (1995), and Invincible (2001) each sold tens of millions of copies. He died on June 25, 2009, at age fifty, leaving a cultural footprint that remains immeasurable.