MICHEAL JACKSON "MJ"

Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer-songwriter, dancer, businessman and philanthropist. Often referred to by the honorific nickname "King of Pop", or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records. His contributions to music, dance, and fashion, along with his publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture for over four decades.

The eighth child of the Jackson family, he debuted on the professional music scene along with his brothers as a member of The Jackson 5 in 1964, and began his solo career in 1971. In the early 1980s, Jackson became the dominant figure in popular music. The music videos for his songs, including those of "Beat It," "Billie Jean," and "Thriller," were credited with breaking down racial barriers and transforming the medium into an art form and promotional tool. The popularity of these videos helped to bring the then relatively new television channel MTV to fame. With videos such as "Black or White" and "Scream" he continued to innovate the medium throughout the 1990s, as well as forging a reputation as a touring solo artist. Through stage and video performances, Jackson popularized a number of complicated dance techniques, such as the robot, and the moonwalk, to which he gave the name. His distinctive sound and style has influenced numerous hip hop, post-disco, contemporary R&B, pop, and rock artists.

In 2004 MJ shrewdly acquired a catalogue of songs, including the music of The Beatles as well as his own hits, and that catalogue was doubling in value annually, spinning off millions in earnings.

Beneath the breathy voice and halting manner, he was as good a businessman as any artist who had ever lived. ‘Part of him may be a ten-year-old, with all the enthusiasm that implies,’ his lawyer John Branca once said. ‘But the other part is a 60-year-old genius.’

Yet the Michael Jackson who existed after August 1993 was a different man. That same year, he had begun to use pills and injections to fight his insomnia after he paid more than $18 million to settle claims of child sexual molestation brought by the family of Jordan Chandler. And in the years following, shopping and spending became as addictive for Michael as any opiate. 

By the mid-Nineties, his net worth was estimated to be as high as $1 billion. Millions were still pouring in each year – but now even more was pouring out. Those who worked for him described seeing Jackson leaf through a magazine and order every single product advertised in it.