Abstract: This month Kerry Hennigan looks at the variety of career choices and attitudes in Michael Jackson’s now-adult children, Prince, Paris and Bigi. This article was prompted by Paris Jackson’s recent comments with respect to the forthcoming biopic which purports to tell the life story of her beloved father. Paris’ opinions on officially sanctioned projects […]
In this episode, Elizabeth and Karin review the books written by Margo Jefferson, On Michael Jackson, editions 2007 and 2018. This is part 1 of the discussion; the next one is about articles in The Guardian and the catalogue of the On the Wall exhibition. REFERENCE AS: Merx, Karin, and Elizabeth Amisu. “Episode 83 – […]
Abstract: This month’s MJ Studies Today column looks at Michael Jackson’s career in the late 1980s at a time when the artist was becoming increasingly frustrated by the tabloid media’s focus on the rumours, tall stories, and fabrications about his life. This included fantastical PT Barnam-style stunts such as his supposed interest in buying the […]
Abstract: When working on new material for his 1987 album Bad, Michael Jackson wrote a song about the experience of fame, the media and the pressures of being a successful show business professional. Called, appropriately, “The Price of Fame,” a demo of the song was released in 2012 on the 25th anniversary reissue of Bad. […]
In Episode 82, our Anniversary episode, Elizabeth and Karin discuss the essay Michael Jackson’s Gesamtkunstwerk: Artistic Interrelation, Immersion, and Interactivity From the Studio to the Stadium by Sylvia J. Martin. REFERENCE AS: Merx, Karin, and Elizabeth Amisu. “Episode 82 – Gesamtkunstwerk” Podcast, Michael Jackson’s Dream Lives On: An Academic Conversation, 12 no. 4 (2025). Published electronically […]
Abstract: Many fans of Michael Jackson collect books about the pop icon, wanting to read as much as they can about his life and career. Referencing titles from her own collection, MJ Studies Today columnist Kerry Hennigan finds that biographies presenting a factual portrait of the King of Pop are a rarity. Similarly, critical analysis […]
In this episode, Karin and Elizabeth talk about their experiences as exhibitors on KingVention ranging from 2016 till 2025. They discuss the first event and how fantastic that was with the big Dangerous Cover, the people they interviewed and remember Nicole, the student who did the course Michael Jackson Studies and who passed away not […]
Abstract: This month, MJ Studies Today columnist Kerry Hennigan considers the importance of Michael Jackson’s song “Stranger In Moscow” in the context of what happened to the artist that prompted him to write agonising lyrics like “Armageddon of the brain” and “here abandoned in my fame.” At a time in his life when he was […]
In this episode Elizabeth and Karin discuss the essay by Philipp Dominik Keidl where he explores how Michael Jackson fans responded to the sexual abuse allegations made by Wade Robson and James Safechuck in the 2019 documentary Leaving Neverland. The focus is on a phenomenon Keidl terms “forensic fandom,” where fans produce counter-documentaries and online […]
Abstract: This month, MJ Studies Today columnist Kerry Hennigan relates personal memories of the time hundreds of Michael Jackson fans gathered on New Year’s Day 2011, in Guangzhou, China to attend the unveiling of a specially commissioned bronze sculpture of Jackson at the Guangzhou Sculpture Park. “Hold My Hand,” Jackson’s posthumously released duet with Akon, […]