Episode 80 – The Staging of a Media Trial
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 […]
MJ Studies Today CXII
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, […]
Episode 79 – Consuming Passions
In the second part of the book review Unfinished Business by Judith Hamera, Elizabeth and Karin discuss how Hamera writes about Consuming Passions, Wasted Efforts and Michael Jackson’s Financial Melodramas. One of the important questions they ask is why using Michael Jackson and compare his dancing and financial gains and losses as deindustrialised. They ask […]
MJ Studies Today CXI
Abstract: This month’s MJ Studies Today column highlights a Michael Jackson demo recording of a song called “Fall Again.” Written for Jackson by Walter Afanasieff and Robin Thicke, “Fall Again” was never finished, and was subsequently recorded by other artists. It featured in a Hollywood movie, and became a hit for Kenny G. Nevertheless, columnist […]
Episode 78 – The Labors of Michael Jackson
Abstract: In this episode, Elizabeth and Karin talk about Judith Hamera’s powerful book, Unfinished Business: Michael Jackson, Detroit, and the Figural Economy of American Deindustrialization, the concept of virtuosity in relation to Michael Jackson’s labours and the labour of factory workers. They also explore the cultural and historical context of Michael Jackson’s music and the potential for future opportunities […]
MJ Studies Today CX
Extract: In this month’s MJ Studies Today column, Kerry Hennigan looks at a song that is a personal favourite – “Who Is It” from Michael Jackson’s Dangerous album. Both the song and the short film are considered in the context of their content and the similarities between the betrayed protagonist and Jackson himself in the […]
Past-Present-Future Book 7
In this episode Karin and Elizabeth discuss four columns by Kerry Hennigan, the two podcasts of last year and dive in the introduction of an academic book titled “Unfinished Business” by Judith Hamera. REFERENCE AS: Merx, Karin, and Elizabeth Amisu. “Episode 77 – ‘Past-Present-Future Book 7’, Michael Jackson’s Dream Lives On An Academic Conversation 12, no. 1 […]
MJ Studies Today CIX
MJ Studies Today for January 2025 looks at Michael Jackson's humanitarian legacy which came from very humble beginnings. Continue reading
MJ Studies Today CVIII
Abstract: In this month’s column, Kerry Hennigan reflects on the current and forthcoming official projects from the Michael Jackson Estate, namely MJ: the Musical and the forthcoming biographical movie Michael. In considering the concerns of some fans, Kerry looks back on the Estate’s collaboration with Cirque du Soleil, and on the potential for all such […]
Episode 76 – Wannabe Startin’ Somethin’
In episode 76, Karin and Elizabeth discuss the essay “Wannabe Startin’ Somethin’: Michael Jackson’s Critical Race Representation” by Dawn-Elissa Fischer, Professor at the San Francisco State University where she teaches courses on black popular culture, information technology and virtual ethnography. REFERENCE AS: Merx, Karin, and Elizabeth Amisu. “Episode 76 – ‘Wannabe Startin’ Somethin’’, Michael Jackson’s Dream Lives […]