In this edition of #TCMS, The Company Man and Laureluxe tribute the King of Pop, Michael Jackson and discuss the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards Winners and Losers.
#TCMS Airs Monday through Thursday on PNCRadio.FM from 4 to 6PM. Listen on your mobile device HERE
Showing posts with label MICHAEL JACKSON. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MICHAEL JACKSON. Show all posts
Michael Jackson, Michael Album Review
A chilling moment occurs during the opening of “(I Like) The Way You Love Me”, one of few enchanting offerings on Michael Jackson’s first posthumous album, Michael. “Okay, this is the tempo and this is the melody...drums!” the late King of Pop directs through what sounds like a voicemail message, just before singing the song’s opening bars and unleashing a furious beat-box intended for the song’s drum pattern. The beat-boxing blends lovely right into the wispy flutes and sublime piano keys that give the track it’s classic uplifting MJ sound. It’s a moment that’s surprising and exhilarating, allowing us to hear Michael’s voice in it’s most organic, providing perhaps a final glimpse of his artistic meticulousness.
At 41 minutes in length, Michael is brief and shrouded in controversy -- much like the life of the icon himself. Consisting of a mishmash of unused and half-finished material stored away in the crevices of the most expensive catalog in history -- arranged as ably as possible by a team of Jackson collaborators -- charges of inauthenticity rained in almost immediately after the release of it’s first single earlier this year.
“Everybody watching the news on Michael Jackson / They wanna see that I fall because I’m Michael Jackson,” he charges at the media on “Breaking News,” retaliating against the intense scrutiny that’s become synonymous with his name. “You say you love me but it’s hard to see / Because when he’s in your arms you’re throwing rocks at me / Who do you love?” he demanding of a fronting flame on “Behind The Mask,” an electronic rush of quintessential Michael Jackson shinning through the second-hand meddling.
Michael absolutely has it’s moments, though. Ballad, “Keep Your Head Up”, carries a “Heal The World” vibe in arrangement with it’s flowing orchestration and a triumphant choir that grows anthemic by songs end. The Teddy Riley-produced “Monster” thumps and rumbles all the way to immediate head-nod and 50 Cent’s guest verse adds just enough grittiness to the track’s raucous guitar strings and bass line. “Best Of Joy” bursts with inspiration as Jackson’s falsetto eerily speaks directly to the legacy of his music on millions of people worldwide: “Wasn’t it I who carried you around / When the walls kept tumbling down...I am forever / I am forever / We are forever”.
READ THE FULL REVIEW @ HIPHOPDX.COM
Michael Jackson's Posthumous Album, Michael, Available For Free Listen
The good folks at MichaelJackson.com have made The King Of Pop's posthumous album available for free streaming.
Click the link below and purchase the album on Tuesday, December 14.
Michael, by Michael Jackson
Here's a few classic MJ videos to enjoy.
Hip Hop’s Outlier – Uncle Ralph McDaniels Interview Part II
In 1982, when Uncle Ralph first pitched his show idea to WNYC-TV (Channel 31), music videos were still revolutionary.
MTV launched in August of 1981 with completely Rock focused content. Acts like The Buggles (“Video Killed The Radio Star”), Pat Benatar (“You Better Run”), Rod Stewart (“She Won’t Dance With Me”) dominated the fledgling cable channel’s rotation. Except for the occasional clip from Tina Turner, Donna Summer, Eddy Grant and Musical Youth (“Pass The Dutchie”), videos by black artists were seldom broadcast. Michael Jackson didn’t break MTVs self imposed color barrier until 1983 when “Billie Jean” became the first video by a black artist to receive regular airplay.
Keep in mind that cable was brand new technology. Manhattan Cable Television (where Uncle Ralph interned) was the nation’s first cable company and did not reach outside of Manhattan. The four remaining outer boroughs still relied on VHF and UHF signals. Anyone living outside of Manhattan likely would not have access to MTV — or any other cable channel — until the late 1980s.
At the same time, Hip Hop itself was still little more than an urban movement championed by rebellious youth. The Culture existed in parks and parties and could be seen bombed on subway trains winding through The City infrastructure. It wasn’t on radio. It certainly wasn’t on television.
It wasn’t the mainstream. It was the alternative.
So when Ralph McDaniels pitched his idea for an “edutainment” video show to the station where he worked, not surprisingly he was met with resistance.
“We pitched it as a video show. People didn’t know what that was because…MTV existed, but nobody saw it because there was no cable. Nobody had cable. My sell was edutainment. We wanted to educate kids to whats going on in New York City as well as entertain them with the videos. They’re not going to listen unless you give them something they like, and this is something that young people are in to. They are in to music videos.”
WNYC-TV rejected the idea initially but agreed to try it as part of a broader fundraiser. The fundraiser proved to be successful. Too successful.
CONTINUE READING @ BROOKLYNBODEGA.COM
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