Cultural Impact Of Michael Jackson

American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson (1958–2009) is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century and one of the most successful and influential entertainers. Often referred as the " King of Pop", his achievements helped to complete the desegregation of popular music in the United States and introduced an era of multiculturalism and integration that future generations of artists followed.Roberts, "Kingdom", p. 36. His influence extended to inspiring fashion trends and raising awareness for social causes around the world.

Jackson became a child star in 1969 as the lead singer of the Jackson 5, a band formed with his older brothers. The group were recognized by US Congress for their contribution to American youth culture, and Jackson was embraced by the American public to a degree not afforded a child star since Shirley Temple in the 1930s. In the early 1980s, Jackson became a dominant figure in popular culture and the first African-American entertainer to have a strong crossover fan base on Music Television (MTV). His music videos, including those for "Beat It", "Billie Jean", and "Thriller" from his 1982 album ''Thriller'', are credited with breaking racial barriers and transforming the medium into an art form and promotional tool. The popularity of these videos helped bring the television channel MTV to fame. Jackson's success at this time was credited with rescuing the music industry from its late-1970s recession, and revolutionizing it by initiating a marketing focus on blockbuster albums and video presentation.

Through his videos and live performances, Jackson popularized street dances, particularly his signature move the moonwalk, and attracted a cult of impersonators throughout the world. He is credited with helping to spread dance to a global audience and having an influence comparable to dance icons such as to Fred Astaire and Sammy Davis Jr. With an aesthetic borrowed from the musical film tradition, the ''Thriller'' videos created a subindustry of choreographers as other pop artists sought to produce sophisticated dance-oriented promotional films. In the 1980s, Jackson's personal idiosyncrasies and changing appearance became the source of fascination for the tabloid media, a phenomenon furthered by the child abuse accusations leveled against him in 1993. These eccentricities and controversies inspired a wealth of pictures and other artworks exploring his public image, which were presented in the 2018 exhibition '' Michael Jackson: On the Wall'' at London's National Portrait Gallery.

Jackson influenced a wide range of subjects, from celebrity studies to visual culture to gender and sexuality studies, and many more including ones not directly related to his profession. According to a study published in '' The Journal of Pan African Studies'' in 2010, his influence extended to academia, with references to the singer in literature concerning mass communications, psychology, medicine, engineering and chemistry. The British Council named Jackson on their list of "80 Moments that Shaped the World" with regard to international cultural relations.

Performing arts

Music

As the lead singer and youngest member of the Jackson 5 from the late 1960s, Michael Jackson was the group's focal point for the media. They became one of the most popular family acts in pop music, with many hit records, a self-titled cartoon series and, from 1976, a self-titled variety show. He and his brothers were widely viewed as role models for contemporary society; the press celebrated them as a family founded on core religious beliefs and a strong work ethic, and in 1972 the Jackson 5 received a commendation from US Congress in recognition of the brothers' contribution to American youth culture. Amid this recognition, according to the editors of '' Rolling Stone''s ''Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll'', Jackson captivated the nation on a level not seen in a child star since Shirley Temple in the 1930s.

Author Peter Doggett describes the pre-teen Jackson as "America's most instinctive soul singer" and the reason that, aided by Motown founder Berry Gordy's presentation of the group, the Jackson 5 surpassed contemporaries such as the Osmonds to become the foremost sibling act. Gordy instilled in Jackson an ambition to make crossover, chart-topping, universal music during Jackson's time at the label. His musical influences varied widely, from the R&B of his father's band to Western classical. With the combination of artistic diversity and mass appeal, Jackson's achievements as a musician have defined a category of contemporary popular music that is characterized by fusions of different eras, styles, media and genres, but is also rooted in R&B and soul music.

The album ''Off the Wall'' was generally categorized as a disco album, yet music critic Rob Sheffield described it as one that "invented modern pop as we know it". The album has been called a turning point and a distillation of the disco era. According to musician and journalist Bob Stanley, ''Off the Wall'' presented Jackson as "a new kind of alpha male" with "an air of super-confidence" reminiscent of Elvis Presley before the latter's army service. The album's commercial success ensured that Jackson's standing surpassed that of the Jackson 5.

In the description of author and pop culture critic Joseph Vogel, Jackson's 1982 album ''Thriller'' changed the direction of popular music. Jay Cocks, writing for '' Time'' magazine in 1984, said the album was "a thorough restoration of confidence, a rejuvenation ndits effect on listeners, especially younger ones, was nearer to a revelation". It reintroduced black music to mainstream American radio; until then the so-called "restrictive special-format programming", a genre-driven radio content philosophy which segregated music by race introduced in the mid-1970s, limited airplay of black music. Jackson, whose success was compared to that of Elvis Presley and the Beatles, appeared on the cover of ''Time''. The album established Jackson as the world's top entertainment star and, in Stanley's recollection, "you'd expect to see a copy in the corner of any room, in any town, in any country in the world." Its unprecedented commercial success also provided the model for record companies recovering from the economic downturn of the late 1970s, whereby they focused on promoting a blockbuster album at the expense of releases by their lesser-known acts. Amid his description of the cultural phenomenon that Jackson represented in 1984, Cocks deemed him "A one-man rescue team for the music business ... A singer who cuts across all boundaries of taste and style, and color too." In 2008, the Library of Congress added ''Thriller'' to the National Recording Registry for its "stratospheric national and international success".

Jackson's music has been extensively covered by other artists of various styles, including Mariah Carey, Miles Davis, Willie Nelson, and Alien Ant Farm. Artists who often mention Jackson in their music include Kanye West, Lil Wayne, LL Cool J, Rick Ross, and Drake. According to Edmondson, writing in 2013, Jackson "redefined the term pop star" and his cultural legacy is reflected "in the very landscape of the modern, genre-crossing, multimedia pop music scene".

Dance and choreography

From the start of his performing career, Jackson incorporated dance moves into a stage presence that invited comparison with James Brown, Sammy Davis Jr., Mick Jagger and Tina Turner. He went on to popularize street dances such as popping, locking, the robot and his signature move the moonwalk. Professor of performance studies at NYU Tavia Nyongo said that "No dancer has done as much to popularize the art form since Fred Astaire."

Jackson first performed the moonwalk when miming to "Billie Jean" at the close of the '' Motown 25'' TV special, which aired in May 1983. The performance was viewed by an international audience of around 50 million and, according to ''Rolling Stone'', "energize the music scene once again and set in motion all the forces that would go on to shape the popular culture of the 1980s". Media studies academic Jaap Kooijman writes that, although the moonwalk was an additional element in his routine at ''Motown 25'', Jackson's replication of his dancing from the already popular "Billie Jean" music video presented a new phenomenon whereby a concert performance involved re-creating a video sequence and the music, including live vocals, ceded to visual imagery such as dance.

Jackson is credited with helping to spread dance to a global audience. Nigel Lythgoe, executive producer and judge on the TV dance competition '' So You Think You Can Dance'', said that "countless" applicants had begun dancing because of Jackson. Ronni Favors, a director at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, said Jackson was "a trailblazer for his generation", setting the expectation that future pop stars, such as Britney Spears and Beyoncé, integrate dance in their performances. In Japan, as a result of him opening his 1987–89 Bad World Tour there, Jackson is credited with reshaping J-pop's choreography. He also influenced India's Bollywood film scene, where dance sequences, films and soundtrack music all borrowed heavily from Jackson's work.

Following the singer's death in 2009, Andy Gill of '' The Independent'' said that through Jackson's example, "the Eighties became the decade of dance stars like Prince and Madonna, neither of whom would have been able to establish themselves as quickly as they did had Jackson not moonwalked across the room and kicked down the door for them." Gill added that with thousands of dancers imitating his moves in the moonwalk and the zombie, Jackson became "the most significant mainstream dance icon since the mid-century heyday of Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly and Sammy Davis Jr." Jackson was posthumously inducted into the National Museum of Dance and Hall of Fame in 2010.

Music videos

Jackson had a lasting influence on the music video medium, starting with the clips for his ''Thriller'' singles "Billie Jean" and "Beat It". At the time most music videos had small budgets, low production values and little narrative. Jackson's videos began a transformation, replacing low-budget montage promos with elaborate short films consisting of in-depth narratives and sophisticated visuals,Vogel, (Kindle location) 391. and taking the form of a mini musical. Jackson collaborated with several Hollywood directors on these works, including John Landis, Martin Scorsese, Spike Lee and John Singleton. "Beat It" featured unusually sophisticated choreography and, according to ''The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll'', created a "music video subindustry of dancers and choreographers" such as Paula Abdul and Toni Basil.

The "Thriller" video—which gained a commercial release as '' Michael Jackson's Thriller''—was unusually long (at 15 minutes) and took the form of a short film presentation. It features Jackson dancing with zombies and cost more than $1 million to produce. The film sealed MTV's position as a cultural force, helped disassemble racial barriers for black artists, revolutionized music video production, popularized the making-of documentaries, and drove rentals and sales of VHS tapes. It has been described as the most influential music video in history; according to Edmondson, the "Thriller" video "is credited with single-handedly revolutionizing the landscape of pop music". Former MTV executive Nina Blackwood said, " fter 'Thriller'we saw videos get more sophisticated—more story lines, way more intricate choreography. You look at those early videos and they were shockingly bad." Music video director Brian Grant credited "Thriller" as the turning point when music videos became a "proper industry". Gill recognized the Landis-directed film as a work that "altered forever the balance of sound and vision in the entertainment industry", adding: "Prior to Jackson, music alone had been the premier conduit of cultural dissemination among young people; after Jackson, it was merely the accompaniment to a dance routine, one small element in a larger spectacle." In December 2009, the video was inducted into the National Film Registry.

With MTV's initial broadcast of the film, in December 1983, the debut of a new Jackson video became a major media event. MTV's belated support signaled the end of its rock-only policy and, due to the popularity the film gained for the network, of concerns for its commercial survival. Bob Pittman, MTV's co-founder and CEO, said that "'Thriller' brought people to MTV for the first time, and it made them stay and watch it again and again. Now everybody was into MTV." This development ensured an upswing in the economics of the music industry after its sharp decrease in revenue since the late 1970s and, with the expansion of MTV's reach in 1984, new music stars being created through the video medium as well as established acts such as Bruce Springsteen embracing high-production music videos. The ''Rolling Stone'' editors state that Jackson's breakthrough was the "turning point" for MTV, initiating a transformation in which the network "not only revolutionized virtually every aspect of the music business, from promotion to concert tours, but changed the way listeners/viewers related to music and to artists".

According to ''The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll'', the $160,000 budget for Jackson's "Beat It" video was considered an "exorbitant" amount; the video for his 1995 single " Scream" cost an estimated $4 million, making it the most expensive clip in pop music history at that time. According to Landis, the "Thriller" video project was the subject of a course at Harvard Business School, although he said this study incorrectly highlighted the role of business and legal professionals rather than Jackson's creative vision. MTV's premiere of Jackson's "Black or White" single was broadcast simultaneously in 27 countries on November 14, 1991, and was watched by an estimated 500 million people. As of 2006, this remained the largest audience to view a music video.

"Thriller" has become closely associated with Halloween. The dance is performed in major cities around the world; the largest zombie dance included 12,937 dancers, in Mexico City. A YouTube video of more than 1,500 prisoners performing the dance had attracted 14 million views as of 2010.

Fashion

The ''Rolling Stone'' editors describe Jackson as "one of the most intriguing personas (sic) in popular music, at once childlike and obsessed with control" and comment on his ubiquitous presence, "spotlit in his trademark red zippered jacket and white sequined glove". Jackson often asked tailors to make him clothes that defied convention. His defiance led to a notable style that includes sequined gloves, a fedora, red leather jackets, sequined jackets, aviator sunglasses, black high-waisted pants, white socks, and leather penny loafers. Jackson was also interested in British royalty and military history, which resulted in his adoption of regalia and military jackets. His jackets often had a single-colored armband on one sleeve. At the height of his fame, Jackson inspired fashion trends around the world. British ''Vogue'' called him "a fashion pioneer ..who gave new meaning to moonwalking, immortalised solitary, sparkly gloves, initiated the trophy jacket trend in the Eighties and was brave enough to couple dress with Madonna on the red carpet".

Others have been influenced by Jackson's fashion sense. In 2012, Lady Gaga named Jackson as an inspiration. She owns around 400 pieces from his personal collection. In 2016, she wore Jackson's jacket from his 1990 visit to the White House at Hillary Clinton's final campaign rally during the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Also in 2016, Beyoncé honored Michael Jackson at Super Bowl 50 by wearing a Jackson-inspired outfit, a black and gold military jacket similar to the one Jackson wore in his Super Bowl halftime show in 1993.

Visual arts

Jackson has been depicted by a large number of contemporary artists, including Jeff Koons, Michael Craig-Martin and Grayson Perry. The silkscreen image of Jackson used on the cover of ''Time'' in 1984 was created by Andy Warhol. The final portrait Jackson commissioned before his death, by Kehinde Wiley, portrayed him as Philip II of Spain in the manner of a painting by Pieter Paul Rubens.

In June 2018 the National Portrait Gallery in London opened an exhibition titled '' Michael Jackson: On the Wall'', featuring art inspired by Jackson and created by many leading artists. The curators stated that Jackson was "the most depicted cultural figure in visual art". The exhibition included the Warhol and Wiley pieces, and culminated in a 2005 film by Candice Breitz

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