Michael Jonzun is a musician and music producer. His specialty genres are electro, electronic dance, and electrofunk. Born in Florida, he formed the

Jonzun Crew Jonzun Crew was an American electro and early funk– hip hop group that was active in the 1980s. The group was led by Michael Jonzun, his brothers Maurice Starr and Soni Jonzun, and Carl (Captain Fingers). Overview The Jonzun Crew was forme ...

in Boston with Steve Thorpe and Gordy Worthy. In the early 1980s, the group recorded electro

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

tracks including "Pack Jam (Look Out for the OVC)" and "Space Cowboy". The former was inspired by Michael Jonzun's distaste toward the popular ''

Pac-Man originally called ''Puck Man'' in Japan, is a 1980 maze action video game developed and released by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. Th ...

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

. He made several more LPs in the 1980s, but with less commercial success. He also produced many recordings by other artists. He collaborated with his brother, Soni Jonzun, and with collaborator

Maurice Starr Larry Curtis Johnson (born July 14, 1953), better known by his stage name Maurice Starr, is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work creating songs and albums with boy bands New Edition and New Kids on ...

, contributed to early tracks by both groups. He also worked on

Peter Wolf Peter Wolf (born March 7, 1946) is an American musician best known as the lead vocalist of the J. Geils Band from 1967 to 1983 and as a solo artist. Early life and education Peter Wolf was born Peter Walter Blankfield on March 7, 1946 in The ...

's ''Lights Out'' and Tom Browne's ''Rockin' Radio''. In 1986, he left the band to pursue a solo career and released an album on

A&M Records A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...

. In 2012, Jonzun sued the estate of

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

for $24 million, claiming co-writing credit on " This is It," a song Jackson recorded in 2009 with

Paul Anka Paul Albert Anka (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter and actor. He is best known for his signature hit songs including " Diana", " Lonely Boy", "Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and " (You're) Having My Baby". Anka also ...

. In March 2014, a federal judge dismissed the suit. Cronin, Melissa, "Victory From Beyond The Grave! Michael Jackson Wins $24M ‘This Is It’ Lawsuit"
Radar Online, April 18, 2014.

Discography

Albums * ''

Lost in Space ''Lost in Space'' is an American science fiction television series, created and produced by Irwin Allen, which originally aired between 1965 and 1968 on CBS. The series was inspired by the 1812 novel ''The Swiss Family Robinson.'' The series fo ...

'' (1983)—Jonzun Crew—songs written and produced by Michael Jonzun (Tommy Boy/Warner Bros. Records) * ''Down to Earth'' (1984)—Jonzun Crew Featuring Michael Jonzun (Tommy Boy/Warner Bros. Records) (rereleased by A&M/PolyGram Records with a completely different track listing) * ''Money Isn't Everything'' (1986)—Michael Jonzun (A&M/PolyGram Records) Singles & EPs * ''Time Is Running Out'' (1984)—Jonzun Crew Featuring Michael Jonzun (Tommy Boy/Warner Bros. Records) * ''Lovin'/Mechanism'' (1984)—Jonzun Crew Featuring Michael Jonzun (Tommy Boy/Warner Bros. Records) * ''Redd Hott Mama'' (1985)—Jonzun Crew Featuring Michael Jonzun (A&M/PolyGram Records) * ''Games People Play'' (1986)—Michael Jonzun (A&M/PolyGram Records) * ''Burnin' Up'' (1986)—Michael Jonzun (A&M/PolyGram Records) Production work *''Lights Out'' (1984)—Peter Wolf—primary producer and songwriter

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jonzun, Michael American electro musicians Living people A&M Records artists Year of birth missing (living people)

Discography

See also

References