Musical influences
Jackson’s music genre takes roots in R&B. He had been influenced by the work of contemporary musicians such as Little Richard, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, Diana Ross, David Ruffin, Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, Sammy Davis Jr and the Bee Gees. He was also an admirer of performers from the English music hall tradition, such as Benny Hill and Charlie Chaplin. While Little Richard had a huge influence on Jackson, James Brown was his greatest inspiration with his group, the Famous Flames, qualifying its performance as “phenomenal”. He declared: “Ever since I was a small child, no more than like six years old, my mother would wake me no matter what time it was, no matter what I was doing, to watch the television to see the master at work. And when I saw him move, I was mesmerised. I had never seen a performer like James Brown, and right then and there I knew that was exactly what I wanted to do for the rest of my life . The young Michael Jackson owes his vocal technique in large part to Diana Ross. In October 1969, it was decided that Michael would live with Diana Ross. He later confessed: “I got to know her well. She taught me so much. I used to just sit in the corner and watch the way she moved. She was art in motion. I studied the way she moved, the way she sang - just the way she was.” He told her: ‘I want to be just like you, Diana’. She said: ‘You just be yourself.”
Vocal style
Jackson sang from childhood, and over time his voice and style changed noticeably. Between 1971 and 1975, Jackson’s voice descended from boy soprano to high tenor and he first used a technique called the “vocal hiccup” in 1973, in the song It’s too late to change the time from the G.I.T.: Get It Together album. Jackson did not use the hiccup technique- somewhat like a gulping for air or gasping fully-until the recording of Off the wall. It can be seen in full force in the Shake your body promotional video. In the late 70s, Rolling Stones compared his vocals to the “breathless, dreamy stutter” of Stevie Wonder. 1982 saw the release of Thriller and Jackson’s “fully adult voice” was “tinged by sadness”. Gritty lead vocals on the verse were displayed by the release of Bad in 1987 and lighter tones employed on the chorus. The turn of the 1990s saw the release of the introspective album Dangerous.
Music videos,choreography and a film
Music video choreographer Steve Huey of Allmusic observed how Jackson transformed the music video into an art form and a promotional tool through complex storylines, dance routines, special effects and famous cameo appearances; simultaneously breaking down racial barriers. Before Thriller, Jackson struggled to receive coverage on MTV, but pressure from CBS Records persuaded MTV to start showing Billie Jean and later Beat it, leading to a lengthy partnership with Jackson.His songs helped to put the relatively young channel on the map; MTV’s focus shifted in favour of pop and R&B. The choreography in Thriller has become a part of global pop culture, replicated everywhere including in Indian films. Thriller has been named the most successful music video ever by the Guinness Book of World Records. In the 19-minute music video for Bad, directed by Martin Scorsese, Jackson began using sexual imagery and choreography not previously seen in his work. While he has described this as “choreography,” it garnered a mixed reception from both fans and critics. For Smooth criminal, Jackson experimented with an innovative “anti-gravity lean” in his performances, for which he was granted a U.S. patent! Although the music video for Leave me alone was not officially released in the US, in 1989, it was nominated for four Billboard Music Video Awards, winning three; the same year it won a Golden Lion Award for the quality of the special effects used in its production. In 1990, it won a Grammy for Best Music Video.
Black Or White’s controversial music video simultaneously premiered in 27 countries to an estimated audience of 500 million people, the largest viewing ever for a music video It helped usher in morphing as an important technology in music videos.
The music video for Scream, directed by Mark Romanek, is one of Jackson's most critically acclaimed. In 1995, it gained 11 MTV Video Music Award nominations-more than any other music video-and won "Best Dance Video", "Best Choreography", and "Best Art Direction". The song was generated after MJ was accused of child molestation in 1993, and won a Grammy for Best Music Video, Short Form; shortly afterwards Guinness World Records listed it as the most expensive music video ever made at a cost of $7 million.
After this, MJ used several issues like environmental consciousnessas basis for making socially-relevant videos, finally, Ghosts, a short film written by Jackson and Stephen King and directed by Stan Winston was released in 1997 and premiered at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival. It’s video is 38 minutes long and holds the Guinness World Record as the world's longest music video.
