Michael Jackson's estate responds to Leaving Neverland by sharing Jackson concerts to YouTube
Aux Features Michael JacksonFor months now, the family and estate of Michael Jackson have been responding to Leaving Neverland, the searing documentary by Dan Reed that chronicles disturbing sexual abuse allegations from Wade Robson and James Safechuck, with their own amalgam of statements, interviews, threatening letters, and a nice little lawsuit against HBO. In their latest attempt to desperately change the narrative, the estate is sharing the late pop icon’s biggest concerts on YouTube for a limited time, free of charge.
Just ahead of Leaving Neverland’s Sunday night HBO premiere, Jackson’s official Twitter account announced their own Sunday release of Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour along with a Monday stream of his 1988 Wembley Stadium show. Both concerts were slated to drop at 8 p.m., which is not-at-all-coincidentally timed perfectly with the two-part documentary. Prior to this weekend, both recordings were available to rent on multiple platforms.
Leaving Neverland premiered at this year’s Sundance Festival in January, complete with a supply of mental health counselors to help those distressed after the screening. Since then, Jackson’s family and avid supporters have tried to block the four-hour documentary’s worldwide premiere to no avail. If you’re considering tuning in, it might be a good idea to read our review first to better equip yourself for the seriously troubling details to come.
126 Comments
Are we supposed to stop listening to his music now? Like lets say there was super hard evidence of the allegations and they were super true. I mean he’s dead so it’s not like we’re giving him money when we listen. Idk I’m just not sure how we the public are supposed to react to this doc. So curious on others opinions.
My opinion is this probably shouldn’t be your first question.
I mean I havn’t seen the doc yet so what is my first question supposed to be? Honestly asking. Whats the call to action? Is there others involved who need to be brought to justice?
Probably an expression of sympathy for the victims would be a good idea, if you feel it’s necessary to say something.
Which accomplishes nothing but making yourself feel better. Valid questions need not be met with desperately useless demands of sympathy.
This is the first time I’ve ever seen anyone angrily demanding thoughts and prayers.
Or, making other people’s tragedy all about you and your comparatively mild inconvenience is a bit callous.
He made nothing about himself, he asked a question. You truly have a miserable existence.
What if I feel sympathy for the victims and then just pirate his music?
This might be the most feasible means of reconciling this.
It’s a valid question even if yes, I agree, it shouldn’t be the first one. I heard MJ song today and I felt guilty for having liked it as a kid and still having a soft spot for it now. It’s conflicting and sth I hadn’t considered before.
Nah
For starters, don’t feed the troll. And recognitions is a grade-A troll.Secondly, I agree with you. Especially police and feds investigated him inside out several times over the course of a decade and found nothing, so I’m curious as to who missed who and where.
On one hand, the Feds and the police and Access Hollywood and literally everybody dragged this guy over the coals to find any proof of child molestation, and was never able to get anything to stick.On the other hand, Bill Cosby is in jail for rape and he’d been getting away with that for 50 years, so I honestly do not know. I hope the boys in the documentary get the healing they need.
The evidence against Bill Cosby (as well as R. Kelly, and etc) was overwhelming and numerous that the police took little time to find and act upon. The exact opposite happened with MJ. If the Neverland kids had as strong evidence as Cosby, R. Kelly, Weinstein, Louis CK, then MJ would’ve had the same fate. It’s not about “getting anything to stick” its more about backing up accusations with the proper evidence.
Backing up accusations with the proper evidence is what I mean by Getting It To Stick. My point is that, while it seems pretty clear to me that MJ is innocent (although inappropriate), I’ve been blindsided before.
Like I said, we’ll never really know the truth because one side is dead and the evidence buried with him.
It is?
He’s. . . dude, he’s not innocent. I wanted to believe for years that he was innocent, but it’s overwhelmingly obvious he isn’t. Seriously. He is not innocent.
Maybe him fully admitting these little kids were his friends and that he slept alone in the same bed with them is enough. It’s very reasonable to think that’s wrong, weird and there’s some form of abuse in all that even if you doubt these two.
He did actually admit that. The thing is, its not exactly illegal to sleep with children in a bed as the OP correctly said there is no superhard evidence enough to prosecute to suggest that he crossed the line into abusing them. We’re only getting their side of the story and now that he’s dead, we’ll never really know what happened.
Yeah he did. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-158342/Why-I-sleep-little-boys-Michael-Jackson.html?fbclid=IwAR0tPWUZB7aH2l4DhhjxzdufegDAGx1P-XsO4Jg87a9IQIQagQWHBTKa-bQ
I could’ve sworn I said He did actually admit that. as I could’ve swore I said The thing is, its not exactly illegal to sleep with children in a bed as the OP correctly said there is no superhard evidence enough to prosecute to suggest that he crossed the line into abusing them. Try reading and comprehending next time instead of knee-jerk responding.
Sorry it’s annoying you’re defending extremely questionable behavior and from his interview it seems pretty clear some inappropriate things happened. A 30 something year old super wealthy man is in a very significant position of power over under 10 year old children and is flat out wrong for his actions. If you don’t think that I question your judgement.
I’ve been questioning your judgment from the get-go since you’re seemingly more interested in knee-jerk jump assuming and trolling woke outrage instead of reading or understanding anything I’m saying.Anything else before you cross the line into ad hom insults so I may finally have my reasons to dismiss your posts?
“I know you are, but what am I” – defense. Classic.
Of course, you reply with trollish insults. And of course, I will move forward with dismissing you. Goodbye.
Watch the documentary, and still see if you feel the same way.
You are one of “them” I guess. The Michael-isn’t-guilty crowd is all over comment sections on the internet and I have to wonder why anyone would defend this man. The “FBI Investigation” defense is total bullshit. Why are you defending a man you don’t even know just because you like his music?
Don’t bother with recognitions. Waste of time. Whatever you say will be the wrong thing to say.
The call to action is obvious!Step 1. Perform anonymous outrage to strangers on the internetStep 2. Nothing else.
Can it be my 3rd question?
that was going to be part b of my second question, but now I feel like a jerk.
Yes. Sympathy for the victims does not preclude asking these questions and you’re not the only one wondering about them. Be nice if folk realised that.
The pixel avatars seem to always have the most important priorities. I mean, lets not question why they released it the same time and the same length as the doc. Can I still listen to bad?you can. but also come on man
Yeah well you’re a retard
I think Jackson 5 should be marked as safe, actually everything up to Off the Wall, since that album is the fucking shit. Thriller and post thriller albums are questionable. I’d say basically anything after the nosejob is offlimits.
So you’re going by the Polanski “pre-rape movies are okay, therefore I’m not a monster for continuing to love Chinatown” route? I’ve been trying to find a way to make the math for that work in my head and I keep coming up short.
He’s been an accused pedo for 25+ years now, why should some HBO documentary all of a sudden change someones musical preferences? if you were going to drop him from playlists, it should have happened 25+ years ago.
Good thing my fandom of MJ never exceeded “that dude is a pretty good dancer.” No need to delete him from playlists he was never on, you know? I’ve quit being able to listen to Led Zeppelin because of the Jimmy Page/Lori Maddox stuff. Bowie has been harder to untangle, but it’s happening.
Good thing my fandom of MJ never exceeded “that dude is a pretty good dancer.” No need to delete him from playlists he was never on, you know? I’ve quit being able to listen to Led Zeppelin because of the Jimmy Page/Lori Maddox stuff. Bowie has been harder to untangle, but it’s happening.
yeah, if we were to base our musical choices on an artists morality or lack thereof, our playlists would probably only consist of like Zamfir and Bob from Sesame Street.
But not Elmo.:0(
“Black or White” is a call for equality, with a denunciation of racist faux journalism (“They print my message in the Saturday Sun / I had to tell them I ain’t second to none”), of openly racist organisations (“I ain’t scared of no sheets”), and even of nationalism (the song equates nations and gangs).
And the video is a masterpiece, a love letter to all the world’s cultures, but powered by a rage inherent in being black in America
This is not one to throw away.
is that the one where he beats the shit out of an old buick? yeah, sure that can get a pass too
His righteous rage is very moving.
As humorous as your comment is, I have to agree with you about the Jackson 5. At the very least, he was innocent then, as he was a kid. It’s tainted in that that period is what fucked him up, but that music is sellotaped into my soul.However, if you are considering Thriller as questionable, I think you should reconsider Off the Wall, sonically perfect though it may be (apart from Girlfriend, which is crap). In the U.K., MJ infamously talked to a 13 year old boy about masturbation on the phone in 1979 and I believe it made the papers here, at the time. It certainly made the papers in 1993 and many times subsequently since.https://www.mjfacts.com/terry-george-and-michael-jackson-the-real-story/
‘Let’s say’. Lets say a lot of people have been knowingly idolizing a child rapist pervert. How are we supposed to react to such enablers? Distain? Disgust? Mockery?
To be clear I believe the accusations but I know there are a lot of people who don’t like believe abusers because there is no hard evidence. But your comment is why I’m asking. Like Kevin Spacey, for example, is still alive. Supporting his work is enabling his bad unjust behavior. Michael Jackson is dead and gone. Throwing away the records of his I already own isn’t doing anything but creating trash. Listening to him on spotify isn’t giving him more money. I get that we shouldn’t idolize him. But are we just to pretend he never existed?
I mean it’s clear that you already made up your mind what you’re going to do. Why even bother to ask?
Just don’t put his music on a playlist you’ll share with others. Not hard.
Do whatever you like. People made up their minds about Michael Jackson forever ago, and anyone who is still deciding probably wasn’t born by the time all of this actually happened.
I’m through separating the art from the artist. Because there are so many artists out there who have not been accused of sexual crimes. I mean, Polanski’s Chinatown may be a masterpiece, just as Thriller is, but I can easily go without either in my life, because their creators are/were rotten human beings.
The difference is that Polanski did admit to underage sex and was charged, only that he bailed out of the country before he was arrested and prosecuted. MJ was never charged with any crime despite being investigated for over a decade.
Ive thought about what you’re saying, but I also think about all of the shitty artists who we don’t know are shitty yet bc it hasnt been revealed, as well as all the shitty artists who, by today’s standards are OK people, but in the future will be considered shitty, and I just throw my hands in the air and say fuck it, I’m smart enough to enjoy an artistic product while acknowledging its creator is a pos.
If an artist is a Tom Hanks-level good person, do you feel obligated to support their work even if you think it sucks?
I mean listening to his music definitely gives money to his estate which is why they’re trying desperately hard to protect MJs image by smearing the reputation of his victims. Public opinion turning against Micheal Jackson would mean the end of a massive Cash cow for his family (which btw turned a billion dollar PROFIT since he died…)
Just do like I have, and never listen to him from the beginning.
Really?
Personal Opinion: go on listening if it’s stuff you already own.They have your money, it’s already spent and you’re not enabling any further actions.If it bothers you, don’t spend new money.
I would say if you like his music there’s no real reason to stop listening now. I stopped listening to his stuff in the late 90’s when a lot of these allegations were coming out. After he died I felt better about listening to his music again. I’ll probably do the same with Roman Polanski, Orson Scott Card and others. For me the idea is that when the person is alive, buying their stuff is directly contributing to their ability to get away with a lot of nasty stuff (via lawyers, hush money, etc). But once the person is dead, then you’re no longer contributing to them and its easier to separate the author from the work. Just their estate which usually has nothing to do with the terrible stuff they’ve done. That said I think docs like Finding Neverland are important even after the attacker is dead as it shines light into these situations to inform and hopefully help prevent situations like this from happening. Also hopefully allow people to side with the victim over their favorite celebrity.
You’re actually allowed to just like whatever music you find enjoyable. That’s mutually exclusive from understanding that someone is an absolute monster and child predator.
Wagner’s antisemitism and the adoption of his music by the Nazi regime has led me to avoid his music. I’ll adopt a similar Michael Jackson strategy.
If you’re capable of separating the art from the artist, then keep on jamming.If, like me, you grew up listening to rap music, then you’ve trained your whole life for this.
I love me some Michael Jackson music, but personally, I will be done. Even though it won’t support him directly, royalties will go to his estate and potentially to those who knew and didn’t say anything.
I agree with you. Attacking his estate, only hurts those he left behind, his children. I was molested by my father years ago. I would hate to have to pay for the sins of my father, after his passing, just because I inherit his estate. They were young, and were either victims because he involved them too, or victims because they had no idea about what was happening under their noses.That said, I believe on Karma, and if he is guilty, he is paying in the after life, if not enough while he was alive. I say this because the great thing about this country is innocent until proven guilty. The prosecution has posted their evidence in the court of public opinion, but the defendant is dead and unable to defend himself in this court, but about a decade ago, he proposed his defense to his maker, the only court that really counts. Judge no less yea be judged. I am not saying that we can’t feel sorry for these two men that have come forward, but hurting Michael’s kids is not going to make these guys feel better about what happened to them. Only time will heal them. Like I said, I was molested by my own father, and I can never fully erase him from my life, I just had to come to terms with it. An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind. Just because they were hurt, doesn’t mean everyone must pay. It isn’t going to make them feel better. Making the movie might have helped, but it would have helped just as much if is was made just for their own privte viewing, it didn’t necessarily need to be public. I have found writing letters to be very therapeutic, with none of them delivered.I hope EVERYONE involved finds their own peace in this whole mess. And I hope everyone remembers that these two young men are not the only victims involved, their are Michael’s children, family members (no one wants to be associated as related to a pediphle) and society as a whole (Michael’s music and dancing has been admired by billions, and his generosity benefited the world with his money and talent).
When MJ first died, it was arguably worse listening to his music because Joe Jackson was getting all the money, but he is dead now too at least. Personally, I can’t really listen to his shit anymore without thinking, “This guys raped kids.” So that kind of takes the enjoyment out of Off The Wall for me anyway.
you sweet, sweet childwhoa. I sound like Michael Jackson.
This seems like it’ll be very hard to sit through, though I’m happy the victims are getting their say. Maybe all save my energy for when the Jeffrey Epstein documentary comes out. Which seems even more relevant than MJ.
So the consensus is that Aziz Ansari, who at most commited a sexual misconduct (and probably a misunderstanding), has to stay in purgatory forever, but a serial child rapist is “too big to cancel”?
You’re late. Michael Jackson already got canceled by propofol.
What “consensus”? What are you even talking about?Some people feel that way about Ansari, others don’t. That’s true even on stories on AVClub or Jezebel. Are you dumb? Do you really think there’s a common mindset or “groupthink” about this? Is that just a narrative in your head perhaps?
Yeh, the consensus is pretty strong that regretting bad consensual sex on a first date is not in any way equivalent to Harvey Weinstein. That is the general consensus
nvm
What?
Die you faggot
Checkmate!…to the opinion literally no one has
Straw, meet Man!
We can erase R. Kelly. We can erase Kevin Spacey. But erasing Michael Jackson feels several orders of magnitude harder, given the impact his music had. I mean, it’s going to have to be done. It’s the “how” that needs to be grappled with, given the breadth of artists he influenced, from Bruno Mars to Justin Timberlake to The Weeknd.
And the question I keep asking (which I’m probably rightfully getting flak for) is: what does it mean to “cancel” someone when they are already dead?
Jimmy Savile.After his death, BBC’s Newsnight investigated the claims against him… that was spiked rather than broadcast. ITV instead made a documentary the following year, a project much like Leaving Neverland. It brought forward claims by up to 10 women who sait he molested or raped them in the ‘60s and ‘70s. Police found an “unprecedented” number of victims, and the BBC and NHS had to do a lot of soul searching. ITV updated its documentary later that same year.Parallel to and subsequent to all this, his name disappeared from a number of places and groups that had been named for him. Plaques and statues–even his headstone–were taken away. What was left of his estate was made available to compensate his victims.
He appeared for 15 seconds in Peter Kay’s 2005 Comic Relief video for Amarillo, opposite Sally Lindsey. When ITV exposed the extent of his abuse in 2012, the BBC re-edited the video to remove him by cropping in on Kay and Lindsey, and noticeably slowing and replaying the shot to stretch it.It might be interesting for someone on the staff to contact Tony Christie and ask why his VEVO channel still features a pedophile in the clip…
Whoa, that case is fascinating. Thanks!
But erasing Michael Jackson feels several orders of magnitude harder, given the impact his music had.First of all, nothing is being erased. There aren’t going to be bonfires fueled by Thriller albums and VHS copies of The Wiz. All that’s happening is that some people are choosing to stop consuming art.It’s only hard because you don’t want to do it. Which is fine. If you want to separate art from artist, go for it… if you don’t, it literally doesn’t matter. It’s all personal, despite the performative outrage on the internet. None of what is coming out in this documentary is new, at least in overall subject matter. Despite the credible accusations, the settlement payouts, and outright admission from Jackson himself, he’s still got a lot of supporters. People are dug in on this. Either you think he’s a creep and it sketches you out to listen to his music, or it doesn’t.
Honestly, I don’t think it’s going to be that hard. After even just reading recaps of the documentary, I don’t ever want to hear any of his music ever again. I don’t know how it could possibly bring anybody joy ever again, after hearing these stories. Just hearing his name makes me genuinely nauseated.I don’t think people who are genuinely grappling with the extent and the impact of Jackson’s abuse will have any problems never listening to him ever again. It’s the people who don’t believe it or are glossing over what these stories actually mean or making jokes about them that will struggle with it.
Bill Cosby was a comedy god that influenced everyone after him, but he has been easily deleted from the records. Jacko will also go the way of the dodo.
This has hit me a lot harder than I would have expected too. I was in love with his music and that he was said to be a fan of the Simpsons too made him an even cooler idol. I don’t know if I even want to listen to Thriller for Halloween anymore.
Nah I’ll never stop listening and neither will most
Well, I feel better now.
[FARTS]As do I.
I’m not sure why are people suddenly shocked by this. Michael Jackson faced credible allegations of being a pederast since the early 90s. “Genius”, sure. But who in their right mind would leave their kid alone with the creep?
yeah, i find it hard to believe that anyone looked at the drumbeat of ‘settled out of court for an undisclosed amount’ for years and thought there wasn’t anything going on.
even if you buy the ‘oh, michael is being targeted because he’s rich’ thing- how many normal wealthy adult men routinely target pre-pubescent children for special friendship that involves things like lavish gifts, special trips where they share hotel rooms and special visits to his lavish mansion which involved sleeping in the same room without their parents being present? And even playing devil’s advocate and that it was just jackson being incredibly social awkward or something, you would assume that any above board person after the first settlement would set up a framework to protect *themselves* from future accusations- appropriate chaperone’s, perhaps surveillance equipment, etc, etc.
Yeah, wasn’t this just known by now?
I have a co-worker that said when he was a kid, he would have loved to have gone to Neverland Ranch. He also said he would never stay the night
One of the scariest parts of the documentary is that it shows just how under-the-MJ-spell these kids’ parents were too. There were things they knew in their heart of hearts were fundamentally wrong, and they still had no problem with it. Because he was Michael Jackson. It’s easy to say “well that was stupid of them,” but I totally believe they would have stared logic in the face and said “oh that’s fine, you can share a room!”
The mothers commented on Michael’s childlike behavior and thought he was harmless. Oops.
I think a lot of people did. Even watching the doc, sometimes it’s hard to remember they’re talking about a grown man in his early 30’s.I know he had a horrible childhood, and for all intents and purposes was denied a childhood. I also know that it’s not entirely unheard of for kids to at least experiment with other kids their age, in the name of curiosity. But he was in his early 3o’s, and he was doing a lot of horrible, incredibly inappropriate things to 7-year-olds, who thought it was an expression of love. And he continued to do this for years. In no way, under no circumstace, is that acceptable.
“Awe in the presence of celebrities” has always been a thing for most people. Not me, though.
Can only speak to myself, but when i was younger I’d make glib jokes like’ “Thriller gives MJ a life time pass” and shit like that. As an adult that shit don’t seem too funny any more.
Eh. Thriller gave him a lifetime pass to “have a free seat at any subsequent Grammy Awards ceremony”, not a pass for “a steady stream of fresh child victims.”
A word to the wise. If someone demands you to sign a ‘non-disclosure agreement’ up front there’s a good chance they’re going to do something to you or you’re going to witness something that you’re going to want to to talk about.
THANK YOU. I could never get into his music because of this reason, and it baffles me as to why everyone’s given MJ a pass all these years.
I get that Jackson had his own troubles, and was a talented performer, but he also did horrifying things to children, and there are SO MANY other performers out there to admire.
I like how the New York Times ran a headline that subtly put the focus on the estate: “Michael Jackson Documentary Revives Lurid Claims, Imperiling His Thriving Estate.”Obviously these folks have been aggressive in combatting the doc, but one might ask WTF do they really know about any of it, beyond their self-interest.
When Jackson died his ‘thriving estate’ was a half BILLION dollars in debt. He was making ends meet by bilking middle east sheiks with phony record company schemes (while molesting their sons). He was compelled to shutter ‘Neverland’. In one embarrassing turn the contents of his storage unit was auctioned off because he couldn’t keep up the payments.
And now it’s not only well out of debt but hundreds of millions in the black.You need to get new info.
Maybe read the article?“Since 2009, the estate has brought in more than $2 billion, according to Billboard. Half of that came from the sale of its stakes in major song catalogs: Sony/ATV, which contained more than 200 songs written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, and EMI, whose vast holdings include most Motown hits.”There are also multiple Jackson-based live shows (cirque du soleil + a broadway music) happening or planned. It’s a cash cow.
Just because Jackson’s heirs and estate have managed to capitalize on his life and assets doesn’t alter the fact that he was nearly bankrupt and a scheming liar / fraud at the time of his death. Jackson’s balance sheet was definitely worth a ton at time of his death, but his cash flow was horrendous, and there is no denying all of that debt and interest owed. There are a thousand stories and examples of how idiotic he was with money – he kept a freaking Manhattan apartment just to store all the junk he bought in NYC – and he burned through business manager after business manager after they tried to steer him to rationality and responsibility. That’s why he was forced into a new concert tour and all those dates at London’s O2 Arena… it was literally because he was running out of money and options.
I really don’t understand why people want to go on about MJ’s profligacy when he was alive. Everybody knows about that. But right now we are seeing a dispute between the accusers and the makers of the doc on one side and the estate on the other and the estate has a huge financial interest at stake.
I can’t get over how they think putting old concert footage on YouTube will somehow distract everyone from the horrors of the HBO documentary. Clumsy and dumb, like all their other lame protestations.
I think they’re putting out the concerts for the fans, kind of like how the “documentary” was put out for morons who don’t care that Jackson was found innocent after multiple investigations and the two subjects of this project only volunteered for it after their money-grubbing lawsuits against the estate were thrown out.
HBOGO had both parts available. Watched them last night. What a rough watch. Creepy shit. Amazing artist but what a fucking creep, man. That shit was weird.
I regret watching it almost, honestly. It was nauseating to see the scope of this man’s depravity laid out. Seeing poor James Safechuck’s hands shake like he had Parkinson’s as he handled the jewelry given to him by Michael, describing the mock wedding, how he’d take him jewelry shopping but make him pretend the rings were for someone else, and then have him “perform” for the jewelry… It was too much, man. And James’ wife is a damn saint for everything she put up with during their marriage and in the raising of their children before he told her and was able to start working on himself. And that’s not even scratching the surface of what he did to poor Wade.
Thanks for this. I want to watch it too but I know it’s gonna be depressing af.
Required (and short) reading if you wanna know more:https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2019/03/10-undeniable-facts-about-the-michael-jackson-sexual-abuse-allegations1Everything’s astonishing, but the kid knowing what marks were on his dick are pretty indisputable.
“No talented artist has ever done terrible things, checkmate HBO!”
I’ve seen plenty of people argue this wrt Roman Polanski. Basically that his talent as a director means he should get a freebie for drugging a 13 year old with quaaludes and then raping her.
Millions of dollars are at stake arguably defending the guys legacy
And make no mistake, they are certainly defending his legacy arguably. Or rather, questionably.
“I’m bad!”
— Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson is innocent in the court eyes, to slander his name now after he has passed away is just vicious. These 2 men are not victims if anything they are great actors probably even better then Smollat, the empire liar, I wouldn’t trust heresay without concrete evidence, people will lie, steal , and kill for fame and money. With that being said I’m going to listen to MJ song “Anything for Money “I do pray for the real victims who have been sexually molested but not these 2 men who needs an escape goat on how sorry their life turned out.
Escape goat.
Just like The Holocaust I think we all need to acknowledge none of this actually happened
So I watched the first twelve minutes of the Bucharest concert because of this article, and I was crying the entire time. I’ll watch the rest this weekend, but it’s overwhelming to watch just what an incredible performer Michael was. I mean, seriously, the man is one of the most influential, successful performers in history, and to see him in his prime, when just moving – or just NOT moving – causes people to go into hysterics? It’s just amazing.I have not seen the documentary. I will not stop listening to his music regardless. Both of the people testifying against him have a long history of trying to profit off of him, and while that doesn’t necessarily make their memories false, I’m sorry, it does make them suspect. I think R. Kelly is the scum of the earth, but I’m still going to listen to “Step in the Name of Love” and enjoy it just as much as the first time I ever heard it. Music for me transcends the ugly, and it always will. I fully believe R. Kelly is a serial abuser, a rapist, a disgusting example of just how evil men can be. That doesn’t change the fact that there are a few songs of his I love.As for Michael, I don’t know that I believe he was an abuser. I think he was probably inappropriate in a way most people would never be, but I find it extremely hard to believe that he actually molested children. Evidently others found that hard to believe as well, as he was never convicted of anything. But regardless, I will still love his music.Honestly, the whole thing just pisses me off. What exactly is the goal here? What is trying to be accomplished? If Michael actually was a horrific abuser, how does it change anything now? He’s dead. Why is this documentary suddenly being treated like gospel when both men have changed their stories multiple times, have tired relentlessly to profit off of their alleged victimization, and the director of the documentary made absolutely no attempt to verify their claims or talk to anyone who might repute them?I find this whole documentary crap repugnant. I don’t like the idea of rewriting someone’s story after he’s died and can’t say anything to defend himself. And the person that created this documentary didn’t try to find anyone else to defend Michael either.It just doesn’t sit right by me.
I was a huge MJ fan in the past and one thing I have to say about his shows is that…he was a little bit overrated as a live performer. Yes, he was a great dancer, but…”Dangerous” tour had so many lip sync moments, “History” tour was a catastrophy when it comes to live singing. Even when my love for him cooled down signficantly over the years, I could acknowledge that he did some amazing music – no doubt about that. But his live shows? Repetitive and lip synced.
Finally watched it, it’s devastating. This should have been trimmed down to 2 hours though. Maybe 2.5. Enough with all the meaningless aerial shots. Part 2 just goes on and on, a therapy session that never seems to end. I feel terribly for these men though, and I believe them. And I am struck anew at what a peculiar person latter-day Michael Jackson was. In his 40s, but like some frail, pale Victorian spinster auntie who would die if sunshine ever touched them, guarded by minders with umbrellas at all times. I never found his weirdness and eccentricity charming.
Oprah’s after-show Monday night after Part 2: why is she asking these guys how they “came to forgive themselves”? They were children. Molested by a powerful pop star. I hope she meant better, but asking victims if they’ve forgiven themselves, like they have anything to apologize for, is deeply weird. Bad question.