INTRODUCTION
An artist I believe that has had influence above and beyond their genre of music is Michael Jackson. Michael Jackson was born on the 29th August, 1958 and died on the 25th June, 2009 leaving a tremendous musical legacy behind.
Throughout his career he courted controversy which saw his appearance,personality and relationships played out in the public arena. Even so Michael went on to become known as the “King of Pop” and arguably one of the greatest and most famous pop stars in the world.
Michael Jackson was born into an African American family being the eighth of ten children. In 1964 when he was six he joined his brothers band, The Jackson Brothers and ultimately went on to become one of the lead singers with his brother Jermiane when he was eight years old. Becoming the centre of attention suited Michael and this all singing and dancing inspired him for his future success. As stated by Jackie Jackson, Michael’s older brother “he was so energetic that at five year olds he was like a leader. We saw that. So we said ‘hey Michael, you be the lead guy’. The audience ate it up”.
In 1967 the band changed their name to The Jackson Five and were known for performing covers of Motown . The Jackson Five initially played these Motown covers at talent shows and as their reputation grew went on to open acts for bigger
…show more content…
The lyrics are about rival gang life on the streets and is depicted in a music video showing two gangs fighting over gang territory through music and dance much like the musical “West Side Story” from a begone era. The choreography of the dancers introduced Jackson’s trademark and went to win numerous awards. The distinctive guitar solo part was played by Eddie Van Halen the lead guitarist of the hard rock band Van Halen. This blazing solo lasts all of twenty seconds, but shows the different memorial units that went into making this