InnocentMichael

Billie Jean : Michael was the first black artist to be added to the MTV playlist For the first video, "Billie Jean", Steve Baron was chosen as director. For the first time in history of MTV, a music video told a story - and was not just a collage of images. "Billie Jean's" video made a big impression on the MTV audience and was a huge hit. It's also seen as a major breakthrough for black artists, who had previously been ignored by the channel. Michael Jackson was in fact the first black artist to be added the MTV's playlist! Before that, MTV refused to play videos by black artists. Michael has changed that forever...

'We are The World' charity song for Africa Two hours after the 12th Annual American Music Award ceremony on January 28, 1985 Michael and 44 other artists gathered secretly for 10 hours at A&M Recording Studios in Los Angeles to record "We Are The World". The song was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie at Michael's home in early 1985. Michael: "I wrote the song with Lionel Richie after seeing the appalling news footage of starving people in Ethiopia and the Sudan." On March 7, 1985 "We Are The World" was released and made music history. On April 5, "Good Friday" and "We Are The World" was broadcast simultaneously by over 8'000 radio stations around the world. The song created recording history by becoming the first ever Multi-Platinum single and being certified in all categories [Gold, Platinum, Multi-Platinum] within the space of one month. The single is the industry's first ever Multi-Platinum single! Today, "We Are The World" still is the second biggest-selling single of all time and with absolutely no doubt is and will probably forever be THE number one world hymn! "We Are The World" won 4 Grammy Awards for Song Of The Year, Record Of The Year, Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group, and Best Music Video [Short Form]. "USA for Africa" ["United Support of Artists for Africa"] raised a record of US$ 200 million. The money was given to Ethiopia to fight famine. Lionel Richie (2004): To this day, donations still keep rolling in

On March 1, 1988 the new four Pepsi ads with Michael were previewed at a specially arranged Press Conference. One day later, during the 30th Annual Grammy Awards telecast, the innovative Pepsi commercials by Michael premiered. The commercials were so popular, they were requested specifically by Soviet officials to be aired on Soviet television. They were the first American ads to air in the Soviet Union, and were seen by an estimated 150 million Soviets.

On May 6, 1997 The Jackson 5 were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. At the induction ceremony, held at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Cleveland Ohio, Michael was joined on stage by his brothers. Diana Ross presented the awards to the Jackson 5 and said that "... since the beginning of their careers, I feel very much as if they are my children...". The Jackson 5 did not perform but brought Berry Gordy, founder of Motown Records and their mentor, onto the stage to share this very special moment. Michael to Mr Gordy on stage: "Berry, you promised us four consecutive number one records. You delivered them all... I'll never forget it. I just want you to know that without you and my mother and father, I don't think we'd be here... and of course God." Michael also thanked his parents who were in the audience, "Mother and father, you were there to protect us with unselfish love. Because you were there, we are here," he continued, "Now we are in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, so... whenever you call our name... I promise, I love all of you. We'll be there!" Berry Gordy: "The Jackson 5 gave black kids in the ghetto a license to dream, and many of those same kids went on to realize their own dreams. They had something for everybody."

On October 15, 1997 Michael's "HIStory" World Tour ended with a sold-out concert in Durban, South Africa. The "HIStory" tour broke all existing records - Michael Jackson's "HIStory" World Tour is the biggest world tour any solo performer had ever done. The tour also broke the legendary record set by the Rolling Stones with their "Voodoo Lounge" World Tour! The "HIStory" tour spanned the globe with stops in 56 cities on 5 continents, and included 82 concerts to about 4.5 million loving fans. With this, Michael broke his previous record which he set with the "Dangerous" World Tour. Michael toured with the widest stage anyone had ever toured with. During the Second leg of the "HIStory" tour, Michael performed 40 shows, grossed over US$ 83.5 million and had a total attendance of 2,035,189. This equals to an average $ 2,087,853 gross and 50,880 attendance per show! These statistics are for the second leg of the tour only!

On May 10, 2000 Michael was honored with an award as THE BIGGEST SELLING ARTIST OF THE MILLENIUM by the World Music Awards in Monaco. This award is unique as it is based purely on record sales, therefore making it official, NO artist [male or female] has sold more records in MUSIC HISTORY and in the 19th century than the King of Pop, Michael Jackson!

Whatever the media say about Michael Jackson, they all agree on one thing: There was never, there is not and there will probably never be a bigger star than Michael Jackson! Michael Jackson is without a shadow of a doubt the world's biggest star! US' biggest-selling magazine, "TV GUIDE", said it all best in their issue at the end of the Millennium: "The legend is almost too large to comprehend but never fails to fascinate.