From Comcast's Finance pages of all places, some fascinating behind the scenes info on how some big money players are trying to make a kind of last chance deal with Mike.

Michael Jackson: The Next Elvis?
By Ethan Smith , WSJ.com
2008-06-12 19:00:00
Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

A private-equity group is hoping to do for Michael Jackson something a long parade of music-industry veterans, lawyers and billionaire friends have failed to accomplish: Revive the pop star's dormant career after a 2005 child-molestation trial and a financial meltdown.

Colony Capital, which owns the Las Vegas Hilton and is a major shareholder in closely held Station Casinos, is in discussions with Mr. Jackson to get him back onstage and in the spotlight via a long-term stand in Las Vegas. It also wants the singer to sell his Neverland Ranch, the home of his private amusement park and menagerie and site of his controversial sleepovers with young children.

Colony and its executives aren't working with Mr. Jackson as managers or personal advisers. But they may nonetheless have a better chance of succeeding with Mr. Jackson than the many figures who have served in those capacities, thanks to Colony's major leverage with the pop star. The private-equity group in May bought from hedge fund Fortress Investment Group a $23 million loan backed by Neverland, in Los Olivos, Calif. Mr. Jackson, 49 years old, was in default on the loan and Fortress had initiated foreclosure proceedings. After buying the loan, Colony negotiated some short-term breathing room for Mr. Jackson. Under discussion is a scenario in which he would be allowed to put off making payments for a while, in exchange for more money further down the road.

"We bought the note and we've been having discussions with Mr. Jackson about a recapitalization and refinancing of Neverland in addition to various other business opportunities and mutual interests," says Colony CEO Tom Barrack.

Now Colony is urging the singer to emerge from the rural Nevada compound where he has recently been holed up with his family, to stage a residency performance -- either at one of its gambling and entertainment properties or elsewhere in Sin City.

Michael Amir, a spokesman for Mr. Jackson, confirms that the singer is in talks with Colony: "We're moving forward and looking to do some positive things in the future."

Since Mr. Jackson's 2005 acquittal on child-molestation charges, various entertainment-industry executives have pursued some kind of splashy comeback for him. For the most part, the singer hasn't played along. In February he backed out of a planned performance during the Grammy Awards telecast. Around the same time, he also declined a proposal to perform for 10 nights at a London arena. People who have spoken to Mr. Jackson say he has simply not felt up to the rigors of performing after his lengthy legal ordeal.

Recently the singer has been living in Pahrump, Nev., an unincorporated town 60 miles west of Las Vegas, where he has been writing new songs in a home studio and having his three children (ages 11, 10 and 6) home-schooled.

He did cooperate with Sony BMG Music Entertainment in the creation of a 25th-anniversary edition of his "Thriller" album, which posted unexpectedly strong sales in the U.S. and around the world. But even that undertaking -- which included one new song and remixes of several old hits -- may have contributed to Mr. Jackson's problems getting back to real work.

One person close to the famously distractible singer says that for a time he became preoccupied with making a feature-length movie based on the music video for the album's title track.

The current situation is the latest twist in a long-running saga that peaked three years ago. Funding his high-flying lifestyle with loans like the one backed by Neverland, he simultaneously stopped working and racked up millions of dollars in lawyers' bills to fight child-molestation charges.

The singer was acquitted in 2005 by a jury in Santa Maria, Calif. But he is still carrying almost $400 million in debt secured by his extensive music-publishing holdings, in addition to the smaller loan backed by Neverland.

Since then, according to people close to Mr. Jackson, he has cut back his personal spending somewhat. The biggest of Mr. Jackson's loans is backed by his share of Sony/ATV Music Publishing, a joint venture he owns with the Japanese media and electronics giant. Mr. Jackson's stake is likely worth $500 million or more. But the partnership agreement is set to expire in two years, at which point provisions kick in allowing one side to buy out the other.

People familiar with the situation say Sony has always presumed that it would exercise that right -- and has even worked to prevent creditors from seizing Mr. Jackson's half of the company partly with the aim of buying it later. But if Mr. Jackson had a deep-pocketed partner like Colony, it could complicate such a transaction.

Adding to the chaos until now: Throughout much of that time, Mr. Jackson has put his business affairs in the hands of a rotating cast of advisers. Some of these have dealt honestly with the singer, but others have had previously-reported conflicts of interest.

Mr. Jackson has run into trouble making payments on his loans, which have been passed around among banks and other Wall Street players who have balanced the risk of default against the possibility of acquiring the valuable assets backing them.

Colony in recent weeks has presented Mr. Jackson with a range of possible Las Vegas comeback scenarios -- each of which borrows elements of other pop stars' highly successful long-term Las Vegas runs.

One option would be for Colony to create for Mr. Jackson a purpose-built theater at one of its hotel-casinos, where he would need to perform up to 180 nights a year. Céline Dion's four-year run at Caesars Palace grossed more than $400 million, while Barry Manilow earned $23.7 million for 88 shows at the Vegas Hilton in 2007. But the rigors of any such commitment would likely be too taxing for Mr. Jackson.

The most likely option would be to create something like "Love," the Cirque du Soleil show built around Beatles tunes. Mr. Jackson wouldn't be a regular part of the performance but would appear for 20 to 30 performances a year, possibly with his brothers.

Any of these scenarios would be paired with a plan to restore his image.

The first step in that plan is to distance the singer from Neverland, which, as a focal point for the trial, is indelibly linked with those charges in the eyes of the public. Mr. Jackson has vowed never to live at the ranch again, given its associations. But he nonetheless has entertained visions of turning it into a family-oriented theme park, with rides for children. Colony executives consider the residence completely toxic to Mr. Jackson's image, and are urging him to restore the property's original name, Sycamore Canyon Ranch, and to sell it as quickly as possible.

Colony is also urging him to make a public statement further distancing himself from the controversy, in a venue like Oprah Winfrey's talk show. A person familiar with the discussions says the general idea of such remarks would be for Mr. Jackson, who moved temporarily to Dubai following his acquittal, to say that the American legal system exonerated him, and that he now hopes to move on.

The final step would be for him to stage some kind of televised performance -- ideally in the context of a high-profile charity concert -- to prove to the world that he can still sing and dance.

If all goes according to plan -- a long shot, to be sure -- in three to five years, Colony would like to develop a Thriller Casino with Mr. Jackson. That is something Mr. Jackson has kicked around for more than 10 years.

good artical, thanks for that very interesting.

DakutiusMaximus said:

looks like Michael has many lucrative opportunities that he could pursue.The question is,will he do it?

i wish he would but i think he refuses to do so and we have another court case a head of us, one like with the sheik from bahrein

If Mj checks his EGO, this could be very beneficial 2 him.

I seriously wonder if Mike has lost his self confidence and/or his chops. If he has then this kind of "help" is something he should consider.

In either case he needs something to get him out of his hole and back onto the stage.

Either that or figure out some other way to make some money besides being an entertainer.

I wish him well.

Yeah if MJ doesn't want to do these things then maybe he should retire from performing altogether.Maye he could find a behind-the-scenes job in the music biz....managing other artists.directing music videos.or working as a record exec for one of the major record companies? It seems like he is no longer motivated to get up onstage and perform any more.

Here's what he could do:

1. Release a 2 CD compilation of unreleased material
2. Release a Bad Tour DVD
3. Release Moonwalker on DVD(a worldwide release, not that European release from 2005)
4. Do a 15 date tour and do these songs:

Rock With You
Off The Wall
I Can't Help It
Get On The Floor
Billie Jean
P.Y.T(demo version)
The Lady In My Life
Bad
Liberian Girl
Another Part of Me
Smooth Criminal
Remember The Time
Who Is It
Dangerous
Give In To Me
Stranger In Moscow
Money
Smile
Superfly Sister
Heaven Can Wait
Butterflies
Don't Walk Away
Whatever Happens
Blues Away
Show You The Way To Go
Music's Takin' Over
Shake Your Body
Lovely One
This Place Hotel
Walk Right Now

That's a bloody wonderful article- MJ has some great opportunities it would seem and I really hope he does something that's suggested there.

yeha,they're really giving him some great opportunities.He needs to get himself together and accept one of these offers!

Although I love Jacko and I still remember vividly his two shows on the Bad tour I saw....I doubt if he could cut it live...seems very unfit and all this messing with the headset when it is obvious he mimes non stop

it's really simple what mike needs to do- appeal to his fans and new listeners. 1.be more personable- meaning quit out blowing kisses from under face masks. Stand up like a real man and talk to the freakin crowds.

2. Burn every last stitch of clothes in his closet and start all over again.
3. Take away his cosmotology license so he can quit out buying those lace front wigs wholesale.
4. Finish the album and do a small promotional tour that includes real interviews by real people answering real questions.

Mike needs to let us feel his pain and know who he really is.

Then he will sell some records, make some money and pay his bills.

Here's what I think Michael really needs to do....

***Throw away any songs that he recently recorded with the likes of Ne-Yo,Akon,will.i.am,R.Kelly and others Cancel that album!

***Plan a big acoustic unplugged concert,to be televised on MTV and/or VH-1.No props,no dancers,no games,no gimmicks.Just get up there and SING! Put the focus back on the voice.Have Stevie Wonder appear during "I Can't Help It".Bring out Carlos Santana during a kickass version of "Whatever Happens".Hell,bring out his brothers for an an acoustic medley of the old Jackson Five hits.Perform an excellent new song,which will serve as the comeback hit.Smile,tell jokes between songs,and even poke fun at his own public image.Appear more human for once!

***Release the concert on DVD and CD.The CD will contain the new song which will be the single.The new single should be a really,really good song (something like Robin Thicke's "Lost Without U")....which will serve as Michael's big comeback hit.

***Take this show on the road! Or keep this show in Vegas.

SoulAlive said:

I wish Mj all of the best. He just seems 2 be damaged goods at this point.

SoulAlive said:

-----
Do you expect Mike to play the guitar? What is interesting is that some of you seem to be okay with the truth that this company bailed Mike out on cash problems, which is the first time I have seen Mike fans admit that he may have cashflow problems.

SoulAlive said:

Here's what I think Hilary Clinton really needs to do.....

***Join one of the top NBA teams and spend a good year shooting hoops in competitive games alongside the game's brightest stars. Think about it, it's never been done before. An old white woman shooting hoops and burning up the court week after week. It would blow people's minds and make history too. Having totally changed her image in this way she would be in a perfect position to try for the presidency again in 2012.

laurarichardson said:

Where did I say anything about Mike playing the guitar? I'm talking about an acoustic performance where he gets up there with a band,sits on a stool and simply SINGS! Put the focus back on the voice! Rod Stewart totally revitalized his career by doing this and I think Michael could do the same.People love his old songs.

he definitely needs to ditch the military clothes...he looks stupid...also re-watching the mtv awards where shitney spears gave him an award....he bumped into the set...was he drunk? too much jesus juice???

SoulAlive said:

Rod Stewart never stopped singing live. Like 99% of touring artists Rod has never mimed in concert. He has no need to, since his voice is still intact. Michael hasn't done an all live concert in 21 years, because his vocal cords aren't strong enough, which is why your suggestion is misconceived.

This is slightly off-topic but I don’t want to start a new thread and maybe I’ll bring it back around to the article but what is going on with Neverland? No one lives there, right? Every few months he’s in danger of losing it, right? Does anyone know why he is keeping this property if he plans to never live there again and no one else resides there? Is it going to be a tourist attraction like Graceland?

JackieBlue said:

I think he should sell it and move on.There's too many bad memories associated with that place.Besides,it's obviously a financial burden for him.

midnightmover said:

You may be right,but I'd like to see him at least give it a try.At this point,he really has nothing to lose.

SoulAlive said:

Yeah, I wonder why he's holding on to it. For the kids?

JackieBlue said:

Agreed he should sell it. But he did say before (in 2003, Private Home Movies ) that he would never sell neverland. Then after the arrest he said he would never live there again, but he would visit. I imagine the only reason he's keeping it is for the kids.

JackieBlue said:

I remember there was talks about a Jackson museum. Maybe Neverland will be the location

Hell, if there's any unreleased music lying around there, I would've already been up in there stealin' shit and selling copies here on the Org