-Album is on schedule, and maybe even ahead of schedule. A release date in November is most probable HOWEVER if things continue to roar along at this speed a late October release is now being looked at.

-The Cascio recordings WILL be purchased by Sony, no bidding war is expected. As a result, and here is the big one many of you wanted to know: some of those tracks (at least 1 at this point, but potentially more) will be included on the new album.

-First single still aimed to be released in the last half of August. Not confirmed what song this will be.

-Another Day still looks poised to make the cut

-Jerkins material from 2002-2003 will be on the albums (both).

-There will be multiple global singles released from the album

-Promotion will be huge for this project and begin in August

-There are between 20 and 25 unreleased songs from the Invincible time frame that are complete and release ready.

-The estate, including the Cascio tapes now have over 80 unreleased MJ songs in their possession.

-The second half of 2010 will be back to MJ mania in terms of hearing his name on the television, radio, billboards, etc. Sony is anticipating this album to be very successful.

I don't get how anyone can buy into the "family tried to help him" talk when there's been so much shadiness from the family themselves. Didn't Randy fuck up MJ's finances when he took over MJ's affiars while MJ was on trial? Or wasn't Randy the one trying to get MJ to sell the catalogue? And we saw how Joe acted once This Is It came together. There's too much fuckedness from the family to take them too seriously on what happened with MJ. It's like of course they're going to make themselves look good.

mookie said:

And the problem is that it wasn't just Joe. It was Leonard Rowe, Latoya, the brothers and Brian Oxman.

But the Jackson family fans will ignore it. Just like they ignore an autopsy report, they'll ignore the smashing evidence concerning this family's horrible values. And- as always- they'll scream "hater" at me!

updates from smoothcriminal_05 on MJJC about the new album

bboy87 said:

With regards to interventions etc, the fact that these reports first came to light many many many years before Michael's recent death has to at least open the possibility that they took place. I had heard of his family flying to places like Miami and Vegas to try these interventions over concern over the amount of alcohol michael was taking and pain medication.

I think the family were sincere in their wanting their brother to be alright. I also think some family members probably thought if they helped Michael he would help in return with a reunion tour etc. The sad part is that no matter what their intentions Michael's first reaction it appears was to think they were hounding him for money, favours or tours (and precedent lays this out) but the tragedy may have been at times he was shutting them out when they wanted to put aside any gain for themselves and just support and help him.

MOL said:

MOL, are you a close friend of the Jacksons? Because you seem to act like you know every aspect of their lives, when you really don't. And you with your irrational hatre of Joe isn't any better. I really do question your mental stability sometimes.

Swa said:

The sad thing about people who have advanced drug addiction issues, is that the brain is literally hijacked, and the brain literally by any means necessary will delude the addict into protecting their addiction. For example, oftentimes people begin to experience physical pain, because the brain is trying to tell the body to continue to introduce the drug, when in reality there is no real pain. In Michael's case he shut almost EVERYONE out of his life. This is the thing that addicts do. And they JUSTIFY the reasons why. In his case it is reported that he didn't want to see his family because they were going to try to encourage him to tour. Wow, so this is good enough reason to shut them out of your life forever? No, that was the junkie in Michael talking so that he could preserve the addiction. Now let me be clear in advance. I will NOT debate the FACT that Michael Jackson was addicted to drugs. NO WAY so if anyone is going to respond by denying that he was an addict, tell that story walking because I'm not responding.

Darlene Donloe with Michael Jackson... Notes on the King of Pop from the memory of a one-time tour publicist.

I have never written about the brief relationship I had with Michael Jackson.

But, upon learning of his untimely death last week, I felt compelled to offer a different perspective on the Jackson I knew.

I don't need to tell you he was a genius. I don't need to tell you the impact he had on the music industry or that he was loved throughout the world.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I have nothing bad to say about Jackson. In fact, it's just the opposite. He gave me some of the most unforgettable moments of my life. And, for that, I will be forever grateful.

It was the summer of 1996 when my friend, Bob Jones (now deceased), who happened to be Jackson's publicist at Motown and then later with MJJ Productions, called me and asked what I was doing for the next six months.

He said: "How would you like to go out on tour with Michael? He needs a tour publicist."

I held the phone in disbelief as Bob continued his spiel. What did he expect me to say? "Well, Bob, I'll have to look at my schedule. Let me get back to you." Why would I want to fly around first class on a private plane for a Michael Jackson tour, visit exotic places, meet officials, eat great food and stay in five star hotels? I said yes. Duh!

About three weeks later, I was on a plane that landed in Prague, Czech Republic, the first stop on MJ's worldwide HIStory Tour.

It was a week into the tour before I officially met Jackson. Although I had accompanied him on many of his outings, no one had bothered to formally introduce us.

His handlers had warned me not to speak to the King of Pop unless he first spoke to me. Were they kidding? I played along — for about a week.

I decided the next time I accompanied him to either a hospital, orphanage or record store, I would make my ninja move. I figured the worse that could happen would be that I would get sent home.

As he perused the compact discs in the R&B section of a local record store, I started to walk toward him. The handlers were aghast. It was as if the air had quickly been sucked out of the room. Undeterred, I walked up to him and said, "Mr. Jackson, I'm Darlene. I'm your publicist on the tour."

He turned and looked me straight in the eyes. "Oh, OK," he said. "Are you going to do the whole tour?"

"Yes," I replied. "Unless you know something I don't."

"OK," he laughed and returned to looking through the CDs.

"Well," I thought, "that was uneventful." However, secretly, it was completely fulfilling.

I found out later he knew exactly who I was because he had asked, "who is the black girl?" Of course, as time went on he became more comfortable with my close proximity to him.

When fans asked the King of Pop whether they could get an autograph or take a picture with him, he'd occasionally say, "If it's OK with her," pointing to me.

It was always OK with me. Who was I to break a fan's heart?

When news broke about MJ's passing, all of the memories of the tour came flooding back. There was the night he married Debbie Rowe and I got no sleep for two days, due to endless media calls. I stuck to the party-line answer: "I have no comment on Mr. Jackson's personal life."

Being a part of Jackson's entourage was fascinating and eye-opening. I got to see the inner workings of a superstar's multifaceted, precision-like machine. I was always on call and had to be ready to accompany MJ at a moment's notice — or I'd be left behind. That wouldn't sit well.

It became clear, early on, that while he was sometimes soft-spoken, he was strong-willed and very direct when he wanted to make a point or have something done.

On concert nights, I'd watch as MJ walked from his car to a spot underneath the stage where a platform would eventually elevate him into position to make a powerful entrance.

The favorite part of my job was standing in the wings night after night, watching him hit every mark with precision and thinking how blessed I was to observe a master craftsman at work.

Because he had such a commanding presence, I think people forgot he was a man. He's been elevated to superstar status for so long, it's hard for some to look at him as a human being who puts his pants on one leg at a time.

I saw him in those pensive, quiet moments before going on stage. I witnessed him, sans television cameras, sitting, comforting and talking to a child in a hospital who was fighting a serious disease. This is the guy who, on Thanksgiving in Australia, thought it was important enough to come share a meal and celebrate with his staff and crew.

When it comes to Jackson, I can only speak my own truth. The Jackson I came to know was friendly and respectful to me. And, on those occasions when I caught his eye, he would give me that shy, childlike smile.

The following quote from Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" was read recently at a friend's memorial. I think it's more than appropriate for Jackson.

"And, when he shall die, take him and cut him out in little stars, and he will make the face of Heaven so fine that all the world will be in love with night and pay no worship to the garish sun."

In gratitude, I say thank you, Michael Jackson. Thanks for the magic, the music and enough memories to hold me a lifetime. — Darlene

updates from smoothcriminal_05 on MJJC about the new album

bboy87 said:

EmeraldSkies said:

The Jackson 5 Live At The Forum in June
possible new single in August
new album in November
Fated comic book coming out this year or next
Off The Wall Deluxe in 2011
Bad 25 in 2012
Bad Tour DVD
Making Of Thriller
Video Collection
another new album


all in the next 2 or 3 years

NastradumasKid said:

Exactly this guy is a Kook! Which is why he can type until his fingers fall off, and I will not respond to him. Think he needs to take his meds.
[Edited 5/28/10 18:03pm]

Reel said:

I know right? LOL My God. What a wacko.

Reel said:

I don't think he had completely shut them out because he was in regular contact with his mother, father (to some extent), and some of the siblings


If he did have an addiction in his later life, I want people to understand how and why but many people want to use the situation to demonize him. This wasn't some guy who used this stuff as recreation. This was someone who was stone cold against drugs but because of his health issues (the burn incident, lupus, vitiligo, and insomnia) and the stress the 1993 case caused, he became addicted but we don't know fully what was going on these past couple of years after the 2005 trial so we should keep an open mind
[Edited 5/28/10 18:10pm]

bboy87 said:

peole like MOL are deluded, however. No one is saying MJ was a crack head. I can even understand what led to the pain-killer addiction, it's not as uncommon as people think, I wouldn't be surprise that at least 90% of hollywood is hook on one drug or another. But some fans are pretending that it is normal to take propofol if you have insomnia, that in itself illustrates a drug problem, he must have built up a very high tolerance to other sleeping medication to be resorting to Propofol! True, MJ may not have been hooked on opiates before he died, but he himself has admitted he was in the pass. If you have been hooked on drugs in the pass there is always a tendency you can fall back into such addiction. And why is it so unbelievable that his family were not worried about him taking drugs and tried to intervene?

NastradumasKid said:

NastradumasKid, do you want me to pick up YOUR prescription from the store for you?

whatsgoingon said:

It's not hard to believe, it's just that some fans wanna know when the interventions happened because the siblings all have different recollections of what happened and when, plus some feel with everything going on, they should wait to talk about the issue because they know how the media is and how they're gonna twist their words

bboy87 said:

Does that really matter? MJ is dead, the media or anyone can not hurt him anymore. His musical legacy remains in tact, regardless of his more controversial personal life. He has been called worse things whilst he is alive than being called a drug addict!

bboy87 said:

Does that really matter? MJ is dead, the media or anyone can not hurt him anymore. His musical legacy remains in tact, regardless of his more controversial personal life. He has been called worse things whilst he is alive than being called a drug addict!

whatsgoingon said:

Of course it doesn't matter. But I will say people like MOL need a reality check and stop acting like they're best friends with the Jackson family.

bboy87 said:

Please leave me alone bboy87, I'm really not in the mood for all that right now.

NastradumasKid said:

I think the last thing MOL wants is to be friends with the Jackson family

whatsgoingon said:

True, but in my opinion, but with the speculation, they'll further use it to demonize him. It's not just about Michael, it's about his children who still have to hear it

bboy87 said:

But they are not the only children that has happened to. I remember when Elvis died LMP was about 9 years and the seriousness of her father drug addiction was splashed across the media, as well as the way he died-doing a poo on the toilet!! I personally believe it is more disturbing for those children to hear that MJ was not their biological father, especially if it is true and MJ didn't bother to tell them before he died.
[Edited 5/28/10 20:24pm]

bboy87 said:

But they are not the only children that has happened to. I remember when Elvis died LMP was about 9 years and the seriousness of her father drug addiction was splashed across the media, as well as the way he died-doing a poo on the toilet!! I personally believe it is more disturbing for those children to hear that MJ was not their biological father, especially if it is true and MJ didn't bother to tell them before he died.
[Edited 5/28/10 20:24pm]

whatsgoingon said:

Damn Whatsgoingon...see you went where I wanted to go but wouldn't. Now those kids are no way Michael's kids. I doubt that he told the kids because I think he mighta wanted to believe that they were himself. I think he wanted no parts of the Joe Jackson bloodline or the African American bloodline for that matter. You got his dermatologist saying on national TV "uhhh I don't think those are my kids, but I have made a few sperm donations in the past". Hey the bottom line is that Michael loved those kids as his own. So I consider them his kids although not biologically. And for all the rift raft that's about to come at me for my statement....NO I don't have any DNA evidence of this. I just have OLD PICTURES of Michael Jackson when he looked like a black man instead of a like a white woman. And I have pictures of the children.