Michael Jackson has mistakenly been given the title of "musical genius."
The title could easily go to Bono who, along with U2, has recently produced “critically acclaimed” music that I, as well as others, believe most other bands would be kicked off of their labels for making. Then there are the Rolling Stones, a group many say should have quit a long time ago (they're wrong!). Bruce Springsteen is another candidate to some, while Tom Petty is easily overrated to others. There are some who even think the Beatles are overrated.…
Article comments
— go to most recent comments676 - Matt
PWNT
677 - Iyer
What a bunch of shit this article is.
Who are you to decide how much effort it takes to write a song.Michael jackson was a genius dancer,a great singer and a sell out artist.Just because he didn't play an instrument on stage for your convenience,he is over rated?..Certainly not.
And you seem to me like the bunch of jokers who think Classic rock is the only way one could become great artists.
I love classic rock but if you are a pop fan then in no way could you say MJ was over rated...He transcended boundaries for black people to get mainstream and his dancing skills were the best ever.
678 - Doog
Iyer, i don't know if i'd say that Michael Jackson "transcended boundaries for black people to get into the mainstream." in the 1960s there were plenty of black Motown singers and groups who were VERY popular in mainstream music, and in the 1970s and early 80s there were several very popular black disco and R&B singers and groups. black singers and groups were very much in the "White America mainstream" before the almighty Thriller came out. it wasn't like only black people listened to those artists before Thriller came out. and MTV played few black artists before Michael just because it was originally a rock channel, not because it was a racist music video channel that hated black performers. they even played Prince before Michael because he was one of the few black artists who fit into the "rock" category. and if we're talking about all mainstream entertainment, there were plenty of black actors and comedians that were popular in the 60s and 70s. regarding Michael Jackson, i agree that he was a genius dancer and great singer, but the fact that he put out just two terrible albums in a 15-year period is what makes me question the "musical genius" title. only hardcore fans will say that the songs found on HIStory Disc 2 and Invincible are the work of a "musical genius." to me, they sounded like the work of a man who had run out of ideas and didn't have many left. some of you may be too young to know this, but the public even quit caring about Michael as a musician during the mid and late 90s and early 2000s, and i think that was due to his poor newer material and low number of albums. sure, Michael could still sing and dance well during his last 15 years, but i think consistency, songwriting, song-crafting, and album output should go into consideration when calling someone a "musical genius." i'd say Michael Jackson was a musical genius up until 1991 or '92 (Dangerous was actually a pretty solid album), but everything after that made me question what he still had left in him. i'm also curious about how many of these commenters loved and cared about him and his music from the point of his first child molestation accusation in '93, to the point of his death in '09. it seems like he gained millions of hardcore fans (who previously thought he was a deranged weirdo way past his musical peak) after he died. but i guess that happens with every troubled and somewhat forgotten musician right after they pass away (Johnny Cash is another example). i just wonder about how many of these commenters are people who used to think Michael was a weirdo who was past his peak before he died, or teenagers who started to get into his music after and because he died.
679 - Hallie
You must really have some grudge against Michael...I stumbled across this article and I'm laughing so hard right now! Your argument is so weak, you're taking whatever speculative crap YOU believe about his personal life and trying to convince us that it has anything remotely to do with his musical genius! You should get your facts straight about the Bad tour...easily the most amazing tour I've ever heard of. Nobody in history has had to do what he had to do on stage. That entire thing was live and he sang and danced like no other. Prince could have taken a few pointers. Michael could, in fact, play instruments. The problem is, with people like you hopelessly trying to attribute his declining success to some sort of a "no more ideas" scenario. I don't think you realize the magnitude of how those allegations affected him. Those families ruined him financially and emotionally. He was forever scarred with this for the rest of his short life. Do you really think YOU would have the same success you used to have with over half the world and most of the critics basically dedicating their lives to believing these lies and basically hating him and refusing to listen to the new stuff? His stuff in the 90s and 00s was actually what characterized him as the only artist who truly dedicated his life to helping others. His "decline" had nothing to do with him. It was because of a world that just didn't know what to think of his overwhelming sensitivity. It's evident in " this is it" that he still had it all even at 50! Also, if you really think he's overrated, go tell it to Berry Gordy, founder of Motown records. Who would know better than him? He's seen everyone you're saying is better than MJ. He even called him the "greatest entertainer that ever lived". That he was. I rest my case.
680 - Francesca
And Nothing But The Truth...WTF!!! Your comment is just really crazy. It's all over the place. Mj did not want to be white. He's actually said that in a few interviews if you care to take a little time and do a little searching. I'm sure it would help your comments look like they make sense. I'm so sick and tired of people talking about his appearance. They act like it's something new that just happened. It was a process that started like over 30 yrs ago. GET OVER IT! I'm not a crazy hardcore fan but to speak of him in a disrespectful way is just unecessary. He is a human as you have mentioned nothing more nothing less. So show this man some respect. The obvious and hidden insults in your comment are not doing the job.
P.S. Wonderful entertainer+brilliant artist+interesting person=Michael Jackson A.K.A. King of Pop!
681 - Damien
Overall, I agree that Michael was little overrated (at least musically), though I don't think he was as overrated as you seem to think he was. Let me say from the outset that there is no doubt in my mind that he was one of the most electric entertainers who ever lived. No matter how you slice it, he was a great singer/performer, and did write some good tunes (he basically wrote the 'Bad' album all by himself and it is a pretty good album).
However, I recoil when people insist that he was a 'musical genius.' I think it diminishes the true musical geniuses of history, like Johann Sebastian Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig Von Beethoven, George Gershwin, Duke Ellington, Bob Dylan, John Lennon, and Jimi Hendrix. Most 'Greatest Artists' lists I see on the interweb have Michael in the Top10, which I think is way too high. For me, he's more like Top50. But if you want to talk about artists who are truly and obviously overrated, let's talk about KISS, Justin Timberlake, The Sex Pistols, Lady Gaga, Journey, Lil Wayne, Black Sabbath, Jay-Z, Guns 'n Roses, John Mayer, Nickelback, Black Eyed Peas, Dave Matthews Band, The Stone Roses, Alicia Keyes, Oasis, Phish-- I could go on for a while...
My point is: yeah, Michael's a little overrated, but not overwhelmingly so.
682 - nic
yeah, he was good. but uh. his stuff seemed to get stale at the end of the 80's. kinda lame.
683 - joel
there is too much stupidity to try and correct it all
684 - rrrtr
Was Irving Berlin a musical genius? I think so. But I don't think he was known for his piano skills, mainly his songwriting. How about Cole Porter?
685 - waberoya
crap at it best
686 - Esmee
'WHY OH WHY' do people feel that it is necessary to say such mean, unintelligible, and untrue things? It's a mystery to me. I guess it's all they can do to make themselves feel happy or give themselves some significance. Yeah, that's probably the reason.
687 - Jesse
I've seen a lot of blogs and opinions on Michael Jackson over the years. Here are the facts that can and will never be disputed!!! Two-Time Rock N Roll Hall of Famer, Dancers Hall Of Fame, Song Writer Hall Of Fame, Genuiess Book Of World Records Biggest Album Sold (which the writer probably bought at one time in his life, lol). Thriller is now in the Libaray of Congress Of The United States Of America, 8 Grammy's In One Night! 24-27 Life time Billboard Awards. MTV names the Video Vangaurd After Him, Because He Put MTV on the Map, Not Christopher Cross who was the big time Grammy Award Winner with 6 in 1980. Tower Records and other Record stores were going out of business until Thriller Hit the record stores. He sold the most records for an entire Decade 1980-1990 For Epic/CBS/SONY Records. The Only Pop Artist In History To Have More Television Commercials produced From when he was a child all the way to the Pepsi Years, Before there was OJ Simpson Hertz and Michael Jordan And so on, but they represented sports not music! The Only Pop Artist to have Two succesful video games named after him "Moonwalker" for sega & Michael Jackson The Experiance. He holds the record for most music downloads in 1 week according to Apple/Amazon. Oh and he also caused most of major search engines to crash, from google to yahoo to bing at the time of his death and He gave a little money here and there to various charity's. I guess we're all at fault of making him over rated. Hmm, Your Thoughts please???
688 - Kriss
Michael Jackson the king of pedophile.
689 - Esmee
For the person who's comment is 688-Kriss, that kind of comment is so inappropriate on so many levels I don't know where to begin. First of all, this article expresses the writer's concern as to why people call MJ a musical genuis. There is nothing about children, sex, or anything like that. It's only about the music. Now, if you have the strong urge to lie and say that MJ was a pedophile, then you need to go to some other website for that bull. Or better yet, just don't say or write anything like that ever. Because it is the most unecessary thing to say.
690 - Enigma
Have u even listen all of MJ's songs!?
Go do some research about music and its aspects !
Somebody told me you don't need to be able to play instrument to compose music(I don't know if its true or not).
I have the thriller 25th anniversery CD. It has lot of information. I didn't read
Somewhere,as i recall, i read in that, that MJ did play an instrument !
691 - Enigma
He is a musical genius !
692 - Kriss
He is a pedophile genius.
693 - Camille
Really Kriss, really. It's obvious that you don't like Michael Jackson, so why are you even wasting your time looking at an article about him. That is so stupid. Your comments are stupid. When there's no proof of guilt, then the person is innocent by default. Michael was a great artist/entertainer as well as a great person.
694 - kenneth
In consolation to the author of this article artist like Michael Jackson became famous not only b'cos he thought in isolation that he was better than others but in collaboration with other Musical geniuses like Prince and U2. Michael, like u, thought of U2 as a Musical Genius. In my opinion respecting another artists work even how small or insignificant makes u better person at the end of the day.
695 - Damien
BTW- U2, Bruce Springsteen, and Tom Petty are rated exactly how they should be-- as musical legends.
696 - Donna
If you are one who partakes in this ongoing "discussion" about the integrity of Michael's music/career, you would want to take the time to read this roundtable discussion about what makes a songwriter, etc... It is very enlightening and relevant to the topic of being a musical genius.
697 - Kate
Donna, I read that article you suggested and 'enlightening' doesn't even begin to describe its content. I thought I knew everything about Mj's music, but the people in that discussion have really opened my eyes. I love the way each critic phrased his or her analysis. They've given explanation to how MJ created music, as well as given defense to his strategy; which, in my opinion, leaves little room for anyone to argue their logical review. I was so into that article that I kept going to a few other articles about Mj's musical career. I was eager to read what the writers, Willa and Joie, had written. The way they analyze his music and short films is so beautiful and intricately detailed that listening to and watching mj is a new experience for me. They've given meaning and truth; understanding and compassion; a brain and heart (LIFE!) to the work that Michael has put his soul into. They have given profound definition to his art. Something I believe those who think mj is overrated have yet to discover. But the journey to discovering begins here.
698 - nils
He's a genius paedophile.
699 - Chastity Salas
FIRST OF ALL... Whoever had the audacity to write such a foolish FALSE blog post... seriously has no life. Obviously you must be living UNDER A ROCK. Michael Jackson, is a world known entertainer... something in which you won't ever become. His talent, his voice, those iconic moves, are NOT overrated, whatsoever. He broke sound barriers, he unified people. What in the world are you doing to help better our humanity, to help those unfortunate children out there....? It is SO MUCH easier to just CRITICIZE, someone who is A LEGEND...rather than appreciate their talent. It is stupid people, stupid journalists that profit off of these TABLOID stories. You guys... and yes, I am talking to THE MEDIA, you all... felt attacked because HE pointed out the TRUTH. He turned the tables on you. Since when had you heard of a legendary person telling his fans, NOT to believe the stories they see printed on newspapers OR television news broadcasts, he did it to warn us. The press is a POTPOURRI OF FICTITIOUS LIES...
So before you undermine his talent as an artist, as an humanitarian, realize that you are wrong.
Michael... I love you and I am terribly sorry you had to face these press morons. MICHAEL I LOVE you!
700 - Brad Washington
Article blows
701 - Blanket
I'm sorry, but everything after Thriller was a total letdown. The man turned into a crazy, drug-addicted pedophile. How could you look at that freaky, bleached face and think this guy was right?
702 - Richard
Blanket [personal attack deleted by comments editor] No one needs or wants your sorrys. It is evident that you don't like Michael, so why sugar coat it with a sorry. Also, what does MJ's appearance have to do with his music? I'll tell you...it has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with it! And as far as the subject of pedophilia goes, that had no place in MJ's life, character, or music, because HE WASN'T A PEDOPHILE! Court documents, investigations, and countless people who actually knew and worked with MJ can VOUCH FOR HIS INNOCENCE! Oh and quick question; how was he or anybody else supposed to top Thriller? The album is the greatest of all time and he helped create it. I think if you made your greatest piece of work and reached the highest achievement of your career, everything after that point should not be held in comparison. Because that will only disappoint the idiots who feel that MJ should've kept producing material of that magnitude. He was AWESOME but nobody is that good. So let's recap: MJ IS...A musical genius, not a pedophile, not crazy, not a freak, and certainly not a letdown.
703 - Tet Wald
Michael's most famous songs, Billie Jean, Beat it, Smooth Criminal, Wanna Be Starting Something were all written and composed by himself. He is in the Songwriters Hall of Fame [personal attack deleted by comments editor]. Quincy Jones wanted to leave Billie Jean and Smooth Criminal off of their respective albums too but Michael insisted that they must be on there. And ironically they became his two biggest hit songs
704 - theone
this is a very silly article! shows your lack of understanding about recording artists. Very poor attempt Daryl!!
705 - who u kidding
Michael v Elvis
song writing and composing - Michael wins
vocals - Michael wins
dancing - Michael wins
music videos - Michael wins
movies - Elvis wins
range of music/genre - Michael wins
playing instruments - draw
so if Michael is overrated then elvis must be rubbish!
but i think both are legends so all im saying is your article is just stupid!!!
706 - THE DON
top 50 songs written and composed by MJ -
Another Part of Me, Bad, Beat It, Billie Jean, Black or White, Blood on the Dance Floor, Can You Feel It, childhood, Dangerous, Dirty Diana, Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough, Don't Walk Away, Earth Song, Get on the Floor, The Girl Is Mine, Give In to Me, Ghosts, Heal the World, Heaven Can Wait, HIStory, I Just Can't Stop Loving You , (I Like) The Way You Love Me, In the Closet, Is It Scary, Jam, Leave Me Alone, Liberian Girl, Lovely One, Morphine, Remember the Time, Scream, Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground), Smooth Criminal, Speechless, Speed Demon, State of Shock, Stranger in Moscow, Tabloid Junkie, They Don't Care About Us, This Place Hotel, This Time Around, Wanna Be Startin' Somethin', The Way You Make Me Feel, We Are the World, What More Can I Give, Whatever Happens, Who Is It, Will You Be There, Workin' Day and Night, You Rock My World
Try to find another similar artist who has wrote as many good songs as these!!! not many is there Daryl? you complete tool.
707 - The haters are just afraid to admit it
Uh, I thought "Personal attacks are NOT allowed" and y'all are here dumping your hateful comments on the author. Why, I'll just say it out, loud and clear, that MICHAEL JACKSON IS OVERRATED, NOT ACTUALLY THAT TALENTED, DEFINITELY NOT A GENIUS, AND IS ONLY A LEGEND TO THOSE WHO ARE DUMB ENOUGH TO HEAR "GOOD MUSIC" OUT OF MEH.
708 - Paul
I agree with everything you have said, the guy was a joke, without Quincy Jones he would have been lost in that studio and no records would have been released. I dont think he was a pervert though, he was a childlike man that got taken advantage of. But still, compared to Prince, he was just a fairly good dancer that needed to be taken by the hand when it came to making music.
709 - Paul
LOL @ all you whiny Jacko fans!
710 - David
I just saw Bad 25 and its clear for all to see, Jackson was a puppet, in the scene about the making of Man In The Mirror, its stated that Glen Ballard wrote the music and one of his collaboraters at the time wrote the lyrics, it was GIVEN to Jackson for the Bad album. Go and see for yourself. Musical genius my ass.
711 - iamgodthelord
look at all of the stupid belieber-i mean michael jackscoon fans!
712 - Lucy Jones
Michael Jackson is actually underrated. A lot of people are not aware of a lot of his best songs on later albums.
He wrote music, including classical, and can even tap dance. He was a performer, Composer,songwriter,producer, beat boxer, chereographer, dancer, innovator, unparrelled singer.He could write and perform so many styles of music -Rock, Pop, soul, Easy Listening, Disco. "The only singer I have heard who is better than me - that is Michael Jackson.' Frank Sinatra
713 - Jack Owen
David - Man in The Mirror is the ONLY song MJ didn't write on Bad. He has written 100's of Amazing songs.
714 - Layla Gallo
Re: Doog. Invincible is an amazing, underrated album.
715 - Jessica Omar
I am reply to a comment on here that MJ was 'The King of Peodophile'. If you look into the allegations you will find that in the first case MJ's insurance was forced to pay out because the scheming father put in a negligence claim. Of course when this came out it was barely reported in the media.
In the 2nd 'case' the family had a history of similar blackmail attempts.
Michael Jackson WAS a genius, and was only innocent of being eccentric and naive.
716 - Sophie
Blanket he had Vitiligo a skin disease it was even confirmed in his autopsy. If you bothered to listen to some of the albums that came after Thriller like Bad, Dangerous and Invincible you will find that they are better than Thriller.
717 - wtf
MJ was and will be the real artist.
When he died,he took pop music with him.
Forever.
What the hell is wrong with some of you?
718 - AREFSI
One question, my friend. ARE YOU DRUNK? how can you even think that prince could be (even if he's not even = to) better than michael jackson? kurt cobain? i expect that the next to be better than mj (of coure, in your sick imagination) is justin bieber (dont name him JB....JB is JAMES BROWN, another true genius)...so...how about you commit suicide and let this world know who is The True Emperor Of Music, and this is MICHAEL JACKSON
719 - joe
I totally agree with the article. Jackson is extremely overrated. His music is generic R&B. Plus he is a sex pervert.
720 - Doog
for those who are angrily attacking me like i insulted their mother, keep in mind that i do not hate Michael Jackson. he could sing and dance well, and he put out a bunch of great pop songs. there's a reason why Thriller and Bad had seven top 20 singles each. i just think that the term "musical genius" should be reserved for artists who are constantly putting out creative album after creative album, and not taking big long breaks. it seemed like Michael ran out of good ideas after the Dangerous album. even though hardcore fans will claim that HIStory and Invincible were amazing, still, he only put out two non-greatest-hits albums during the 18-year period between Dangerous (not counting that one) and his death in 2009. if he was such a musical genius, why didn't he put out more albums and singles in that time period?
721 - Chad
Sales don't measure musical talent. It's easy to write pop songs, especially when you only write some of them. Mozart was a musical genius. It takes true talent to play an instrument and work out the chords yourself. Michael Jackson didn't do that, and yet thousands of underrated musicians do. Anyone can sing, and anyone can dance to a cheesy,poorly written song, that someone else wrote for you. SO yeah, Michael Jackson is horrifically overrated. That's the person people consider to be the best Musician to ever exist.
722 - Chad
Also, Dancing has nothing to do with your ability as a musician, since you aren't making music as you dance. Otherwise, strippers would be musicians. Michael Jackson's power came from other people, mostly his producers.
723 - Nattypoos
He was still a paedo. How come these Jacko fans can never bring themselves to accept this about him? Oh, because they're biased. If he made music that they like, then who cares about the children he abused? And Earth Song is pure musical excrement, performed by someone who had become so deranged he thought he was the Messiah, rather than just a squalid kiddy-diddler.
724 - Dr Dreadful
He was still a paedo. How come these Jacko fans can never bring themselves to accept this about him? Oh, because they're biased.
Or because he was acquitted.
725 - Doog
Chad, you brought up a good point about how album sales don't equal "musical genius." if that were true, then Britney Spears or the Backstreet Boys could be considered musical geniuses. they sold millions of albums too! I just think it's interesting because the first thing defenders will bring up is "but Thriller has sold over 100 million copies! that means he's a genius!" but putting out albums with catchy pop songs doesn't equal "musical genius."