On Music


"Michael was embodiment of music."

Slash, guitarist (Guns´n´Roses)



"He was music. He embodied the music."

Kenny Ortega, director



"Indeed, in Jackson´s case he literally embodied the music. It charged through him like an electric current. He mediated it through every means at his disposal - his voice, his body, his dances, films, words, technology and performances. His work was multi-media in a way never before experienced."

Joe Vogel, The Misunderstood Power of Michael Jackson´s Music www.truemichaeljackson.com/on-music/the-misunderstood-power/ 



"Music is a mantra that soothes the soul..., something our body has to have. It´s important to understand the power of music."

Michael Jackson




Michael Jackson in his book Dancing the Dream


"The songwriting process is something very difficult to explain, because it's very spiritual. It's, uh...You really have it in the hands of God, and it's as if its been written already - that's the real truth. As if its been written in its entirety before were born and you're just really the source through which the song come. Really. Because there is...they just fall right into your lap in it's entirety. You don't have to do much thinking about it. And I feel guilty having to put my name, sometimes, on the songs that I - I do write them - I compose them, I write them, I do the scoring, I do the lyrics, I do the melodies but still, it's a...it's a work of God."

Michael Jackson, online audio chat, October 21st, 2001



“Painting the image you have in your head on the sonic canvas.  You translate the sounds in your mind to tape, and make the listeners a partner of your own created soundscape.’ 

Michael Jackson




His beatboxing was without parallel, and his time was ridiculous.


Rob Hoffman (Sounds Engineer)




Sidney Lumet


Michael Jackson - Beatboxing Tabloid Junkie:


"Jackson had an extraordinary vocal range. He could easily sing bass, baritone and tenor. He always chose the tenor range, delineating his umistakable high, angelic tone. Michael was willing to make any sacrifice (for his voice). During the summer tours in the stifling heat of the south, he turned off the air conditioning and threw open windows, saying that the humidity and heat were a cure-all for the vocal cords. When you passed his room you would hear him practicing at any hour. After and exhausting rehearsal session and still covered in sweat, he would start vocalizing again. He pushed himself to exhaustion, beyond all limits, and he was very disciplined. He didn´t drink, he didn´t smoke, he didn´t do drugs. He had zero tolerance for swearing and cursing, sexually explicit or racist jokes. he lived in a dimension of ideal purity. 

Seth Riggs, vocal coach


Michael Jackson & Seth Riggs Vocal Training Session:


"I love to write songs. It´s one of my favourite things to do. It´s very spiritual. It´s a connection. I´m just a source through which it comes. I´m inspired by a lot of things but it´s done in the heavens. I listen to the music and I just create from there."

Michael Jackson



“Writing a song is like standing under a tree and trying to catch a leaf. Everything comes as a package. It’s the most wonderful, most spiritual thing …”

Michael Jackson, 1993


“I wake up from dreams and go “Wow, put this down on paper.” The whole thing is strange. You hear the words, everything is right there in front of your face.”

Michael Jackson



“The lyrics, the strings, the chords, everything comes at the moment like a gift that is put right into your head and that’s how I hear it.”

Michael Jackson during the deposition of ‘Dangerous’ court case in 1994



Michael Jackson - Beat it (Demo)




Michael Jackson in Ebony Jet interview, May 1992



“I compose them. I write them. I do the scoring.  I do the lyrics. I do the melodies. But still, it’s a work of God.”

Michael Jackson




 MJ in Ebony Interview 2007 


“I’ll just sing the bass part into the tape recorder. I’ll take that bass lick and put the chords of the melody over the bass lick and that’s what inspires the melody,” 

Michael Jackson explained, before beat-boxing in court in 1993



Michael Jackson about creating music at the Dangerous Court Case Deposition 1994


Question: "Where do you look for inspiration when you write your songs. Does inspiration come from a variety of different places?“

Michael Jackson: "Well, the best songs that are written write themselves. You don't ask for them, they just drop into your lap. Then there are those songs that, you know, you kind of uh, incubate. You know, you plant the seed, let the subconscious take its course, and within time you hope something comes, and most the time it does. I don't believe in the concept of writer's block -- that is a bad word. You create it when you say it. There's no such thing. Um, like any painter or sculptor, they paint... they do their best work when they're in the 60s and their 70s. Fred Astaire did his best dancing when he was in his 70s. Angelo [Michelangelo] sculpted late into his 60s and 70s, doing brilliant ingenious work. But in the music business some of these great artists have become stumped because they self-abuse themselves at a young age, with all these crazy things they drink and pills and things, and uh, that's just not good -- just not a good thing. I hate to say that to hurt anybody, but we should take care of our bodies a little more.
Online audio chat Oct 26th 2001




Michael Jackson about working with Quinci Jones, Ebony Magazine 2007



Question: How do you channel your creativity?
Michael: I don’t force it, I let nature take its course. I don’t sit at the piano and think, I’m going to write the greatest song of all time. It doesn’t happen. It has to be given to you. I believe it’s already up there before you are born, and then it drops right into your lap. It’s the most spiritual thing in the world. When it comes, it comes with all the accompaniments, the strings, the bass, the drums, the lyrics, and you’re just the medium through which it comes, the channel. Sometimes I feel guilty putting my name on songs — written by Michael Jackson — because it’s as if the heavens have done it already. Like Michelangelo would have this huge piece of marble from the quaries of Italy, and he’d say, “Inside is a sleeping form.” He takes a hammer and chisel, and he’s just freeing it. It’s already in there. It’s already there.

Vibe Magazine, March 2002


Michael Jackson in studio. They talk about "Beautiful Girl", and about creating songs:







Michael Jackson, Ebony/Jet Interview, May 1992




"I think music soothes the savage beast. If you put cells under a microscope and you put music on, you’ll see them move and start to dance. It affects the soul… I hear music in everything."

Michael Jackson Ebony/Jet Interview, May 1992



"Once the music plays, it creates me. The instruments move me, they control me. Sometimes I´m uncontrollable and it just happens. Boom, boom, boom - once it gets inside of you."

Michael Jackson



"... I remember walking around the lake with him one evening when my music was playing (at Neverland), the lawns looked amazing, everything was just "right", and he stopped and listened to the music. He closed his eyes for several seconds and just stood still. Then he took a deep breath and stood on his toes... and he let out a loud shriek, at the top of his lungs!

He opened his eyes and looked at me and said, "Doesn't music ever effect you that way Brad? Where you can't just listen, but you have to respond somehow?" I can't remember my exact words, but being a slightly awkward Swedish kid I likely tried to be cool and laugh it off.

But I wish I hadn't tried to be cool. 
I WAS effected by that music. 
Just like I AM effected by it today. 
And it was incredible not to just see how it effected him, but how at ease he was with expressing his love of the composition.
I can still see the spot in my memory where we had that conversation."

Brad Sundberg, April 2019: www.instagram.com/inthestudiowithmj/



“Don’t ever impose your thoughts on the music. The music will tell you what it wants to do.” 

Vincent Paterson remembering advice given to him by Michael Jackson



Ebony: You seem impressed by African art but what about African music and dance?
 Michael: When we came off the plane in [Dakar, Senegal] Africa, we were greeted by a long line of African dancers. Their drums and sounds filled the air with rhythm. I was going crazy, I was screaming. I said, “All right!” They got the beat and they got the rhythm…. I just was so glad about the whole thing. This is it, I said. This is where I come from. The origin …
Ebony: You were obviously impressed by your musical roots, so where do you think the Africans derived their musical influence?
Michael: Music started with nature. Music is nature. Birds make music. Oceans make music. Wind makes music. Any natural sound is music. And that’s where it started… You see, we’re just making a replica of nature, which is the sounds we hear outside.
Ebony magazine interview ,1984


„My uncle was always big on teaching my cousins and me about song structure. He would like to break down songs -- he would always start with the base line, and then start humming a melody. He wanted to teach me how things came together, how to portray my voice and where music came from.

Austin Brown, Michael´s nephew



Question: ‘Invincible’ was several years in the making. Does your perfectionism slow the process?
Michael: It did take a while because I’m never happy with the songs. I’ll write a bunch of songs, throw them out, write some more. People say, “Are you crazy? That’s got to go on the album.” But I’ll say, “Is it better than this other one?” You only get 75 minutes on a CD, and we push it to the limit.
Question: Did you approach ‘Invincible’ with a single theme in mind?
Michael: I never think about themes. I let the music create itself. I like it to be a potpourri of all kinds of sounds, all kinds of colors, something for everybody, from the farmer in Ireland to the lady who scrubs toilets in Harlem.
Question: Has it become easier to write songs over time?

Michael: It’s the most effortless thing in the world because you don’t do anything. I hate to say it like that, but it’s the truth. The heavens drop it right into your lap, in its totality. The real gems come that way. You can sit at the piano and say, “OK, I’m going to write the greatest song ever written,” and nothing. But you can be walking down the street or showering or playing and, boom, it hits you in the head. I’ve written so many like that. I’m playing a pinball machine, and I have to run upstairs and get my little tape recorder and start dictating. I hear everything in its totality, what the strings are going to do, what the bass is going to do, the harpsichord, everything.
Question: Is it difficult translating that sound to tape?
Michael: That’s what’s frustrating. In my head, it’s completed, but I have to transplant that to tape. It’s like [Alfred] Hitchcock said, “The movie’s finished.” But he still has to start directing it. The song is the same. You see it in its entirety and then you execute it.

From Interview by Edna Gundersen, USA TODAY, 2001



“Michael was so effective at communicating the emotion.  I mean, sometimes, we would just swell up with emotion when we would hear Michael’s vocal delivery.  There were many times he would sing and it would cut you to the bone.  He would bring you to the edge of tears.”
Matt Forger




Michael Jackson



“There's no use creating music that people don't want. The object is to bring joy to other people's lives.”

Michael Jackson




Madonna, MTV VMA 2009

“I believe Michael infused a very genuine philanthropic spirit into specific songs, and they echoed the sincerity and the depth of his character and content. Earth Song really speaks to the humanity that I attempt to appreciate in my own music. As a songwriter, sometimes you find it very difficult to find the words to express yourself. You want to be vague enough that someone could interpret it in their own way. You want that transparency. And I think Earth Song has that. It’s not hooky, it’s just a wail…a cry for help.  It’s very painful.  Even just singing the melody brings the sensation and the spirit of that song to the surface of my skin.  I’ve been there before.  Like all music, in its origin, it’s for praise or for redemption.  It’s truly a redemption song.  It’s a message to those who have become comfortably numb from someone who seemingly had it all.  For him to have everything and still be able to hurt for humanity? That should put us all in our respective places.”

Michael Eric Dyson

Earth Song - Live Brunei 1996 - The Royal Concert


Matt Forger

"In early 1985 we cut "We Are the World" at an all-night all-star recording session that was held after the ceremony for the American Music Awards. I wrote the song with Lionel Richie after seeing the appalling news footage of starving people in Ethiopia and Sudan.
Around that time, I used to ask my sister Janet to follow me into a room with interesting acoustics, like a closet of the bathroom, and I'd sing to her, just a note, a rhythm of a note. It wouldn't be a lyric or anything; I'd just hum from the bottom of my throat. I'd say, "Janet, what do you see? What do you see when you hear this sound?" And this time she said, "Dying children in Africa."
"You're right. That's what I was dictating from my soul."
And she said, "You're talking about Africa. You're talking about dying children." That's where "We Are the World" came from. We'd go in a dark room and I'd sing notes to her. To my mind, that's what singers should be able to do. We should be able to perform and be effective, even if it's in a dark room. We've lost a lot because of TV. You should be able to move people without all that advanced technology, without pictures, using only sound.

I've been performing for as long as I can remember. I know a lot of secrets, a lot of things like that.

I think that "We Are the World" is a very spiritual song, but spiritual in a special sense. I was proud to be a part of that song and to be one of the musicians there that night. We were united by our desire to make a difference. It made the world a better place for us and it made a difference to the starving people we wanted to help."
Michael Jackson in his book Moonwalk
HEAL THE WORLD…”This song is cleverly written. There’s nothing like a song that inspires without being cheesy.  It’s the perfect example of using the power of your voice to make a difference in the world through song.  I’m totally inspired by Michael Jackson, all the way around. He set the tempo for what I relate to and aspire to as an artist. It’s beyond what he put into his music; it’s what he put into the world. I love that he seemed to value his position as an entertainer. He believed that you’re not given a platform to influence millions just to sing and dance with it. There’s got to be something more to it, and I’m inspired by that.  He incorporated these real-life situations into his songs because he wanted to influence people. So many of these tracks had a message because he really took his gift and used it for the right reasons. He was always very thoughtful, and as special as he was, he was very appreciative of his success. He was humble. And that, for me, more than anything, is what I want to take from him. To be that big an artist and to still be humble at the same time? It means a lot.”
Heal The World Live in Argentina 1993


"It [my music] breaks all barriers. I don't have to make a political statement. I do all of that with music."

Michael Jackson



"I love great music — it has no color, it has no boundaries."
Michael Jackson




Michael Jackson
"If I’m a musical architecht then let me build monuments with sound. Heavenly gifts that will stir the human heart and soul. To time indefinite  to time indefinite let my music become immortal to pay homage to the gift of song.”
Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson Talks About His Classic Favourite Music

Question: "What's changed about the music industry or about, you know, the music that's out there. What do you think is different?"

Michael Jackson: "Well, I think.. Ah, I don't think people thought the Rap music would last as long as it has. And it has gone through evolutional stages -- there's more melody in it now, it's more acceptable, because melody will never die. Will never die. And the rhythm-- things are a little more rhythmic now. Because people want to dance. It's part of the human condition; it's part of our biological makeup. Our cells dance when we hear beats. You notice a.. a one year old child will start moving hearing music. How do they know to move? 'Cause it's biological. It's not just hearing of the ear, it's feeling, you know. And playing music, the grass and the trees and the flowers... They're all influenced by music. They become more beautiful and more vibrant in how they grow. Music is a very important and powerful substance, and all the planets in the universe make music. It's called music of the spheres. They all make a different note; they make harmony. So there's harmony even in the universe as we speak."

Online audio chat, October 26th 2001




Michael Jackson



"I always wanted to do music that influences and inspires each generation. Lets face it, who wants mortality?"

Michael Jackson, Ebony interview, 2007



"When you want to be close to me, listen to the music. The love is stored there and will not die!"

Michael Jackson


Michael Jackson ♥ღ Just Call My Name And I'll Be There | Fan Video:


Giving Tree:


"I had this tree that I call “My Giving Tree.”


 Michael Jackson


FEEL BELIEVE by: Michael Jackson

(Michael Jackson write this in the late 1970’s about writing and composing a song)




Michael never really give credits to himself when he was writing his songs. In most of his interview he always tell that his songs just pops into his head and like it was created somewhere in the universe. It was God whom he always give credits to all his artistic works. A true genius, Michael our inspiration.

@MJJHero as you requested. :)

Very special deposition in Mexico in 1993 and another one from 1994 - all about music...:

Michael Jackson talking about creating music. 

..."And don't write the song, don't write anything, let the song create itself, let the strings tell you what to do, where they should come, let the piano tell you what chords to hear whatever it feels, let the bass tell you what it should be doin', everything, let it create itself, let it form, let it do what it wants it to do, don't force up on the song, let the song force up on you, let it tell you where to go."... 
Q: Would you tell us when you started composing music?
MJ: Probably since the age of seven.
Q: Would you tell us, how old you were when you had your first song published?
MJ: That I wrote myself?
Q: Yes, sir.
MJ: Fifteen.
Q: Could you tell us approximately Mr. Jackson, how many songs you’ve written to date?
MJ: In general couple hundred
Q: And approximately, how many of those songs had been released to the public?
MJ: About fifty, sixty.
(from Michael Jackson’s deposition in a ridiculous 1994 suit over the Dangerous song: http://mjtranslate.com/pl/interviews/1228


A part of Interview form 2003, where Michael Jackson asks Pharrell Williams about music:

PHARRELL WILLIAMS: Sure. Whatever you like.
JACKSON: No. No, that’s a perfect analogy.
WILLIAMS: That’s right.
JACKSON: Right. [laughs]
WILLIAMS: Absolutely. The Isley Brothers.
WILLIAMS: Donny, Stevie.
WILLIAMS: Those chord changes. They take you away.
JACKSON: Beautiful, beautiful.

Michael Jackson´s favourite music:


"My favorite albums? 

The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky, 

The Greatest Hits by Claude 

Debussy, that would be Claire

de Lune, Arabesque and 

Afternoon of a Faun..."


Michael Jackson, February 2004

Afternoon of the Fawn by Claude Debussy:



Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker:



Smile from Charlie Chaplin:



Michael Jackson´s version of Smile:




Michael Jackson in recording studio:





Kiwi´s Notes...


“Each ascended light-being sends out an individual keynote, which is weaved into a beautiful symphony of sounds. And while moving through the interstellar space, the mixture of cosmic tones displays an inspiration for all those who have the privilege to have access to the abilities of the inner ear.”

(Book of Life, P. 203)


Everything in the cosmos is energy and vibrates in certain frequencies. So is sound and therefore music. Everything that exists is made from 9 notes.

 As music plays a major role in our lives, in this section is presented the highest vibrational music the world has ever known - it´s called Solfeggio frequencies. 


This is a very interesting video which explains the power of sounds and how they change a matter, how they change us:


This is how we can translate DNA into Music:



The first 60,000 base pairs of Chromosome 1 - Homo sapien translated into sound and frequency at 3000 nucleotides per minute/3000 Beats per minute:


Symphonies of the planets.... there are electromagnetic particles of different frequencies that planets and stars emit that could be translated into sound which﻿ human ears could hear:




 Jill Scott


             Slave To The Rhytm



“Being in the moment, I will always have music.” 

Michael Jackson


       Tell Me What About It

         (Earth Song ad-libs)


Joe Vogel´s article The Misunderstood Power of Michael Jackson´s Music:


( His influence today proves him to be one of the greatest creators of all time, but Jackson's art--like that of many black artists--still doesn't get the full respect it deserves.)

          Live Vocals 

    Through The Years:






Love always,


"Music wouldn't be what it is without someone like Michael Jackson. I remember going to my high school talent show singing 'The Way You Make Me Feel' and being a huge fan of his album Bad. I know all my dancers wouldn't be behind me dancing if it weren't for that."

Christina Aguilera


"More than any musician in history, his god given gifts were revealed in ways that reached into our souls with a gloved hand, touching the very core of everything that is humanity. Although the "music world" will forever mourn his passing and suffer the loss of his innate creativity, Michael Jackson - the man and his music are forever "Eternal".

Jeff Young



“I know that when I listen to His voice, especially certain songs, I actually seem to vibrate on a cellular level. His pitch, His resonance, His melody, His timing…all seem to touch my inner core, who I think of as “me”. This is how He seemed to bring us all together. He knew about this: tonal vibration and the rhythms of time and space. He married these concepts with His music and dance, and gave birth to a worldwide movement of love and peace among all peoples of Earth. Through His music, we all swayed to the same beat. We all vibrated to the music of the spheres. We came together and all felt closer to God.”

Ms. Elizabeth Michelle Billeadeaux


That's one of my favorite things, hearing the music really loud. 'Cause I like to play music loud. I mean, it's, uh... If you play something over the Internet or small speakers, it doesn't have the same punch. That's why you have to buy it. You have to buy that CD to really hear that punch. It makes a huge difference. Huge difference. There's no comparison. Buying the CD is the best thing. There's no comparison. You can't hear all those sounds if you do it on a smaller system.“

Michael Jackson, online audio chat (Oct 26th 2001)


"I am speechless about the idea of putting music fans in jail for downloading music. It is wrong to illegally download, but the answer cannot be jail. Here in America we create new opportunities out of adversity, not punitive laws, and we should look to new technologies like Apple's new Music Store for solutions. This way, innovation continues to be the hallmark of America. It is the fans that drive the success of the music business."

MJ´s press statement (21 July 2003), quoted in "Jackson attacks music piracy bill" in BBC News (22 July 2003)


"The whole sixties period to me with Simon and Garfunkel, The Beatles, and Motown - was the best musical time in history cause they were real songs. Real good songs. Today a writer will have success and then just celebrate the rest of his life and just forget about writing ever again - no self-control, he´s partying the rest of his life. Back then people just kep trying, kept coming up with great stuff."

Michael Jackson

The Vocal Ranges of The World’s Greatest Singers:


free web counter


True Michael Jackson kiwi@truemichaeljackson.com