Intro by: Gail Nobles
Photo credit: Stephen Luff
Usage: CC BY 2.0
https://flic.kr/p/2jej86K

I remember when Michael Jackson went solo. He became a solo star with his 1979 album Off The Wall, and with his 1982 album Thriller. The best selling album of all time. He is the most awarded recording artist in the history of popular music and is recognized as the “most successful Entertainer of All Time” by Guinness World Records selling an estimated 1 billion records around the world.

When Michael released his Off The Wall album, he made videos that I didn’t get to see during that time of 1979 & 1980. I had never seen a music video before. In 1979, MTV was not known. The MTV cable channel was launched on August 1, 1981. Then there was Friday Night Videos that was broadcast on NBC on July 29, 1983. I didn’t find out about MJ’s videos, She’s Out Of My Life, Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough, And Rock With You until after he made it big and famous with Thriller. Looks like to me, MJ was ahead of the game. People said he was smart.

He made the video Can You Feel It with his brothers in 1980 and Blame It On The Boogie in 1978. I didn’t see any of those videos until after Michael went solo after making Thriller. Michael Jackson was making videos long before MTV was heard of. He could have had his own music video channel.

Michael achieved the peak of his critical success after the release of his 1982 album Thriller, with sales of 70 million copies worldwide. Critics often debate whether Off The Wall or Thriller is Jackson’s best album. Off The Wall has sold over 20 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time.

I think Michael Jackson was more magical with the videos during the time of his Thriller Album. And everybody was able to see those videos. See, there were things that helped to make a difference. Michael was more about disco, love, and dancing in his Off the Wall days. The single Off The Wall could have also made an outstanding magical video. But by the time Michael made Thriller, his ideas for songs & videos were more advanced. It was a sight to see him in a video with gang members, Thriller was exciting, & a Billie Jean was in a lot of men’s lives. Women accused men that they were the father of their child just like Billie Jean. Billie Jean was an exciting video and disco - rhythm and blues song.

Michael Jackson was an awesome solo artist. Michael Jackson - He was a star. Song by Gail Nobles © 2022.