Episode 14 – Michael Jackson’s ‘HIStory’

Just as much as he resisted gender with Dangerous, he resists genre with HIStory. -Karin Merx This fourteenth episode is about Michael Jackson's HIStory album. On the 7th September in 1996 Jackson started his HIStory World Tour in Bucharest. Karin and Elizabeth’s conversation explores the many ways in which Michael Jackson was aware of, knowledgeable about, and concerned with the subject of history, and how he used this in his work. They discuss the teaser trailer, various tracks, and the problematic nature of the way we think about history, as well as the song, Little Susie, and Elizabeth's upcoming book, The Dangerous Philosophies of Michael Jackson: His Music, His Persona, and His Artistic Afterlife. Episode Discussion: 1. How to interpret the HIStory trailer 2. How to read HIStory as an autobiography 3. 'Pie Jesu' as a prelude for Little Susie 4. The classical music that inspired Michael Jackson 5. The physical artifact of the HIStory album 6. Michael Jackson's use of sound design 7. Blood of the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix as extension of HIStory 8. The tracks, Scream, Smile, and Michael Jackson's historical connections with Charlie Chaplin All Our References and Where to Easily Find Them 1. Leni Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Will  2. Information on the subject of Iconography 3. Elizabeth Amisu, The Dangerous Philosophies of Michael Jackson: His Music, His Persona and His Artistic Afterlife (CA: Praeger, 2016). A preview is now available on Amazon and Google Books. 4. The MJCast Episode 026 - Diana Walczak Special 5. Elizabeth Amisu, 'Horcruxes: Michael (Split Seven Ways) Jackson', The Dangerous Philosophies of Michael Jackson: His Music, His Persona, and His Artistic Afterlife (CA: Praeger, 2016). 6. Michael Jackson's Dream Lives On: An Academic Conversation: Episode 4 --- Michael Jackson and Monochromatic Cinematography. 7. Michael Jackson's Little Susie as a short film 8. Information on the glorious Pie Jesu 9. Piotr Tchaikovsky's ballet, The Nutcracker 10. Blood on the Dance Floor: History in the Mix (Michael Jackson, 1997) You May Also Like: