About this episode

The episode discusses Michael Jackson's iconic moonwalk debut during the Motown 25 special in 1983.

On June thirteenth, nineteen eighty-three, something truly remarkable happened in the world of popular music that would cement one artist's place as an absolute cultural phenomenon. Michael Jackson performed his legendary moonwalk for the very first time on television during the Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever television special, and the world collectively lost its mind. The NBC special was celebrating Motown Records' twenty-fifth anniversary, and Michael Jackson was there to perform with his brothers as part of the Jackson 5, revisiting their glory days with hits like "I Want You Back." But Michael had negotiated something extra. He wanted to perform his current solo hit "Billie Jean" from his album Thriller, which had been released earlier that year. Motown founder Berry Gordy initially resisted, since "Billie Jean" wasn't a Motown song, but Michael insisted, and thank goodness he did. When Michael took the stage that night wearing his now-iconic sequined black jacket, black pants with white socks peeking out, and that single white glove sparkling under the lights, nobody knew they were about to witness history. He started performing "Billie Jean," and about halfway…

Topics covered

• Michael Jackson
• moonwalk
• Motown
• music history
• cultural phenomenon

Keywords

• Michael Jackson
• moonwalk
• Motown 25
• Billie Jean
• Thriller
• cultural impact
• music history

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Motown Records, Jackson 5

Books & works: Billie Jean, Thriller

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