Category: MJ NEWS

Access Hollywood Billy’s Blog: Michael Jackson Exclusive (October 15, 2006) [gallery]4[/gallery] [i]Click for larger view[/i] It’s half past four in the morning and I’m making my way to Dublin with Ray. I have spent a fair amount of time in the back of Ray’s car in the last 34 hours. He is the driver, henchman for Paddy who owns the recording studio in the middle of no man’s land, Ireland. Not only is it a quaint studio built inside the grounds of an old stone classic Irish estate…it’s the new creative home of Michael Jackson. And yes, I just conducted the first interview with Michael Jackson since he left the United States in June 2005. First off, let me tell you what this interview is not: It is not a bare all, rehashing of that period of his life. I was prepared to ask him all the questions in the world regarding mistakes made and lessons learned, but trust me, he was not. He asked if 5 minutes of rolling tape was ok in the studio while he “collaborated” with Will I AM from the Black Eyed Peas. Ultimately, We rolled for about 40 minutes and I did ask him questions about music and his thoughts for making a comeback.

Apparently the NY Daily News ran a photo claiming that Michael Jackson was wearing women’s clothes. Though the story is

[i]By Teresa Wiltz Washington Post Staff Writer Sunday, October 8, 2006; Page D01[/i] [b]A Veteran Player in Politics, Sports and Entertainment, Publicist Raymone Bain Is at the Top of Her Game. Is She Up to Managing Michael Jackson?[/b] Michael Jackson is going to call — from wherever he happens to be at the moment, which is a bit of a mystery. He’s going to talk about Raymone Bain, the Washington publicist who has just become his general manager. But no . . . he’s not going to call. A personal assistant delivers this news on a patched-in transcontinental phone line. Jackson would rather converse through a different type of technological apparatus — one that doesn’t require actually speaking. Jackson wants to talk by fax. But no . . . the fax machine is broken. So two days later, Jackson’s assistant e-mails his answers to questions posed to him by The Washington Post. Questions about why he’s decided to put Bain — a woman who’d been mysteriously fired and then rehired in the midst of Jackson’s 2005 child abuse trial– in charge of his new company.

[b]Man Sentenced in Jackson Taping Case[/b] THE ASSOCIATED PRESS LOS ANGELES The former owner of a private jet company was sentenced Wednesday to six months of home detention for secretly videotaping Michael Jackson as the singer flew with his attorney to surrender in a child-molestation investigation. Jeffrey Borer also will have three years of probation and was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and serve 150 hours of community service, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Shallman. Borer’s attorney, Stanley Stone, said outside court that the terms were “very fair.” Borer and co-defendant Arvel Jett Reeves admitted they installed two digital video recorders to record “a professional entertainer” and his lawyer as the pair traveled on a private jet from Las Vegas to Santa Barbara in November 2003, according to their plea agreements filed last year.

[b]Michael Jackson Singles Get Boxed Up[/b] October 04, 2006, 3:55 PM ET Jonathan Cohen, N.Y. Michael Jackson hasn’t released a new album since 2001, but that hasn’t stopped the flow of new King of Pop product. Next up is “Visionary — The Video Singles,” a mammoth boxed set due Nov. 14 via Epic/MJJ/Legacy. The collection rounds up 20 of Jackson’s singles on their own DualDiscs, with the video for each track on the DVD side. The box runs the gamut from early smashes like “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” and “Rock With You” through latter-era material such as “Stranger in Moscow” and “Blood on the Dance Floor.” The CD side includes the original A-side plus either the contemporary B-side or a later alternate mix. The singles were released individually over the past several months in international markets; in the United Kingdom, most of them managed debuts in the top 20.

[b]Pop King’s planning his return[/b] By Chris Lee, Times Staff Writer MICHAEL JACKSON has kept a low profile of late: He lived in self-imposed exile in Bahrain after his June 2005 acquittal on child molestation charges, then moved to Ireland in May. But now, according to several people who have recently met with him, the King of Pop, 48, has started work on his comeback. Early word is that he’s shifting away from the R&B lite that characterized his last few albums toward a more urban sound. Talent manager Charles “Big Chuck” Stanton traveled to Ireland earlier this month with his nephew, hip-hop producer Ron “Neff U” Feemster — who has worked with Eminem and 50 Cent and is one of the track masters behind R&B phenom Ne-Yo’s hit album, “In My Own Words” — after Jackson sought out Feemster’s services. Not sure what to expect, they say they encountered a musically focused and creatively fired-up Jackson. “He’s ready to take over the world,” Stanton says. “He’s got some hot records. Will.i.am did one, Teddy Reilly. We’re giving Michael a lot of edgy street records. He’s putting melodies to some hard party records.”

[b]Lawyer says Michael Jackson, ex-wife settle child custody battle[/b] LINDA DEUTSCH Associated Press LOS ANGELES – Michael Jackson and his ex-wife, Deborah Rowe, have settled their lengthy legal battle over custody and visitation rights for their two children, her lawyer said Friday. “We’re still dealing with the details but it addresses all of the disputes between the parties,” said attorney Marta Almli. “I can’t say anything about the terms of the settlement but I don’t think it would have happened if both parties didn’t agree it was appealing to both of them.” She declined to give details on whether the settlement involves monetary payments to Rowe and visitation rights with the children, Michael Joseph Jackson Jr., known as Prince Michael, and Paris Michael Katherine Jackson. “It is the settlement of all the issues,” Almli said. Jackson’s lawyer, Michael L. Abrams, did not immediately return phone calls from The Associated Press. He told The Daily Journal, a legal newspaper, “My client is very satisfied with the results. Hopefully (Jackson and Rowe) can both get on with their lives now and be through with this litigation.”

There was a story origination from an Irish source which claimed that “sources” say Michael Jackson wanted to build a

[b] Michael Jackson and Sony search for unsigned acts online[/b] 20 September 2006 Sony ATV, a partnership between Michael Jackson and Sony have partnered with Sony’s phone company, Sony Ericsonn to create a new promotional space for breaking new and developing artists called ‘M-BUZZ’. Is the ‘M’ for Michael? who recently travelled around Kinsale in Ireland, potentially house-hunting in an area famous for it’s reclusive celebrity residents. Even more interesting is the shift from “signed” artists towards “un-signed” artists. More and more audience are shifting from what they are told to like by the industry to what they truly like, recommended by friends or found online. “Sony/ATV Music Publishing is always looking for new and compelling ways to promote our artists and song writers,” said David Hockman, Chairman and CEO of Sony/ATV Music Publishing. NewsCorps MySpace, BT’s Digital Music Awards, Coca-Cola iTunes and others are also looking at new and emerging entertainment artists. What will this mean for the future of the music industry? Has it finally woken up to the fact its audience has moved on, even if they havent? Will Robbie Williams need to get a mortgage?

[b]Jackson Custody Dispute Goes Public[/b] Wednesday, September 6, 2006 By Jessica Garrison Los Angeles Times LOS ANGELES — Starting Wednesday, Michael Jackson will figure in another legal circus — this one centering on attempts by Los Angeles Superior Court officials to show that celebrities and other rich people can’t buy special treatment from the legal system when they have business disputes or want to get divorced. For years, Jackson’s custody battle with ex-wife Deborah Rowe seemed to illustrate the opposite point. Despite the media firestorm that accompanied the pop star when he was tried and acquitted last year on child-molestation charges, he managed to keep the custody dispute largely out of the public eye. He did so by hiring a private judge — a service that celebrities and rich people regularly use.