Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Michael Jackson's new album Xscape hits number one in over 50 countries

 

Jess Denham
Wednesday 14 May 2014 11:32 EDT
Comments
The pop icon performs during the halftime show at the Super Bowl in 1993
The pop icon performs during the halftime show at the Super Bowl in 1993 (AP)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Michael Jackson’s new album Xscape has topped the digital charts in more than 50 countries after its release earlier this week, Digital Spy reports.

The King of Pop’s set of eight unheard tracks has been given a contemporary reworking by acclaimed producers such as Timbaland.

The first single from the album, “Love Never Felt So Good”, debuted at the iHeart Radio Music Awards at the beginning of the month.

Justin Timberlake’s vocals feature on the ‘retro’ style song, which was first penned by Jackson and Paul Anka in 1983.

Other singers heard on the album include Mary J Blige and D’Angelo.

“Any artist, I don’t care what genre you do, you should always aspire to be like Michael Jackson,” said Timberlake in 2012.

Another song on Xscape, “Do You Know Where Your Children Are?” is believed to be about Jackson’s child sex abuse allegations.

Its lyrics appear to be about a 12-year-old girl who ends up as a prostitute after fleeing abuse from her stepfather. Jackson sings the phrase “Save me from this living hell” multiple times, leading to fan speculation that the “Bad” star wrote it about the battle to clear his name.

Jackson’s first album after his 2009 death, Michael, proved a disappointment, with some critics claiming certain tracks were performed by an impersonator.

Epic Records have released Xscape after CEO LA Reid was granted exclusive access to Jackson’s four-decade archive of material.

The title of the album continues Jackson's tradition of using single words that are also the names of his songs ( Thriller, Bad,Dangerous). So far, Xscape, has received favourable reviews.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in