美国国家公共电台 NPR--How should we think about Michael Jackson's music? A new podcast explores his legacy

How should we think about Michael Jackson's music? A new podcast explores his legacy¹

Transcript²

More than a decade after his death, Michael Jackson continues to inspire new art — from a hit Broadway show to an upcoming biopic — in spite of the decades of controversy³ that have plagued him.

Sexual abuse accusations⁴, investigations⁵ and lawsuits⁶ against the "King of Pop" date back decades. They resurfaced prominently in the 2019 HBO documentary Leaving Neverland, in which two men share their stories of allegedly being sexually abused by the singer as children (which his estate denies).

But even though much has already been said about the singer and his complicated legacy, journalist Leon Neyfakh and hip-hop commentator⁸ Jay Smooth wanted to take another look.

"If you make an effort to see the story with fresh eyes and talk to people who watched it unfold from up close, but who haven't necessarily been interviewed a million times, you're going to end up surfacing so much that's going to feel new to most of your listeners," says Neyfakh, who hosts the podcast Fiasco and hosted the first two seasons of Slow Burn, about Watergate and the Clinton impeachment⁹.

"And it might not be like breaking news, but it goes some way towards bringing back to life a story that, in many cases, has sort of calcified¹⁰ or become frozen in amber¹¹ over time."

The result is "Think Twice: Michael Jackson," a 10-part podcast from Audible and Wondery that will be available exclusively on Audible and Amazon Music on Thursday. The name is a lyric¹² from Jackson's hit song "Billie Jean."

The series explores Jackson's staying power despite the disturbing allegations, offering new perspectives on how he was shaped by American culture and vice¹³ versa. Listeners will hear from over 100 people who played some part in Jackson's story, Smooth told Morning Edition: musicians who came up with him in Gary, Ind., and fans who showed up to support him at trial.

It's not a biography of Jackson, says Neyfakh, "rather a social history about the world he operated in and the people who loved him and the consumers of his art."

"This is as much a story about us and about how American culture works, how global culture works, and how history and memory work, as much as it is a story about Michael himself," he adds.

All 10 episodes will be available on Audible and ad-free for Prime members on the Amazon Music app as of Thursday.

Audible and Wondery

Where to begin?

The series starts in 1993, what the hosts consider the middle of Jackson's story. He was at the height of his fame — "he was as big as he'd ever been" — when he had the first allegations of child sexual abuse leveled against him.

"In 1993 you see both sides of the Michael story," Neyfakh says. "The meteoric¹⁴ rise and the incredible cultural status, but then also this tragic¹⁵ and difficult period that followed where, regardless of what you thought about the allegations, you couldn't really look at him the same way."

One of the central storylines of that first episode is a short film called "Is This Scary," which Jackson co-authored with horror writer Stephen King but never released (though parts are still viewable on YouTube).

In the film, Jackson plays a strange man in a haunted house, accused of scaring children from the nearby town with his magic and jokes. A mob of angry parents goes after him with pitchforks.

Neyfakh calls the video a "forgotten artifact" — and says what's most striking about it is that it was made before anyone had accused Jackson of anything.

"In fact, the accusations happened during the production, which was called off when the first media reports about Jordan Chandler came out," he added. "And I was just so fascinated that this was the story Michael wanted to tell in a very public form."

The series also delves¹⁶ into race, unpacking¹⁷ how Jackson thought about his racial identity and what role he played in larger cultural conversations (including his 1994 NAACP Image Awards speech).

Smooth says Jackson had more of an "investment and a connection to his Blackness" than most people assume, while also striving to "be this universal figure for everyone as well."

"And I think that that tug-of-war over time, along with all the other ways he was trying to navigate¹⁸ being in the brightest spotlight¹⁹ anyone's ever been in, I think you see that reverberate²⁰ through his life in so many ways," he says.

How should we think about Jackson's music?

The hosts bring different perspectives to the project. Neyfakh didn't grow up listening to Jackson's music, but Smooth did — in fact, he says he feels like "I knew him since I was a baby and ... since he was a baby."

Over the years, Smooth says, he came to see Jackson as "this sort of heartbreaking, tragic figure and someone who may well have done awful things to others." And he's still not sure what to think now.

"That remains²¹ really unsettled for me," Smooth says. "What to do with all of that, in a way that's different from a lot of other artists, where I could more easily sort of compartmentalize and either walk away from them or find a way to keep holding on to them."

And he's not alone in those feelings. Neyfakh said that, especially in the wake of Leaving Neverland, he didn't know what to feel when he encountered Jackson's music.

"People just don't know what to do with his greatness and his genius, on the one hand, [or] with the profound damage that he's alleged⁷ to have done to the people in his life," Neyfakh says. "I wanted to give people new ways to process those contradictions by providing all this new raw material, all this firsthand testimony²², about how Michael Jackson became Michael Jackson."

What broader lessons can we learn from Jackson's story?

The hosts say they're not trying to persuade anyone to either boycott²³ or support Jackson's music, just as they're not aiming to prove or disprove the allegations against him. But they want to explore how individuals — and society as a whole — approach the idea of separating the art from the artist.

Smooth admits that he feels a rush of joy he feels when "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" comes on the radio, evidence of his emotional relationship to Jackson.

"I think it's important to always question how successfully we can compartmentalize," Smooth says. "But realistically, that compartmentalization is always going to be a part of our relationship with art."

1 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

4 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

5 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

6 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

7 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

8 commentator   

n.注释者，解说者；实况广播评论员

参考例句：

• He is a good commentator because he can get across the game.他能简单地解说这场比赛，是个好的解说者。
• The commentator made a big mistake during the live broadcast.在直播节目中评论员犯了个大错误。

9 impeachment   

n.弹劾；控告；怀疑

参考例句：

• Impeachment is considered a drastic measure in the United States.在美国，弹劾被视为一种非常激烈的措施。
• The verdict resulting from his impeachment destroyed his political career.他遭弹劾后得到的判决毁了他的政治生涯。

10 calcified   

v.（使）钙化，（使）硬化( calcify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The rock calcified over the centuries. 经过几个世纪，石头发生了钙化。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• By age 10, 50% of patients have calcified cortical tubers. 10岁的时候，50%的病人出现钙化结节。 来自互联网

11 amber   

n.琥珀；琥珀色；adj.琥珀制的

参考例句：

• Would you like an amber necklace for your birthday?你过生日想要一条琥珀项链吗？
• This is a piece of little amber stones.这是一块小小的琥珀化石。

12 lyric   

n.抒情诗，歌词；adj.抒情的

参考例句：

• This is a good example of Shelley's lyric poetry.这首诗是雪莱抒情诗的范例。
• His earlier work announced a lyric talent of the first order.他的早期作品显露了一流的抒情才华。

13 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

14 meteoric   

adj.流星的，转瞬即逝的，突然的

参考例句：

• In my mind,losing weight is just something meteoric.在我眼中，减肥不过是昙花一现的事情。
• His early career had been meteoric.他的早期生涯平步青云。

15 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

16 delves   

v.深入探究，钻研( delve的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• That delves the grave duly. 误不了你的洞房。 来自互联网
• The exhibition delves deep into the physics, aromatics and even the timbre of flatulence. 此次展览向人们介绍了人体物理、气味甚至肠胃胀气的声音等各方面知识。 来自互联网

17 unpacking   

n.取出货物，拆包[箱]v.从（包裹等）中取出（所装的东西），打开行李取出( unpack的现在分词 )；拆包；解除…的负担；吐露（心事等）

参考例句：

• Joe sat on the bed while Martin was unpacking. 马丁打开箱子取东西的时候，乔坐在床上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They are unpacking a trunk. 他们正在打开衣箱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 navigate   

v.航行，飞行；导航，领航

参考例句：

• He was the first man to navigate the Atlantic by air.他是第一个飞越大西洋的人。
• Such boats can navigate on the Nile.这种船可以在尼罗河上航行。

19 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

20 reverberate   

v.使回响，使反响

参考例句：

• The decision will reverberate and will jar the country.这项决定将引起反响并震撼这个国家。
• Echoes of cries of pain reverberate in my hear.痛苦呼喊的一遍遍的在我的心中回响。

21 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

22 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

23 boycott   

n./v.(联合)抵制，拒绝参与

参考例句：

• We put the production under a boycott.我们联合抵制该商品。
• The boycott lasts a year until the Victoria board permitsreturn.这个抗争持续了一年直到维多利亚教育局妥协为止。