The MJCast - A Michael Jackson Podcast The MJCast

Charles Thomson welcomes first-time guest Gratian Dimech to the show for this year’s Vindication Day Special.Gratian first saw Michael Jackson live on the Bad Tour and first met him on the Dangerous Tour. Attending 35 Dangerous concerts, he got to know many of Michael’s inner circle. Michael and Brett Barnes even nicknamed Gratian and his friend Justin as the “Waldos”, because wherever they went, they could pick them out of the crowd.Gratian became an advocate and an activist, challenging negative media coverage of Michael. His creative protest against a particular British tabloid photographer was immortalised in Adrian Grant’s book Michael Jackson: A Visual Documentary and he has been interviewed about it for filmmaker Jin Chohan’s upcoming documentary series “Trial By Media”.Gratian had a front-row view for everything from the “Give In To Me” music video shoot, to Jarvis Cocker’s stage invasion during Michael’s 1996 Brit Awards performance, and even the infamous, history-altering bridge collapse during Michael’s 1999 MJ and Friends benefit concert in Munich.Gratian has toured Neverland, got stuck in New York when the Twin Towers were attacked mere hours after Michael’s 30th Anniversary concerts, and even spent time hanging out in Janet Jackson’s hotel rooms.When Michael drove around London on an open top bus to protest against Sony Music, Gratian was on the bus with him – and when Michael went on trial in 2005, Gratian flew out to support him, even winning the lottery to go inside the courtroom.In this unscripted conversation with his friend Charles Thomson, Gratian tells us only a fraction of his amazing and insightful experience...

Jamon Bull welcomes iconic guitarist, Jennifer Batten, to The MJCast for a long-awaited, deep-dive interview about her amazing career in music, and her years performing with The King of Pop.Batten, known for her original approach to the electric guitar (and her nearly-as-legendary hair!), rose in the music industry when she was selected to play in Michael Jackson’s BAD tour. She would go on to play lead and rhythm guitar on the Dangerous and HIStory world tours, as well, and joined Jackson for the 1993 Super Bowl halftime show. She also appeared in the “Come Together” segment on “Moonwalker”. For any fan of MJ, both her performances and her striking presence are an unforgettable part of ‘80s and ‘90s-era Michael Jackson.In addition to her work on stage with Jackson, Batten has had her own vibrant career. She has released three solo albums, worked closely with Jeff Beck for several years, has authored two music books and released instructional DVDs, and did a guitar residency for the Cirque Du Soleil show “Zumanity” in Las Vegas. In 2016, she received the She Rocks “Icon” award, and was inducted into Guitar Player Magazine’s “Gallery of the Greats”. Batten continues to tour regularly, and has shows coming up around the world, including Michael Jackson tribute shows. (Tour link below.)This episode was edited by Charlie Carter.Additional links• Jennifer Batten’s website, tour dates, and page in support of Michael Jackson.• Batten’s Twitter and Instagram.Like this episode?• If you have the means, consider a donation in any amount through PayPal to help cover our costs of creating the show.

Jamon Bull, Charles Thomson, and Charlie Carter welcome first-time guest Danny Oliver to the show, and welcome back Anika Kotecha, co-founder of MJ Innocent, for a big fan chat around updates in the world of Michael Jackson. They discuss the leak of the Invincible-era track, “Can’t Get Your Weight Off of Me”, updates on Katherine Jackson’s case against the Estate’s MIJAC sale, a major development with Wade Robson and James Safechuck’s cases, and recent experiences at the London version of MJ: The Musical. Plus, Danny, who is well-known in the fan community for his Michael Jackson tribute performances, shares his fan story, which includes performing for the King of Pop himself, as well as performing alongside Jennifer Batten.This episode was edited by Jamon Bull and Charlie Carter.Discussion Topics• The unreleased Invincible era track “Can’t Get Your Weight Off of Me” has leaked.• Katherine Jackson’s case against the Estate’s MIJAC sale continues.• Wade Robson and James Safechuck’s cases have been merged, amidst their lawyer’s a href="https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2024-04-05/michael-jackson-nude-photos-robson-safechuck-tria...

Elise Capron and Jamon Bull are joined by Andy Healy, Casey Rain and first-time guest Bobby Huntley for a round-up of news in the world of Michael Jackson, and a discussion around an intriguing upcoming film project based on the lives of MJ and Prince. The team chats about recently leaked footage from the 30th Anniversary rehearsals, the results of the Heal LA auction for a walk-on role in the MJ biopic, casting updates for that film, and the star-studded premiere of MJ: The Musical in London. Their main discussion topic is around a live-action film-in-development, called Royalty At the Park, which is created by Bobby, co-written by Andy, and with Casey as a Producer. Based on true events, it is set in the spring of 1988, and images the meeting of icons Michael Jackson and Prince at the Paisley Park compound. With so much myth built up around these two artists, particularly in terms with their interactions with and feelings for each other, the film is fodder for lots of interesting, deep-dive discussion.This episode was edited by Jamon Bull.Discussion Topics• More 30th Anniversary rehearsal footage has leaked.• Heal LA auctioned a ‘walk-on’ role for the Michael Jackson Biopic.• Following Miles Teller as John Branca, more casting updates for the biopic have been announced, including the a href="https://www.mjvibe.

Jamon Bull and Charles Thomson kick off Season 10 of The MJCast with a big round-up of news in the world of Michael Jackson and the Jackson family. They discuss loads of updates around the MJ biopic, the “Estate vs Katherine Jackson” case, the Robson and Safechuck trials, Sony’s acquisition of a stake in Michael Jackson’s music catalogue, new recordings of interviews with the King of Pop, unreleased music being auctioned off, and more. Plus, the guys discuss their thoughts on two new documentaries: “The Greatest Night in Pop”, about the recording of “We Are the World”, and “The Three Michaels”, which follows a group of young MJ impersonators chasing their dreams.Welcome to Season 10 of The MJCast!This episode was edited by Jamon Bull and Charlie Carter.Discussion Topics• New pics of Michael on the “Remember the Time” set have been released.• New recordings of Michael being interviewed for his autobiography have been released.• Unreleased Michael Jackson song “Seven Digits” is being auctioned after a range of other songs were also auctioned late last year.• Sony Music buys stake in Michael Jackson’s music catalogue.• More details have been a href="https://www.mjvibe.com/more-details-revealed-about-the-estate-vs-katherine-jacksons-case/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopen...

Taj Jackson joins Jamon Bull, Elise Capron, Charlie Carter, and Charles Thomson to celebrate the holidays and reflect on this past year… Welcome to The MJCast’s ninth annual Christmas special!The crew discusses the year that was, including the final version of the Thriller40 documentary; Marcos Cabota’s problems with finding a distributor for his own Thriller documentary, Sonic Fantasy; a major auction of Dick Zimmerman’s Thriller album cover test Polaroids and camera; and drama around a digital release of The Jackson 5’s first-ever recording. Plus, the team covers updates on MJ: The Musical, the Robson and Safechuck court cases, the MJ biopic, and Taj shares the latest developments on his docuseries project, as well as insights into the happenings within both the Jackson family and fan community circles.Special thanks to Taj Jackson for being a part of our annual Christmas Special for many years. It’s an honor to have this tradition with you.And, huge thanks to all of our listeners and MJFam around the world. We could not do this without you. Wishing you a happy 2024 to come!This episode was edited by Jamon Bull.Participants• Taj Jackson (Donate to Taj’s docuseries, Re-Righting HIStory, and subscribe to updates here.)• Jamon Bull• Elise Capron• Charlie Carter• Charles ThomsonDiscussion Topics• Thriller 40 documentary has been a href="https://www.mjvibe.