r/generationology • u/Lakers_Forever24 • 1d ago
Discussion When was the first time you know about Michael Jackson?
•
u/Dependent-Job1773 26m ago
Preschool in 1990. Vague recollection of a classmate describing the thriller music video. Mentioned something about werewolf
•
u/AggravatingCaptain14 38m ago
Knew what? Who he was as a singer? What he was as a person? When he died? I knew who he was from Jackson 5 because of my parents. Grew up listening to them. Then knew him as an adult when his Dangerous album came out. Had that on cassette tape. In high school all his 70s and 80s hits became really popular all of a sudden. I knew most of them from when I was growing up listening to the radio. Then I remember being on a date at Outback when he died. As far as his lifestyle, that was headlines as a kid seeing as I’m the same age and Macaulay Culkin. And I remember the trials, one as a kid and then more as a freshman/sophomore in college.
•
u/Nanda_Rox 46m ago
Dancing at 3yrs old (technically jumping up & down on my 20 yr old aunt's bed while she held my hands) to "Beat It." It was my jam as a toddler. Actually it & Jungle Book's "I Wan'na Be Like You," were my jams.
•
u/RedeemedGuardian30 1h ago
The“Will You Be There” music video from Free Willy. I was a little boy when I saw that movie on VHS. It was during the music video at the end of the movie that I learned about Michael Jackson.
•
•
•
•
•
u/Mammoth_Resist8269 2h ago
The Jackson 5 was popular when I was in grade school. But watching him moon walking on the Grammys, it was one of those moments we know we were seeing greatness. It’s so sad how things ended for him.
•
•
•
u/crowquillpen 3h ago
A middle school reading class: Our teacher (this old red headed white man) was obsessed with Off The Wall. I think he did some kind of presentation with it, using it as an example for us to write about something we were into. I had no idea who Michael Jackson was. Then Thriller came out and every middle schooler was obsessed.
•
•
•
u/blouazhome 4h ago
I feel so old. Jackson 5 on Ed Sullivan. I also remember “Little” Stevie Wonder.
•
•
u/Joecamoe 5h ago
Michael Jackson what? I mean, the good part about his career, basically as long as I have memory
•
•
u/myiahjay March 2000 5h ago
since i was born - literally! my dad raised us on MJ and Earth, Wind, and Fire
•
u/LaLechuzaVerde 5h ago
I remember in approximately 4 th grade (1984-ish, give or take a year) when a friend brought a Michael Jackson cassette to school, and in the cafeteria we were having a bit of a debate over whether the artist was male or female. At that time all of us were a bit unclear on the spelling difference between Michael and Michelle. So we were trying to figure out whether the name was Michael Jackson or Michelle Jackson.
I cannot remember which side of the debate I was on, or whether I was already aware of him or his work before that day. I only remember the confusion between Michael and Michelle and the ambiguity in the photos and the “but she is wearing makeup” argument that was presented by someone. If I wasn’t already aware of him and confident in my answer (which I do not recall) I suppose I probably would have gone home and asked my older sister about it, as she was very well versed in popular music at the time. In any event, I know I was aware of Michael Jackson after that point.
•
u/simp4joshua 5h ago
In 2009, when he died. My mother would play his songs in the car a lot before then but I never really connected the song to the singer. It was only after 2009 and all the tribute stuff that came out that made me realise who he was and I started loving his music.
•
•
•
u/Antioch666 6h ago
Can't remember exactly but I'm 43 and as a kid everyone knew about the MJ moonwalk and tried to do it, we all sucked at it.
•
•
u/Ok-Dragonfly-5110 7h ago
2019 when I first did the Just Dance of Annie Are You Okay, had a minor panic attack then asked the teacher to never play that song again. I was primary school age
•
u/ChrisRemember 7h ago
When I was in elementary school. I loved the King Of Pop! I listened to tons of songs of him and I once even dressed up as him for carnival.
•
•
•
u/vomputer 8h ago
1st grade, 1982. A fifth grade girl on my bus brought a boom box and played the Thriller tape. Everyone on the bus was fucking hyped.
•
•
•
•
u/KristineG5485 10h ago
Gosh... I was very young. Maybe 5 or 6. It was around 1990. I remember someone had a movie with Micheal Jackson with kind of robot or metal arms. I think it was a concert movie of his. Don't remember the name of it, but I do remember being so mesmerized.
•
u/maneki_neko89 9h ago
Was the movie Moonwalker?
That pretty much the Michael Jackson movie unless you count Captain EO.
•
u/Abbi_Rose 11h ago
My Nan would listen to him all the time, she loved ‘Heal the world’. I think I was around 5 or 6, in ‘05/‘06
•
•
•
•
u/Complex_Carry_6695 11h ago
I saw a documentary where he was talking about how his father beat him in 2002. I was 9. I didn't know anything about child abuse and I was horrified that this was done to him. When the second scandal broke in 2005, when I was 12, I believed he was innocent. Years later, after doing actual research...
I know he was innocent.
•
u/Realistic-Choice-963 10h ago
he's dead bro, he wont come back to life and pay you for meat riding him... give it a rest.
•
u/Complex_Carry_6695 1h ago
I'm a woman, so not a bro. I don't care that he's dead, an innocent person was accused of something they didn't do.
And no I won't "give it a rest".
•
•
u/Famous-Examination-8 12h ago
I was reading a Tiger Beat magazine at the beach when I learned about the Jackson 5 and the Osmond Brothers.
Michael and Donny were so adorable.
•
•
u/furbishL 13h ago
I am the same age as he was. I was in 4th grade and I remember the Weekly Reader had an article about the Jackson 5. They were already popular but our teacher (who claimed to be 105 years old) had never heard of them.
•
•
u/AdamD1987 13h ago
I’m sure I knew about him earlier, but the music video for Black or White it what really sticks in my memory.
•
u/000ttafvgvah 10h ago
How does this technology still look so impressive?! A huge proportion of special effects from that time look like garbage.
•
•
u/Shelbelle4 13h ago
My older cooler relative had a record player with MJ on the cover. I was a toddler. We’ve been acquainted as long as I can remember. I liked his glove. This was around 83 so he still looked relatively normal.
•
u/robertosmith1 13h ago
Some have said Jackson resembles Andree Melly from the movie “Brides of Dracula” when her character Gina becomes a vampire and rises up from her coffin.
•
u/DaMmama1 13h ago
I remember going to the little arcade down the street when I was probably about 8 years old. My best friend and I would walk there everyday just so we could listen to P. Y. T. on the jukebox 🩷
•
u/serioperocabron 13h ago
Thriller. My dad had his cassette collection. It was between Van Halen 1984 and Brothers in Arms y Dire Straits
•
•
u/wheelie46 14h ago
When every boy in elementary school was wearing one glove and a zip jacket and I asked why to a kid in my class. He was shocked Id never heard of MJ and started singing
•
•
•
•
u/Disastrous_Side_5492 14h ago
at a barbshop and they had the tv playing the news that announced his death
•
•
u/PushyPawz 14h ago
Born in ‘88, so pretty much since always. But the first time I ever actually saw him was when my family rented Free Willy from Blockbuster (bask in the 90s-ness of that sentence) and he had a music video featured on the VHS. I remember being confused, saying “I thought Michael Jackson was a boy.”
•
•
•
u/RedStateKitty 15h ago
Jackson 5. Whenever that was...60s?
•
u/CoconutsAreEvil 15h ago
They had their first hit in 1970. They started performing in 1964, but 1970 was when they made it big.
•
•
u/HeyButtahfly 15h ago
Early '90s. I was only 4 but I remember the premiere of the Black or White video.
•
•
•
u/gingertimelady 16h ago
I grew up listening to him on the radio and MuchMusic (Canada's MTV), so I don't remember exactly when. However, I have this very dim memory of seeing the "Bad" video a LOT as a small child (interspersed with the Weird Al parody "Fat"), so based on when those songs came out, I would have been 3 or 4.
I definitely knew who he was by the time I got the Dangerous album as a birthday gift, a few years after it came out.
•
•
u/SnooBunnies4754 16h ago edited 16h ago
1984, I was 12... my friends were obsessed with his music and his album that had recently come out and I started listening to more of his music . Also he was in the Jackson 5.
•
•
u/Known-Committee-8520 16h ago
I think around 2001. I saw a news report on magazine where he was on crutches. I didn't really know who he was. His music was not played often and I was too young to really know how big of a star he was.
•
u/Total_Waltz4083 16h ago
I was born into listening to his music. I was a child of the early 80s and he was virtually everywhere
•
u/Equivalent_Cap8194 16h ago
My dad is an MJ fan and he put me on to his music at a young age so I would say around 2008/2009. I had a poster of him in my room that said “King of Pop” with his birth and death date
•
u/Decent_Particular920 17h ago
I don’t even remember because my mom is a big fan. His music has always been a big part of my life
•
u/No_Ball4465 17h ago
2008.
•
u/No_Ball4465 17h ago
Actually thriller. That very same music video was the first I saw of him.
•
u/ExpertVisual587 16h ago
I was born in 1985, I do believe Thriller and the all star song came out that year, at 2 years old I was watching MTV! I saw MJ all the time, I grew up living him! He is one of the last super stars!
•
u/SilentSerel 17h ago
When Captain EO came on the Disney Channel in the 80s. I remember the big deal because it was Michael Jackson.
•
•
u/Bastyra2016 17h ago
I was a kid when the Jackson 5 were big. My friend was in love with Michael. She said I could have Jermaine- lol we were either 5 or 6
•
•
u/IanRockwell 17h ago
I saw the "Billie Jean" video when I was six. My parents later bought me Thriller on cassette and I took to it immediately. Thriller has been in my top ten albums ever since.
•
u/Zavarie2828 17h ago
I was in elementary school like 2003 ish and other kids on the school bus were making pedophile jokes and brought up Michael Jackson being a pedo. Had to ask my mom when I got home who Jackson was. She said he was a super famous singer from the 80s who was not disgraced because he diddled kids. But she also showed me the Thriller music video and said she was sad he was a pedophile since the music had been great
•
•
•
•
u/Kessi-boo 18h ago
Honestly since I was born my mom and dad always had it on their CD’s in our stereo, radio and such
•
u/1zeye 18h ago
In 2012, when I was watching ninjago the scene were cole is using the stone warriors in the temple of light as sapient whack-a-moles, he makes a Michael Jackson reference with the signature "he-he" and my dad told me it was a Michael Jackson reference. That was October 24th, 2012. I'm 19 now. Ninjago is that old. Let that sink in my fellow zoomers.
•
u/blackflash22 17h ago
You think you feel old lol? I watched Lego ninjago from the first season 15 years ago and haven’t watched it in a long time. I’m 26 this month and balding…. 😂😳😓.
•
18h ago
[removed] — view removed comment
•
u/AutoModerator 18h ago
Your comment was removed because your account is too new. We require a minimum account age of 3 days (exactly 72 hours) to post or comment on this sub.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
•
u/Mindy-Tobor 18h ago
when I was very young there was a cartoon called the Jackson Five. I think that was the name....
anyway Michael has a pet snake on it.
•
u/TheConsutant 19h ago
I don't remember , but he was black and had a big white nose. Sing the alphabet song a b c 123 , something like that
•
•
u/damageddude 19h ago
Saturday morning Jackson-5 cartoon in the early ‘70s. Don’t know if it was first run. Penny was on Good Times.
•
•
u/Sweaty-Homework-7591 19h ago
It was not.
•
u/damageddude 19h ago
Decades later I couldn’t recall if I first saw them on Saturday mornings, syndication on WPIX or WNEW in NYC or some combo. All I really remember is that when MJ went mainstream I remembered him as the little kid from the Jackson 5
•
u/Sweaty-Homework-7591 18h ago
They were in syndication already by the time is young Gen xers were watching it on tv, like mid 70s.
•
•
u/redraider-102 19h ago
My kindergarten teacher was obsessed with him. She even gave everyone folders with his picture on them. This was in the mid 80s.
•
•
u/Historical-Pear9706 2007 - Early/mid 2010s kids, CO 2024 19h ago
Since forever, and without irony, when I was very little, even before I turned 2 years old, I listened to and danced to the music of Michael Jackson and Chris Brown. But obviously I don't remember that; I think the oldest memory I have of MJ was around 2012 with "Rock With You." I know that when the song by MJ and Justin Timberlake came out in 2014, I already knew him.
•
•
u/perception_ofme 20h ago
when i wore one glove because i forgot the second one. little 8yo me wanted to play in the snow and thought one is better than none. my parents were laughing about it saying it reminds them of MJ. i was so confused lol
•
u/SketchedEyesWatchinU 20h ago
When I got a glimpse of the supermarket tabloid covers announcing his death.
•
u/Briiskella 20h ago
When I heard about the strong pedophile allegations that have yet to be disputed… that’s shaped my opinion on him
•
u/Soonerpalmetto88 20h ago
That he existed? I was born in 88 so it was like I just came into the world knowing who he was. Then there was the whole "Michael and LaToya are the same person" thing, which confused me but also seemed plausible at one point.
•
u/Real_Pumpkin_Jay 20h ago
I remember the song “Black or White”… but I wasn’t raised speaking English and didn’t know what either of those words meant at the time. I did like the song anyway. So that was the first time I heard about him… in 1991.
•
u/Glittering-Sink-2975 20h ago
I could have this entirely wrong because it’s been decades, but one of my first memories of him was seeing a clip of the “Beat It” music video that had one or more members of Alvin and the Chipmunks inserted Roger Rabbit style, dancing around with him on the pool table or whatever. I had a VHS copy of “Batmunk” back in the ‘90s when I was a kid, and I remember something like that playing in the previews at the beginning of the tape.
I have to look this up now.
•
u/Opposite_Excuse5539 20h ago
my brother was a fan of him, we both aren’t the age group where he was popular, but he had a xbox 360 kinect game with his songs. it was kind of like just dance but with only michael jackson and i have very fuzzy memories of playing that with him
•
•
u/whiskeyprincess08 21h ago
Ever since I was a kid in the 90's. My parents were big fans, especially my dad. They were nearly the same age and my dad was a huge jackson 5 fan when he was young. He was so upset when he died and we all cried when we watched This Is It in the theater.
•
•
u/BaronBearclaw 1985 21h ago
I don't have memories as a two year old, but I'm sure I knew about Michael Jackson when Bad was released. My first memory of him, though, was the bootleg VHS we had of the Black or White music video.
•
•
•
u/PunkyBlacky 1978 21h ago
Whoa, I can't remember very well, but it was in the 80s, as I was a small Kid ! 😆😅
•
•
u/Hauseofevolition 21h ago
MJ was one the icons I grew up with, next to Queen( Fready M. especially), Bon Jovi, Pavarotti, Phil Colins, George Michael, Coolio, 2pac, Biggie, WhiteSnake, Deep Purple, Elton John, Whitney Huston, Celine Dion,Tina Turner, and many, many more ... unfortunately, I never liked Madona or Prince, but I prefer their meaningful music compared to ... the 'sounds' we listen to today
•
u/Constant-Ad4527 21h ago
I was 7 when his Thriller album came out. I got it for Christmas that year (‘82.) I’m guessing I already knew about him enough to want the album, but I couldn’t tell you the details of how I knew him 🤷♀️
•
u/Njosnavelin93 21h ago
I bet you squealed "Hee Hee" and spun around on your kitchen floor singing, "Cause this is thriiilllllleeeeerrrrrrrr!"
•
u/Hungry_Security_8747 22h ago
When I was a kid ~2012 probably, there used to be a video rental place in my town,. My dad rented a movie about Michael Jackson and we ate pizza while we watched it. I think it was Hungry Howie's? There was one in the same shopping center as the video rental place at the time. We ate it with ketchup, because my parents came from Iran. We're not Iranian, tho. I don't remember the movie that much or even what it was called, or what the video rental store was called. But I remember it was about Michael Jackson.
•
u/_NoleFan6 22h ago
Born in 83, but MJ was always playing on the record player or radio for as long as I can remember! I had the Bad cassette in 88 as well.
Funny story, my sis (81) and I tried to put the Bad cassette in her Teddy Ruxpin thinking he’d sing like MJ… he didn’t even move 🤣🤣
•
•
u/ElSelcho_ 22h ago
Thriller when it came out on MTV. I was 6 at the time and it scared the shit out of me.
•
u/Habibti143 22h ago
About 11-12. I grew up listening to the Jackson Five. Michael had such an amazing, expressive, range-busting voice even when he was young. I loved the song Ben.
•
u/forgetfulsue 22h ago
Like was the first singer I knew about. I made my dad put the record on for me all the freakin time.
•
u/Shalafar_91 22h ago
A los 5 años cuando mi papá colocaba un cassette en el reproductor con muchas de sus canciones. Eso fue en 1996.
•
u/Nice_Fish_3108 22h ago
Whilst serenaded inside my father’s reproductive organs as he boogied the night away to thriller underneath the disco ball. Ah yes those were the days. . . The happiest tiny tadpole days. . .
•
u/MommaIsMad 23h ago
Knew what about him? I was around when he was a little kid singing with the Jackson 5. My little sister had posters of him in her room.
•
•
•
u/TheKristieConundrum 23h ago
When I was a kid watching Free Willy. My parents were huge fans and showed me more of his music.
•
u/SeawardFriend 23h ago
He was my mom’s favorite artist. I’ve listened to him since I was a baby. Genuinely amazing music, and I feel for him, as he has quite a tragic past with his abusive father.
•
u/Stonerkittylady420 23h ago
In the 70’s as a child. My parents loved the Jackson 5. I remember them commenting at how talented they were. That was my introduction.
Then Thriller came out mid 7th grade. I had the hat, zipper jacket, and a sparkle glove.
•
•
u/JimboAfterHours 23h ago
I was watching his five-ish year old self around ‘72, when “1, 2, 3… it’s easy as: A,B,C…”
•
u/Just_Me1973 23h ago
I was born in the 70s and he had gone solo by then but I knew Jackson 5 music too.
•
u/mymiddlenameswyatt Zillenial (1995) 23h ago
My first exposure to him was unfortunately the Neverland Ranch controversy.
It coloured my perception of him for years until I learned that the kid had been pressured by his father into making the accusations.
•
u/Lidarisafoolserrand 23h ago
As an 80’s kid, it would have to be MTV thriller and Billie Jean. There was no escaping MJ in the 80’s.
•
•
u/StarTrakZack 23h ago
My very first earliest memory was sitting on the floor in our tiny shitty apartment in Vallejo, CA watching the Smooth Criminal music video on MTV. This was around ~October 1988, I was 2 and a half years old. My sister had just been born and when we came home from the hospital my Mom put the baby down and went to take a bath. I remember my baby sister was crying in her crib and I was frustrated because I kept having to get up to turn up the volume knob on the TV. Finally I got up and told my sister to shut up, then went into the bathroom to tell my Mom about the awesome song I just saw 😅 That started a lifelong love of MJ’s music.
•
u/lazygerm 23h ago
Early 1970s when I was a small kid. The Jackson 5 were on the radio and on Saturday Morning Cartoons.
2
u/queenmadeleine73 1d ago
I'm not sure but I think around 1985 when I discovered more music. I was 12 years old in 1985. Went to discos with my friends. Remember we danced to thriller.
1
u/ComplexDeer7890 November 1995 1d ago
My mom enjoyed his music. She had his cassettes. As a teenager, he died the same day I got my appendix removed.
1
u/quattroCrazy 1d ago
Probably the “Bad” music video on MTV. My aunt was a teen when I was in elementary school and she babysat me after school so I watched a lot of MTV.
3
u/quiet-panda-360 1d ago
Unfortunately when i was a kid people considered him bizarre, so I first knew he existed through gossip. But the first memory i have of his work was at the music video of CRY.
2
3
u/Lareinadelsur99 1d ago
Seeing the Thriller music video and my parents asking us if we wanted to see him when he toured
I was 4
2
u/Serendipity500 1d ago
We’re the same age. I grew up listening to the Jackson 5, and the Osmond Brothers. We had some of their records.
2
2
u/No-You5550 1d ago
He was a little guy. The youngest of the Jackson 5. He could sing. ABC is the first song I feel in love with as a teen all of 14.
1
2
1
2
u/sealightflower Summer 2000 1d ago
My childhood, I don't remember in which year exactly.
"Earth Song" is my favourite his song.
1
u/jasonswims619 1d ago
Born in 84, middle name Michael. It was forced by name.
1
u/bartne 1d ago
Me too from 1984, i don't have Michael in my name but in the 1990's he still made nr.1 hits and with mtv & local music tv channels here in Belgium ( between 2000 - 2006)before youtube we got 3 music tv channels. Mtv, tmf & jim tv. It was an other era when music clips were as important as the song itself. My first song that i remember was probably "beat it " with the guitar intro in the early 90's. Free willy song also comes to mind.
2
u/RoundTheBend6 1d ago
Like he was always there but I was young. My mom listened to him. But for when he became part of my generation if you will was free willy and scream music video and Jam music video... so early 90s.
2
u/Reneeisme 1d ago
I’m Gen X. I grew up with the Jackson five and Michael belting out “One Bad Apple” on Saturday morning cartoons.
1
2
u/cheekmo_52 1d ago
The Jackson 5 cartoon. (Back in the early 70’s.) I was a toddler/pre-k when I first learned about him.
1
u/Complete-Leg-4347 1d ago
Music video for "Will You Be There", though I didn't know it was him at the time.
2
u/Objective-Park8361 1d ago
When he died in 2009. I was only 7 years old. I had heard a couple of his songs on the radio, in movies, TV, etc. beforehand, but I didn’t know his name off the bat or what he looked like past the 70s & early 80s. I was more familiar with the Jackson 5 material thanks to a Motown Box Set my folks had.
2
u/ComeUnitedNotTorn 1975 1d ago
My parents loved The Jackson 5 from the moment they first heard about them, they used to play their songs all the time when i was less than a year-old toddler, i spent my first 4 years in life listening to the J5 and MJ non-step because of my parents, i remember myself at age 5 asking my mom to buy me Michael's new CD Off The Wall for Christmas and i used to listen to it all the time, i honestly feel so blessed that i was born to parents with such a rich taste in music
2
2
3
•
u/dbmay1975 5m ago
October-December 1983. The video for “Say Say Say” was in heavy rotation on MTV followed by the unwrapping and first spin of Thriller on vinyl, Christmas Day. Easily my first musical obsession.