Michael Jackson and Korea

How many hours have I spent coursing through YouTube as I savor Michael Jackson singing, dancing and moving with consummate élan as a member of the Jackson 5 and then as a solo artist, in huge concerts from Detroit to Bucharest, from Sao Paolo to Istanbul? His repertoire a tasty blend of pop, rhythm & blues, rock and funk, he was extraordinarily popular. I would not be the first to proclaim him a great talent, albeit one who could not play an instrument with proficiency or read music.

But look what stardom did to him. This native of Gary, Indiana was a prima donna, a narcissist and a drama queen who at some point withdrew into an infantilized life. The bleached skin, numerous plastic surgeries, jheri-curled hair and loads of makeup gave him an odd  look, to say the least. His predilection for young boys—whether that constituted outright pedophilia or not—put him in legal trouble twice and threatened to wreck his career. It did not, I believe, only because he was rich and had vociferous defenders. To them, the moon-walking “gloved one” could do no wrong.

Jackson, who died in 2009 at the age of 50, has a strong affiliation with this country. In 1988, a Korean businessman named Kenneth Choi began a campaign of begging, pleading and gift-giving just to have Jackson come to Seoul. A contract was signed which stated that he would hold four concerts at Olympic Stadium in August 1989; for some reason, they were canceled.

Jackson’s “HIStory” world tour, running from September 1996 to October 1997, comprised 83 concerts with stops in 57 cities and 35 countries on 5 continents. Seoul was included, with two shows at Olympic Stadium. Before going on stage, he found time to visit Children’s Grand Park. Wherever he went, a virtual melee ensued and this was no exception. He seemed especially touched by the presence of four mother-son statues in the park’s octagonal pavilion. During one of Jackson’s shows at the stadium, he was singing “Earth Song” while on a moving crane 10 meters in the air. Much to his surprise, an overenthusiastic male fan scaled it like a ninja and joined him for what must have been the two most exciting minutes of his life. Jackson handled this potentially dangerous incident with aplomb. The show, after all, had to go on.

Comic books were Jackson’s favored reading material, and yet he rubbed shoulders with kings, queens and presidents. Somehow, in late 1997 he began a friendship with Kim Dae-jeong who was running for the top office in South Korea. Jackson, financier George Soros and former U.S. trade negotiator Mickey Kantor took part in an international video conference meant to boost Kim’s chances. “Korea is a country of warmth, love, sincerity and complete innocence,” Jackson proclaimed with grandiosity.

Kim did indeed win, and Jackson was in Seoul shortly thereafter to meet with the president-elect. They had a press conference with handshakes, bear hugs and warm words. “MJ” was back two months later to witness Kim’s inauguration ceremony. Photos from that day show Jackson in bright red amid a sea of Koreans wearing black or at least dark clothes.

Before Jackson left the country, he pledged to invest $100 million in a children’s theme park in Jeollanam Province (Kim’s home region), to be called Neverland Asia. Never is right, because it never happened.

He returned to Korea in the summer of 1999. This was a short tour that also included a show in Munich. Before his nighttime concert at Olympic Stadium, Jackson said he would use some of the proceeds to benefit needy children in North Korea, Kosovo and Africa.

His concert took place on June 25, 1999—ten years to the day before he died. Jackson danced and sang “Billie Jean,” “Beat It” and some of his other famous tunes, but he also put on a corny—in my opinion—scene in which a rifle-wielding American soldier succumbs to the sweetness of a young Korean girl who offers him a yellow flower. He breaks down in tears, she embraces him and Jackson does the same. It was drawn out and melodramatic, but the fans cheered like crazy. Toward the end, he brought about 100 kids up on stage for a big sing-along.

One member of Jackson’s large and ever-changing staff was Lee Myung-ho, a U.S.-educated Korean lawyer. Lee spent a lot of time at Neverland, Jackson’s 2,700-acre estate in southern California. Claiming to know and threatening to divulge all sorts of lurid secrets about the singer’s private life, Lee filed a $12 million civil suit to compel payment for services rendered. (Jackson had a habit of not paying his debts.) It ended in 2003 when the two sides reached an out-of-court settlement.

Jackson’s plan to hold a concert at the demilitarized zone with the hope of bringing North and South Korea closer did not come to fruition. But he is anything but forgotten in Seoul. For example, on the seventh anniversary of his death in 2016 he was honored with an art exhibition, a flash mob and a memorial of his first concert at Olympic Stadium.