Never one to be short of controversies surrounding him, the King of Pop is a figure in the music world that, even years after his passing, still has new stories about him surfacing. This story is one we never saw coming - Michael Jackson's career was nearly ended prematurely due to a rivalry with Prince.
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Shocking revelations. When interviewed by GQ, the famous producer Quincy Jones admitted that the singer Prince almost killed Michael Jackson. Apparently the two artists were jealous of each, and Prince nearly took it to new heights.
At the height of their careers
In the 1980s, two American stars were at the top of their careers, Prince and Michael Jackson. But huge popularity also means excessive jealousy. In an exclusive interview for GQ magazine, producer Quincy Jones made an amazing revelation.
During a James Brown concert on August 20th, 1983, Michael Jackson joined the artist on stage to share an exceptional moment of music. ‘After a delay, Prince went on stage, took out his guitar, played a little, then took off his shirt. He fooled around with the microphone, (...) he almost fell into the audience while trying to lower a huge light,’ recalls Quincy Jones.
It could have ended badly
Prince wanted his performance to be quickly forgotten. He ‘told Michael that he would kill him if he showed the footage to anyone. (...) He waited in his limousine to try to run him, his sister La Toya and his mother over. Michael told me that that was his intention,’ says the producer.
But apparently, according to Quincy Jones, Prince had a good reason to be angry with Michael Jackson, since Michael had suggested that James Brown bring Prince on stage after his performance: ‘I challenge him to top me,’ he said to the singer. A humiliation that the Purple Rain singer did not really appreciate.
