Michael Jackson’s latest album, Xscape, hit stores this past Tuesday–and so far, the results have generally been worthy of the King of Pop’s royal moniker.
The record ascended to the No. 1 spot on the iTunes charts in 52 different countries including the U.K. and France, and sits atop Amazon and Spotify’s rankings as well. Xscape is also running neck-and-neck with the Black Keys’ eighth album, Turn Blue, for the top position on Billboard‘s vaunted U.S. album chart.
Forecasts call for first-week domestic sales in the neighborhood of 150,000 copies for both albums. For Jackson, that number should swell when international markets are included–he typically sells two units abroad for every one he sells in America–adding to his stunning postmortem earnings total. The singer has earned over $700 million in the five years since his death, by FORBES’ estimates.
Xscape came together after Jackson’s estate allowed Epic Records chief Antonio “L.A.” Reid to browse the King of Pop’s musical archives of unreleased material. He then selected eight tracks that featured Jackson’s vocals and, with the help of a team of producers led by Timbaland, made additional sonic contributions.
“Michael left behind some musical performances that we take great pride in presenting through the vision of music producers that he either worked directly with or expressed strong desire to work with,” said Reid in a statement. “We are extremely proud and honored to present this music to the world.”
So far, the album has received some strong reviews from the likes of the Los Angeles Times, which called the album “shockingly vital” to Vibe, which dubbed it “eternal greatness.” The New York Times offered a more nuanced interpretation, conceding that many of the songs are “near misses” while stating that “Timbaland’s transformations are masterly.”
Source: Forbes / Zack O’Malley Greenburg / MJ-Upbeat.com
by Zack O’Malley Greenburg / Forbes Staff
MJ is definitely the king. When i listen his songs i feel as he is still alive. Certainly one of the most significant pop music superstars ever been born!