The two will forever be remembered for serenading each other in front
of millions of fans around the world, night after night.
Hip thrusts and all, Michael Jackson and Sheryl Crow had an onstage allure like
no or other. The latter going on to achieve her own
success as a solo artist in the years to come.
But in interviews since, Sheryl seems to have mixed feelings when
it comes to the King of Pop, paying tribute one moment,
then actively mocking him and feeding into salacious stories the next.
With relentless articles circulating
at the time of a passionate affair between the two, it is clear that Sheryl Crow has
battled with a conflicted view of the man she shared the stage with and who gave her
her first glimpse into the world of super fame.
That being said,
after 18 months of touring, did they create a close bond,
fall in love or develop an ongoing distaste for each other?
Here's the detail.
But before we begin, check out our new collection, available to purchase online.
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Before Sheryl Crow's life crossed with that of Michael Jackson's,
the Missouri native lived a very ordinary existence.
After graduating university,
she taught music at a grade school level all awhile singing in cover bands in her
spare time. Through a musician friend, Crow eventually got
a gig singing in a McDonalds commercial,
which she stated paid more than her first
two years of teaching and convinced her to move out to LA
to chase her dreams to become a professional singer.
In 1987, the 25 year old started singing
backup for various artists, including Johnny Mathis,
before catching wind of auditions for Michael Jackson's first ever solo tour.
Quote, I heard some singers talking about a closed audition, and I crashed it.
In her demo video, she was asked to introduce herself.
Hi, Michael, my name is Sheryl Crow, and I
just moved here, she announced.
I'm a former music teacher and I would love to go on the road with you.
In her own words, Sheryl would have described herself as
incredibly naive to show business, wearing her school teacher clothes
and singing for the world's biggest superstar.
Apart from her good looks and all American girl image, there was something charming
and natural about the unknown singer that Michael was drawn to.
And before she knew it, Crow was flying across the globe to sing
in front of a sea of thousands on Michael Jackson's Bad World Tour.
Quote It was everything.
I didn't even own a passport.
I mean, I had basically been
a schoolteacher up until six months before I got that gig, and the next thing I know,
a month later, I'm singing with arguably the biggest artist ever come along.
The song she was booked to perform was Michael Jackson's latest number one hit.
The duet 'I Just Can't Stop Loving
You', originally composed with Siedah
Garrett. Sheryl Crow later admitted that she felt
very intimidated and starstruck the first time
she performed alongside Jackson in such huge venues.
Quote there I was, traveling the world
with the biggest pop star on the planet.
Walking out in front of full stadiums every night was exhilarating enough.
To be performing alongside Jackson was something else altogether.
Seeing him dance a few feet away
from me was an otherworldly experience.
It was the happiest of times.
Offstage, Sheryl Crow was taken aback by Michael's demeanor.
I was surprised by how shy he was, she told Rolling Stone in 2014.
We were rehearsing the duet and we
had a funny joke between us.
We were doing a love song and
pretending to be very shy about it, and we giggle when we touch each other.
To see that youthfulness out of somebody
who's the most important entertainer in the world was surprising.
However, despite his shyness and childlike vulnerability off stage,
there was no denying his presence and star power when on it.
My most beloved memory was watching him perform 'Human Nature' every night from the
side of the stage.
There was something so genuinely vulnerable in
his voice on that song and watching
the freedom with which he danced, doing the moves he invented, only made me
more keenly aware of the greatness I was blessed to be witnessing.
I remember standing by the side
of the stage thinking, I'll never see this kind of talent again in my life.
I don't care what kind of music you're into, there's something special in him
that isn't of this world.
Backstage, the singer described
an atmosphere in which Jackson's orbit centered entirely around him,
leaving her and her bandmates significantly out of the picture.
Although the two performers embodied
magnetic chemistry on stage, on a personal level,
Crow believed that Jackson didn't actually know her name for quite a long while.
However, with the new album,
worldwide tour and many other projects and business commitments,
Michael had more than enough to occupy his mind, likely focusing every ounce of
energy on his work during this historic moment in his career.
In addition to this, Michael Jackson already
had an unpleasant experience when his
back up performer and video girl in 'The Way You
Make Me Feel', Tatiana Thumbtzen, was
unceremoniously fired after she went off script and attempted to kiss Michael
on the lips during their live performance at Madison Square Garden.
Sheryl Crow, who Jackson knew would always
remain professional, would then fulfill Tatiana's part
in the show for the rest of the 18 month tour.
After the incident, Michael Jackson likely came
to the conclusion that it would be
far easier to maintain a strictly professional relationship with those
that he appeared on stage with. So not to add additional stress during
the extensive schedule that could impact on the overall show.
However, Michael often got lonely while on tour and eventually began to open up,
finding opportunities to connect, let loose and have fun.
Quote I have so many memories of him pranking me on stage.
Our quick-change tents shared a side, and as we were rushing to change our
wardrobe in between songs,
invariably a grape or a carrot would come rocketing over the top of me.
I could always hear him giggling through the wall.
In addition to his food fighting pranks,
Crow would experience other fond memories with
the King of Pop.
She recalled how much he loved to laugh and that he would often rent out entire
amusement parks for him and his employees entertainment.
I remember riding a swinging pirate ship ride with him somewhere in Germany, and.
Because we were the only ones on
the ride, he wouldn't let the operator stop the ride as I got sicker and sicker.
He thought it was hilarious.
When in Tokyo, Japan, Michael called Sheryl one night and asked
if she would come up to his suite to watch movies. She accepted,
and when she arrived, she was greeted by Michael and Bubbles, the chimpanzee.
She said that Michael was very polite that evening and complimentary of her work.
When they sat down to watch Amos and Andy's shows,
Jackson proceeded to throw popcorn, laugh and attempt to discipline an unruly
Bubbles, poking him with a pen to get him in line. Quote, this
poor little chimpanzee that could have picked
him up and thrown him out the window, Sheryl recalled.
Nonetheless, touring around the world with Michael Jackson wasn't just a magical
experience filled with adoring fans, funfairs and interactions with Bubbles
the monkey, but it was also a fast track course for the music industry
and world of celebrity.
As Sheryl Crow became more recognizable as Michael Jackson's sultry co-performer,
so too were photos of them used in the press.
With headlines suggesting they were an item
and having a passionate affair.
One exceptionally outrageous story persisted.
Quote, I got paid $2 million to have his baby, she joked.
With tabloids pushing rumors that Jackson had fallen for his sexy backing singer
and had offered her $2 million to have his child. The singer found herself sucked
into a press machine she wanted no part of.
In fact, it wasn't Michael who was
interested in her romantically while on tour.
But his manager, Frank DiLeo.
Only in recent years has Sheryl Crow opened
up about her experience of sexual harassment. That DiLeo made several
unwanted advances towards her throughout the extensive tour, repeatedly approaching
her with quid pro quo offers to make her a star.
When the backup singer refused, he then threatened to ruin her career if
she reported him or spoke out about his advances.
Quote, there's a whole backstory to that
with having his manager take that notoriety that I was accruing and
trying to architect some pop career around me and
I didn't want to be a pop star, she explained.
Quote, and then the sexual harassment was
involved in all of that and then the
threat of you're never going to work.
I was raised to believe that if you're a good person, if you work hard,
all good things happen and that wasn't the way it was.
Sheryl Crow would eventually reach out to a high-powered attorney in Los Angeles
with her concerns about DiLeo. Telling him that the big-time manager had
made advances and threatened her several times.
I'd been told I needed to watch my back, she said
she told the attorney.
Quote and at the end of our meeting, he said, look, you'll come out ahead
if you just stick it out.
There are people that would die to be in this situation.
Crowe says the dismissal sent her into a tailspin.
I just sunk into the darkest,
most depressed place, just disappointment at the way the real world worked.
As soon as the Bad World tour ended, Jackson fired Frank DiLeo as his manager
in February, 1989. Sheryl Crowe returned
to her Los Angeles apartment and a life she barely recognized anymore.
Once the tour money ran out,
Sheryl took up waitressing again and fell into a lengthy period of depression.
I mean, it's tough coming off the
road and just sinking back into your own life no matter what.
I think when your dream bubbles burst,
you either go, okay, well, I'm going to forget that dream,
or you do what I did, which was wallow in it for about a year
and then you pull your bootstraps up and you get back to work.
Sheryl Crow would start performing local
gigs and writing music again, which eventually resulted in the recording
of a 1993 debut album, 'Tuesday Night Music Club',
with the help of Michael Jackson's producer
for his 'Dangerous' album, Bill Bottrell.
The record was a breakout hit, gaining much
attention after the success of its third single, 'All I Want To Do'.
The track would eventually go on to win Record of the Year
and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 1995 Grammy Awards,
with Sheryl also winning Best New Artist at the same showbiz event.
Although Michael Jackson's former backup
singer was now in the same circles as the pop superstar, attending high profile
awards ceremonies and industry events, Sheryl stated that Michael never reached
out to her to reconnect, or at least congratulate her for her recent successes.
In fact, the guitar singer stated that when they bumped into each other
at the Grammys one year, she wasn't sure Jackson even knew exactly who she was.
While recording her breakout record,
Sheryl Crow was also inspired to write about her ordeal with Frank DiLeo.
As documented not so subtly, in her song 'What Can I Do For You'?
Quote, I have so much to offer, if you just
be nice, if you do what I say, and don't make
me say it twice.
Also featured on the album is 'The
Na-Na Song', a track that mentions the
music manager by name.
Quote, Frank DiLeo's dong, maybe if I'd
have let him I'd have had a hit song, Crow sang.
DiLeo would eventually file a lawsuit
against her for the references she made in the two songs,
but died before it could go any further.
Quote, at the time when I spoke
about it, yeah, I got myself into
some trouble and then, I wouldn't say luckily, certainly not for him,
but Frank passed away, so whatever legal ramifications died when he passed away.
By the time Michael Jackson passed away
in 2009, Sheryl Crow hadn't spoken to the global superstar in many years.
However, the former backup singer felt it necessary to speak publicly about
the enduring impact he had on her and the world at large.
Quote, The Jackson Five's ABC record was the first album I ever owned and
Michael ended up giving me my first
gig as a backup singer.
My strongest memories of Michael are his performances and getting to be a fly
on the wall every night.
I got to watch him in his divine brilliance, do what he did the best.
There will never be anyone like him again.
Although it was hard to accept that the King of Pop had indeed died,
Crow admitted that she didn't foresee Jackson growing old.
Quote, I'm sad to see that he's gone, but I could never figure out
how he was going to survive becoming old.
Is this person going to be able to stand this world for that long?
He was so fragile and really otherworldly.
As a tribute to Michael and the first record she ever bought,
the following year, Sheryl Crow released 100
Miles From Memphis, which featured a cover version of
the Jackson Five song, 'I Want You Back', as a sort of homage.
Quote, it was a bittersweet moment for me to sing that song with the
experience that I'd had with him.
I think his death really caused everybody
collectively to sort of reflect for a
moment about who we are because it's
really easy to invest in the tabloid fodder that goes along with someone who is really
ultimately, at the core, just a human being - a very fragile human being.
No one will ever really know the truth
about what went on in Michael's private life.
However, Sheryl Crow's sympathetic stance
on Michael Jackson's life in the spotlight soon flipped.
When she was confronted by the allegations
made in the 2019 documentary, 'Leaving Neverland'.
In an interview with the Telegraph, the singer said, quote, I haven't seen the
documentary and I don't want to see it.
I was around for some things that I
thought were really strange and I had a lot of questions about it.
The bombshell film led Crow
to particularly question the parents of James Safechuck, who was just nine when
he joined the Bad tour as a dancer with herself and Michael Jackson.
Safechuck was a great kid and the whole time he was with us, which
was the better half of an 18-month tour,
I always wondered, what in the world are his parents doing?
Honestly, I think there were a lot of exceptions made because of the damage
that Jackson, I mean, he didn't intentionally
project it, but it was part of
his aura, this almost being untouchable and almost alien-like figure.
And, yeah, I mean, I'm sad and
I'm mad at a lot of people.
I feel like there was just a huge network of people that allowed all
that to go on.
It's just tragic.
But what conclusions have you come to?
Leave your comments below.
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