Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 June 25, 2009) was an American recording artist, entertainer, and

d philanthropist. Referred to as the King of Pop, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records. The eighth child of the Jackson family, Jackson debuted on the professional music scene along with his brothers as a member of The Jackson 5 in the mid-1960s, and began his solo career in 1971. In the early 1980s, Jackson became a dominant figure in popular music. The music videos for his songs including "Beat It", "Billie Jean" and "Thriller", were credited with transforming the medium into an art form and a promotional tool, and the popularity of these videos helped to bring the relatively new television channel MTV to fame. Videos such as "Black or White" and "Scream" made him a staple on MTV in the 1990s. Through stage performances and music videos, Jackson popularized a number of dance techniques, such as the robot and the moon walk. His distinctive musical sound and vocal style have influenced numerous hip hop, pop, contemporary R&B and rock artists. Jackson's 1982 album Thriller is the best-selling album of all time. His other records, including Off the Wall (1979), Bad (1987), Dangerous (1991) and History (1995), also rank among the world's best-selling. Some of his other achievements include multiple Guinness World Records are 13 Grammy Awards, 26 American Music Awards, 13 number-one singles in the United States in his solo career and the estimated sale of over 800 million records worldwide. Jackson won hundreds of awards, which have made him the most-awarded recording artist in the history of music. He was also a notable humanitarian and philanthropist, donating and raising hundreds of millions of dollars for beneficial causes and supporting more than 39 charities.

While preparing for his concert series This Is It, Jackson died on June 25, 2009, after suffering from cardiac arrest. Before his death, Jackson had reportedly been administered drugs such as propofol and lorazepam. The Los Angeles County Coroner declared his death a homicide, and his personal physician pleaded not guilty to charges of involuntary manslaughter. In March 2010,Sony Music Entertainment signed a US$250 million deal with Jackson's estate to retain distribution rights to his recordings until 2017, and to release seven posthumous albums over the decade following his death.

Michael Joseph Jackson (lahir di Gary, Indiana, Amerika Serikat, 29 Agustus 1958 meninggal di Los Angeles, California, Amerika Serikat, 25 Juni 2009 pada umur 50 tahun) adalah penyanyi dan penulis lagu dari Amerika Serikat. Ia terkenal sebagai "King Of Pop" dan mempopulerkan gerakan dansa "Moonwalk" yang telah menjadi ciri khasnya. Albumnya yang dirilis pada tahun 1982, Thriller, adalah album terlaris di dunia, dengan penjualan melebihi 104 juta kopi di seluruh dunia. Ia mulai karier bernyanyi pada usia lima tahun sebagai anggota kelompok vokal keluarga Jackson (kelak menjadi The Jackson 5) sebelum meluncurkan album solo pertamanya Got to Be There pada tahun 1971. Sebagai anak ketujuh dari keluarga Jackson, dia membuat debut di musik profesional pada umur 11 tahun sebagai anggota dari Jackson 5. Pada awal tahun 1980-an, dia menjadi figur yang sangat dominan dalam musik pop and musisi Afrika-Amerika pertama yang mempunyai crossover kuat di MTV. Popularitas dalam musiknya menanjak saat ditayangkan di MTV, antara lain "Beat It", "Billie Jean" dan Thriller dianggap telah mengubah video klip menjadi sebuah bentuk karya seni dan sebagai alat promosi untuk mempopulerkan sebuah channel tv. Video-video seperti "Black or White" dan "Scream" membuat Jackson menjadi andalan utama MTV pada tahun 1990-an. Lewat penampilan panggung dan videovideo klipnya, Jackson mempopulerkan sejumlah teknik menari seperti robot dan moonwalk. Suara dan gaya vocal Jackson mempengaruhi dan diikuti oleh banyak penyanyi hip hop, pop dan R&B. Penghargaan - penghargaan yang telah dia raih termasuk beberapa kali Guinness World Recordstermasuk thriller sebagai album terlaris di dunia 13 Grammy Awards, 13 buah single nomor 1 dalam solo kariernya dari musisi pria lainnya dalam Hot 100 eradan penjualan 750 juta unit di seluruh dunia. Hidup Jackson sangat terkenal di seluruh dunia, didampingi dengan kariernya yang sangat sukses, membuatnya menjadi bagian dari kebudayaan pop selama 4 dekade. dalam beberapa tahun dia sering disebut-sebut sebagai salah satu pria paling terkenal di dunia.