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Michael Joseph Jackson (born August 29, 1958), commonly known as MJ as well as The King of Pop, is an American musician, entertainer, and pop icon whose career and personal life have been a part of pop culture for almost 40 years. Widely regarded as one of the greatest entertainers and most popular recording artists in history, Jackson displays complicated physical techniques, such as the robot and the moonwalk, that have redefined mainstream dance and entertainment. His achievements in the music industry have included a revolutionary transformation of music videos, establishing high-profile album releases and sales as a new trend for record companies to generate profits, dominating pop music during the 1980s, and becoming the first black entertainer to amass a strong following on MTV while leading the relatively young channel out of obscurity. His distinctive style, moves, and vocals have inspired, influenced, and spawned a whole generation of hip hop, pop, and R&B artists. He has been named the "Most Successful Entertainer of All Time" by Guinness World Records. Jackson began his musical career at the age of five with the Jackson Family vocal group. He released his first solo recording, Got to Be There , in 1971, while remaining a member of the group. In his solo career, Jackson recorded and co-produced the best-selling album of all time, Thriller , which has worldwide sales exceeding 104 million. After Thriller, Jackson continued to release internationally chart-topping albums like Bad (1987), Dangerous (1991), HIStory (1995), and Invincible (2001), his latest album of fully original material. Michael Jackson has received thirteen Grammy Awards and charted thirteen #1 singles in the United States, more than any other male artist in the Hot 100 era. In November 2006, the World Music Awards announced that Michael Jackson had sold over 750 million units worldwide and given $300 million to charity, making Jackson one of the best-selling music artists and one of the most charitable humanitarians of all time, whose efforts on the latter front have been acknowledged with a Nobel Peace Prize nomination. However Jacksons controversial appearance and actions has damaged his reputation in the eyes of some of the public and album sales has been in decline since the mid 1990`s. From 1988 to 2005, Jackson lived on his Neverland Ranch property, where he built an amusement park and private zoo that was frequently attended by disadvantaged and terminally ill children. Rumors of sleepover parties received both negative media coverage and public attention after it was revealed that children frequently slept in his bed or bedroom. This first came to light when he was accused of child sexual abuse in 1993. Michael Jackson's relationship with children was brought into the spotlight again in 2003 when the TV documentary Living with Michael Jackson was broadcast. This resulted in Jackson being tried, and later acquitted, of more child molestation allegations and several other charges in 2005. After this, Jackson went on hiatus, travelling to countries such as Bahrain, before starting work on new material in Ireland. He will be releasing a new album on February 11, 2008 called Thriller 25 which will include new material.
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