This article is about the album. You may have been looking for the song.
Xscape (stylized in all caps) is the second and final posthumous album credited to American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson. It was released through Epic Records on May 9, 2014. American producer Timbaland and now ex-CEO of the label, L.A. Reid executively produced modernized versions of the songs, with additional production from Rodney Jerkins, StarGate and John McClain. The deluxe edition features original versions of the 8 songs.
On the day of the record's release, a track-by-track commentary from Timbaland and Reid was also released on streaming services.[1]
Background[]
Following the death of Michael Jackson in 2009, Sony Music and the Michael Jackson Estate began planning out new releases soon enough with 2010's controversial posthumous record Michael and 2012's Bad 25 anniversary reissue. L.A. Reid and Timbaland first began discussing the second album in 2013. in which the works began, and ended in 2014. The title Xscape was chosen as to continue the trend of naming the artist's LPs with "one word titles, each with an edgy quality to them".[2]
| “ | Michael was always on the cutting edge and was constantly reaching out to new producers, looking for new sounds. He was always relevant and current. These tracks, in many ways, capture that spirit. We thank L.A. Reid for his vision. | ” |
–John Branca & John McClain, "XSCAPE-Long Awaited New Music From Michael Jackson"[2] | ||
The record was first announced on March 31, 2014. and the first teaser was released on April 21, 2014.[3] It consists of songs Jackson worked at multiple points of his career, most notably Invincible sessions, including "Chicago" (originally titled "She Was Lovin' Me"), "A Place with No Name", "Blue Gangsta" and "Xscape".
To promote the album's release, "Love Never Felt So Good" was performed live with Jackson inspired choreography by American R&B singer Usher and multiple other dancers at iHeartRadio Music Awards on May 1, 2014.[4] Although not even released as a single, on May 18, 2014 the song "Slave to the Rhythm" was performed live by a Pepper's ghost of the King of Pop at the Billboard Music Awards, works on which began in late 2013.[5] The record also saw promotion through posters and graffiti around multiple places in the United States.
Artwork[]
The album cover was designed by Matt Maitland. It features Jackson in a space like imagery. This picture of Michael was previously unseen, having been taken in 1997 during the photoshoot for "Blood on the Dance Floor".
The album went on to have multiple cover arts scrapped as well. One of them, also done by Maitland, depicted younger Michael surrounded by many obscure objects, notably Jackson's pet chimpanzee, Bubbles. Another scrapped artwork was later featured as a poster included in the physical copies of the album. Once again, the image of the King of Pop was borrowed from the "Blood on the Dance Floor" shoot. The third scrapped cover is nearly 1:1 as the final one, with the exception of Michael's longer, curly hair. This cover would sometimes get featured in the record's promo at the official michaeljackson.com site.
During Xscape's promotion, a bunch of songs received promotional art as well, including "Chicago", "Loving You", "Slave to the Rhythm" and "Do You Know Where Your Children Are". These would feature the album cover with an altered background, and the song title on the top.
Track list[]
| Standard edition | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 1. | "Love Never Felt So Good" | 3:55 |
| 2. | "Chicago" | 4:05 |
| 3. | "Loving You" | 3:15 |
| 4. | "A Place with No Name" | 5:35 |
| 5. | "Slave to the Rhythm" | 4:15 |
| 6. | "Do You Know Where Your Children Are" | 4:36 |
| 7. | "Blue Gangsta" | 4:14 |
| 8. | "Xscape" | 4:05 |
| Total length: | 34:25 | |
| Deluxe edition | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 9. | "Love Never Felt So Good (original version)" | 3:55 |
| 10. | "Chicago (original version)" | 4:05 |
| 11. | "Loving You (original version)" | 3:15 |
| 12. | "A Place with No Name (original version)" | 5:35 |
| 13. | "Slave to the Rhythm (original version)" | 4:15 |
| 14. | "Do You Know Where Your Children Are (original version)" | 4:36 |
| 15. | "Blue Gangsta (original version)" | 4:14 |
| 16. | "Xscape (original version)" | 4:05 |
| 17. | "Love Never Felt So Good" (featuring Justin Timberlake) | 4:06 |
| Total length: | 1:13:43 | |
| LP | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 9. | "Love Never Felt So Good" (featuring Justin Timberlake) | 4:06 |
| Total length: | 38:30 | |
| Sony Xperia Lounge edition | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 9. | "Chicago (Papercha$er Remix)" | 4:19 |
| Total length: | 38:44 | |
Singles[]
May 2, 2014
August 12, 2014
Cut songs[]
- "Chicago 1945"
- "Dream Away"
- "Hot Fun in the Summertime"
- "If You Don't Love Me"
- "The Loser"
- "Throwin' Your Life Away"
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- As it's currently known, Sony Music's chief executive Rob Stringer stated few years ago there are no plans for any more full-fledged posthumous albums like Michael or Xscape. This makes Xscape the final studio album released under Michael Jackson's name, excluding the anniversary rereleases and the "Scream" compilation.[6]
- Some speculate, that a third posthumous album could see its release following the expected success of 2025's Michael biopic starring Jaafar Jackson, although it is currently only a rumor.
- Jesse Johnson (former guitarist of the band, The Time) mentioned he worked on a song for the album that would feature May J. Blige, Questlove and D'Angelo,[7] but the track wasn't included. It's now known to be "Hot Fun in the Summertime" as confirmed in a post by Damien Shields.[8]
- Steve Porcaro was approached about including "Chicago 1945" or even "Dream Away" on the album, however he disagreed, stating he doesn't approve the estate's "straight to remix" approach.[9]
- Prior to the album's release, nearly all of the songs featured on it except for "Loving You" were leaked online throughout the years.
- In 2006, a remix of "Blue Gangsta" done by DJ Temperamental featuring Pras was uploaded on his MySpace profile, although he wasn't given permission from Michael. The original post with the song has been lost since, as in 2015 the site's music archive got lost.
- The "Slave to the Rhythm" performance at Billboard Music Awards received mixed reviews as fans said the dance moves weren't as smooth or that the illusion didn't even look like Michael.[5]
- The Pepper's ghost is also often incorrectly referred to as a hologram.
References[]
- ↑ https://open.spotify.com/album/54WFfZzds26NrwcmStfamd?si=pAafagxLRHKGKdEbTQIaSQ
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/xscape-long-awaited-new-music-from-michael-jackson-253182181.html
- ↑ https://youtu.be/xMtouY6nOB4
- ↑ https://youtu.be/qQGfZzo4hl8
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 https://youtu.be/jDRTghGZ7XU
- ↑ https://www.mjvibe.com/no-new-albums-planned-as-label-embraces-one-off-singles-model/
- ↑ https://www.idolator.com/7512603/michael-jackson-xscape-lp-child-abuse-high-profile-collabs?chrome=1
- ↑ https://x.com/DamienShields/status/1673155050359894016?s=20
- ↑ https://michaeljackson.ru/steve-porcaro-chicago-1945/