Five years after the release of Michael Jackson's best-selling album, 'Thriller', along came 'Bad' in 1987. One of the hit tracks was 'Dirty Diana'. The lyrics are about a promiscuous woman and her attempts to seduce him. The press instantly assumed that the somewhat derogatory words referred to Jackson's mentor and good friend, Diana Ross.
To say the least, Michael Jackson was not happy to hear this. He became even unhappier when other tabloids suggested that the song actually referred to Diana, Princess of Wales, who was also his friend. This prompted Quincy Jones, Jackson's music producer, to make a public statement.
He stated that the song referred to the many female groupies who continually chased The Jackson Five when they hit stardom. The girls were quite willing to proffer sexual favors to the boys if they were allowed to stay close to them. Jones reminded the public that 'Dirty Diana' was not the only song that Jackson had written about groupies of ill repute. In his 1983 monster hit, 'Billy Jean', he sings about a female stalker.
Jackson formed platonic relationships with a number of divas who were older than him. He was always drawn to women who had made it in their own right. At many glittering ceremonies and awards evenings, he was often accompanied by someone like Elizabeth Taylor, Liza Minnelli, Jackie Kennedy or Jane Fonda. But, Diana Ross was his closest friend. Ever since he was a 10 year-old boy, she had an influence on his career.
Ross was the front line singer for the successful 1960s female group, The Supremes. When she first met Michael, she had just broken away from the group to start a solo career. The boys were performing at a charity function and the crowd was raving about the 10 year-old Michael, with an Afro hairstyle, as he sang and danced to standing ovations. He recalled looking into the audience and seeing Diana Ross.
After the show, she met the boys and said that she belonged to the same record label as them. Promising to help them on the road to fame, she showed them a copy of a cablegram that she had sent to everyone she knew in showbiz. She requested them to attend the next Jackson Five gig. The last portion read: 'starring the sensational Michael Jackson'.
The big boss of the Motown music label which had signed up the boys, Berry Gordy, asked Ross if she would let the young Michael live in her house to give him some stability. He and his brothers had just moved to Los Angeles and were being shifted from hotel to hotel. Jackson's mother, Katherine, who was thousands of miles away, was extremely grateful for this offer.
During his time with her, she taught him a lot and he regularly appeared in her own TV show. She may not have known just how important she was in his life. Perhaps this only hit home after he died. In his will, he named her as guardian to his children if his mother was ever incapacitated. One can therefore hardly imagine that the demeaning words of 'Dirty Diana' pertain to Diana Ross.
To say the least, Michael Jackson was not happy to hear this. He became even unhappier when other tabloids suggested that the song actually referred to Diana, Princess of Wales, who was also his friend. This prompted Quincy Jones, Jackson's music producer, to make a public statement.
He stated that the song referred to the many female groupies who continually chased The Jackson Five when they hit stardom. The girls were quite willing to proffer sexual favors to the boys if they were allowed to stay close to them. Jones reminded the public that 'Dirty Diana' was not the only song that Jackson had written about groupies of ill repute. In his 1983 monster hit, 'Billy Jean', he sings about a female stalker.
Jackson formed platonic relationships with a number of divas who were older than him. He was always drawn to women who had made it in their own right. At many glittering ceremonies and awards evenings, he was often accompanied by someone like Elizabeth Taylor, Liza Minnelli, Jackie Kennedy or Jane Fonda. But, Diana Ross was his closest friend. Ever since he was a 10 year-old boy, she had an influence on his career.
Ross was the front line singer for the successful 1960s female group, The Supremes. When she first met Michael, she had just broken away from the group to start a solo career. The boys were performing at a charity function and the crowd was raving about the 10 year-old Michael, with an Afro hairstyle, as he sang and danced to standing ovations. He recalled looking into the audience and seeing Diana Ross.
After the show, she met the boys and said that she belonged to the same record label as them. Promising to help them on the road to fame, she showed them a copy of a cablegram that she had sent to everyone she knew in showbiz. She requested them to attend the next Jackson Five gig. The last portion read: 'starring the sensational Michael Jackson'.
The big boss of the Motown music label which had signed up the boys, Berry Gordy, asked Ross if she would let the young Michael live in her house to give him some stability. He and his brothers had just moved to Los Angeles and were being shifted from hotel to hotel. Jackson's mother, Katherine, who was thousands of miles away, was extremely grateful for this offer.
During his time with her, she taught him a lot and he regularly appeared in her own TV show. She may not have known just how important she was in his life. Perhaps this only hit home after he died. In his will, he named her as guardian to his children if his mother was ever incapacitated. One can therefore hardly imagine that the demeaning words of 'Dirty Diana' pertain to Diana Ross.
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