A new web site devoted to late singer Michael Jackson, www.MJPhotosCollectors.com has launched to coincide with the one year anniversary of the star's passing. Co-founded by long time Jackson chronicler and archivist Ron Sweet, the site opened May, 2010 and has quickly grown to what Sweet now calls "the largest online gallery of high res Michael Jackson photos on the internet." Already boasting nearly 20,000 photos of the pop icon, Sweet hopes to capitalize on the upcoming one-year anniversary of Jackson's passing this Friday, June 25th.
Jackson will again be in the public forefront this week, as various print and broadcast media plan special tributes to the late singer, including music industry publication Billboard's "Rediscovering Michael Jackson", currently on newsstands. Networks such as BET are planning extensive tribute programming to commemorate the anniversary, including BET's airing of a special episode of "106th & Park," and an extensive tribute planned for their 2010 BET Awards airing June 27th at 8 p.m.
The site's extensive gallery features thousands of rare live and candid photos spanning Jackson's entire life and career. "These photos are 'little pieces of his life', and each one tells part of his story", Sweet says. According to Sweet, the gallery includes photos beginning when Jackson was an infant in the late 1950's, all the way up through June 23rd, 2009 while he continued rehearsals for his planned "This Is It" concerts. Sweet hopes that Jackson fans and the general public use the site's gallery to "celebrate the highs and lows of an amazing artist's rise to superstardom." Nearly 1000 members have already registered on the site, now about one month old.
Jackson passed away unexpectedly June 25th, 2009 at age 50. Fans around the world plan vigils, parties, and numerous events celebrating the life and career of the pop star. Jackson's mother, Katherine Jackson, who is self-publishing a book this week of family photographs, recently told Britain's Mail she wants her son to "be remembered as the loving person he was." In the interview, she says "I love looking at photos of my children singing and dancing together, when they looked happy. I hope people continue to remember Michael and keep celebrating his legacy."
New Jackson Releases & Planned Promotions
Waves of licensed Jackson merchandise and releases are slated for 2010 and beyond. In March, Jackson's estate, led by co-executors John Branca and John McClain, signed a 10-album deal with Sony Music worth a reported $250 million. Planned for this November is an as yet untitled collection of previously unreleased tracks, as well as repackages of Jackson's first solo effort "Off the Wall," (1979) and 1987's "Bad." According to Nielsen SoundScan, Jackson's CD catalog has sold 9 million copies in the year since his passing. Currently in pre-production is a Cirque du Soleil show based on Jackson's music, along the lines of their highly acclaimed "Love" production featuring music from The Beatles.
Music magazine Billboard estimated Jackson's estate has generated at least $1 billion in revenues in the past year, mostly through record sales, the "This Is It" concert movie, and licensing rights. The Wall Street Journal said Monday that executors of Jackson's estate have paid off nearly $200 million of the $500 million debt the singer left behind in the last year.
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