To say that Michael Jackson broke down human, social, artistic, and racial barriers has become something of a truism—a familiar claim repeated time and again without necessarily examining how he actually managed to do so. But how, precisely, did he achieve it?
What processes enabled him to bring together such a vast and diverse audience? How—and at what cost—did a poor Black child from Gary rise to the very top of pop music, a field historically perceived as white? What choices, strategies, affinities, but also what historical circumstances, shaped and sustained this extraordinary dynamic of crossover?
And why did Michael Jackson unsettle so many? Perhaps because he continually pushed beyond social, artistic, and racial boundaries that were thought to be firmly established; because he blurred the lines and refused, consciously or otherwise, to remain in the place assigned to him; because, even through his physical appearance, he embodied the attempt to bring one’s outward self into alignment with one’s inner identity, ideals, and personal choices.
Drawing on historical, social, cultural, and musical perspectives, the author explores the forces behind this singular trajectory. For the path to such heights is made up of countless ascents, falls, and uncertain steps. Nothing is simple, binary, or unambiguous in the artistic and personal journey of an artist as singular as Michael Jackson.
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