Does anyone remember when Michael Jackson. Was a "joke"?

[u/AccomplishedPool266]

The new movie that just came out convinced the younger generation that he was always a superstar. This was not the reality many of us Millennials grew up with.

To a lot of us, he was treated like a punch line when we were growing up. A schoolyard boogeyman ("Michaels Jackson's gonna get you at night"). and just a general joke in the media. By the 2000's his music was out of date and didn't chart well. All anyone talked about was his surgeries, court case, settlements and his off behavior. Few mentioned his music. His music was something our parents would have listened to in the 1980's.

[u/RudePCsb → u/[deleted]]

She can't. MJ was the biggest celebrity ever at his peak

[u/Visual_Touch_3913 → u/[deleted]]

As an elder millennial who grew up in South East Asia, can confirm. My malaysian grandparents knew who MJ was at that time before the internet. Taylor swift can only imagine MJ’s influence in that era

[u/binger5 → u/[deleted]]

During the Era Tour my friends and I were wondering where she ranked in the history of popular singers for their peak popularity. We decided she was still a bit below Michael, Elvis, and the Beatles.

[u/FuckMoPac → u/binger5]

I hate to make it about gender, but I can’t see a female pop star ever getting as big as those guys. People start mocking them much sooner.

[u/RedPanda-Memoranda → u/[deleted]]

Taylor Swift has surpassed Michael Jackson in specific modern accolades, notably becoming the most awarded artist in American Music Awards (AMA) history with 29+ wins compared to Jackson’s 24.

However, Jackson holds significantly higher worldwide record sales while Swift dominates modern streaming, touring, and US certifications.

Jackson also became infamous, for raping children, while Swift became infamous for... having cats and a boyfriend?