Diann Collins interviewed MJ

[Gfresh]

Where did you find this stuff .. thnx

 

[mjsgirl4eva]

thanks for posting

 

[benscarr]

Don´t you guys think that she might add "black" as a positive? Following the 'black is baeutyful' politics from the 70s and the civil rights movement, seeing MJ as coming from the black owned label Motown. And the differences that comes from having a history in black working class respective to white working class, the different ways society treats you that is (of course) and the etnecities that grow out of that? Maybe she was at the time acting pc, feeling NOT giving creds to his identity as black might have been ignorant?

I disgree, and she wasn't acting PC she was just plain ignorant. It's obvious she's wasn't using Michael's black (African American) ethnicity as something positive, and it's very nieve to think so. Saying "I strictly see you as a black genius" and asking what she sees when he looks in the mirror etc is objectifying Michael specifically by his race. It's can be seen as racist or to lesser extent no so much racist but ignorant for an interviewer to bring up a persons race in an interview when their is no need to. Diane Collins didn't come across as an interviewer who actually had much knowledge of black people.

A question about Michael being black, would have been more respectful if it was about his views on how black people have advanced in music business etc, and barriers that have been broken by him and other artists and stars. She didn't ask those questions, and saying "I see you as strictly a black genius" is patronising and very ingnorant. Yes Michael Jackson is black man who is also a genius, but the fact is in mainstream society being labeled as a black genius only means genius in a limited sense, were full credit isn't or ignored, and I'm sure Diane Collins used the them black genius strictly to not give Michael the full respect he deserved. Michael broke down barries that one both even white artists and stars will never archive, and the media don't like this.

 

[Michael Skywalker]

It's not that I'm saying that I'm right here, I'm just seeing it as possible. When hearing it the first time, when I was like 13, I think someone told me that it was from the middle-late 80s and since he seems to be talking about Moonwalker, I haven't thought about it more after that. With that as a context for my interpretation, I of course pictured myself Michael Jackson the way he looked around Bad with a lighter skin tone. Her identifying him exlpicitly as black with that way of thinking was not weirder to me than him identifying himself as black and proud of it in the OW interview from -93. (Even if it seemed a bit blunt.) So, this is the first time I'm listening to her as ignorant when calling him black. And that might absolutely be the case.

But that is also why I'm open to hear her as being for the african american movement. I agree Ben, that it would have been tactful asking about MJs views on "black people have advanced in music business" for instance. But I'm thinking that it could have been a context that we're missing, where that understanding of her asking him about his 'black' background, calling him a 'black' genius, wouldn't need that sort of tactfulness to be pc, to be respecting. Yes, music was very much segregated before MJ in the 80s, I think everyone here agrees on that. But the 70s had a strong black pride movement as well, as a strategy for reaching the same conditions as "whites", on all areas - including music.

 

[benscarr]

It's not that I'm saying that I'm right here, I'm just seeing it as possible. When hearing it the first time, when I was like 13, I think someone told me that it was from the middle-late 80s and since he seems to be talking about Moonwalker, I haven't thought about it more after that. With that as a context for my interpretation, I of course pictured myself Michael Jackson the way he looked around Bad with a lighter skin tone. Her identifying him exlpicitly as black with that way of thinking was not weirder to me than him identifying himself as black and proud of it in the OW interview from -93. (Even if it seemed a bit blunt.) So, this is the first time I'm listening to her as ignorant when calling him black. And that might absolutely be the case.

But that is also why I'm open to hear her as being for the african american movement. I agree Ben, that it would have been tactful asking about MJs views on "black people have advanced in music business" for instance. But I'm thinking that it could have been a context that we're missing, where that understanding of her asking him about his 'black' background, calling him a 'black' genius, wouldn't need that sort of tactfulness to be pc, to be respecting. Yes, music was very much segregated before MJ in the 80s, I think everyone here agrees on that. But the 70s had a strong black pride movement as well, as a strategy for reaching the same conditions as "whites", on all areas - including music.

I get what your saying, but I still don't think she was asking Michael questions about his race for postive pc reasons. I do have a problem with with the "I see you strictly as a black genius", and it was the 1980's when black pride their wasn't such a huge emphises on it as their was in the 1970's specifically the early 1970's. I think her emphise's on Michael's race, well the tactless questions and her pigeon holeing of him for being a black man who is also a genius was dated even in the early 1980's. I don't know how old Diane Collins was back then, she sounds in her late 40's but could have been younger or older. But if she is still around I wonder what she would make of her questions about Michael's idendtity and pride of being black.