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The Discussion of MJ's Unreleased Tracks

i just feel michael would have loved for his artistry to be experimented with tastefully, sort of products where its released twice - once in an edited form and another in its original form.

xscape is a great example of this, LNFSG and Chicago were hits 5 years after he died due to the reworking and justin timberlake, like that is amazing imo.
 
Beano Wild said:
i just feel michael would have loved for his artistry to be experimented with tastefully, sort of products where its released twice - once in an edited form and another in its original form.

xscape is a great example of this, LNFSG and Chicago were hits 5 years after he died due to the reworking and justin timberlake, like that is amazing imo.
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That’s the question the estate and all future executors will have to wrestle with: how do you do MJ right when it comes to releasing his unfinished music? There is no one objectively appropriate answer, no matter what any of us think. There are philosophical dilemmas to every approach.
 
AlwaysThere said:
That’s the question the estate and all future executors will have to wrestle with: how do you do MJ right when it comes to releasing his unfinished music? There is no one objectively appropriate answer, no matter what any of us think. There are philosophical dilemmas to every approach.
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Like always, I think the best of both worlds is just fine.

They've mostly been emphasizing Tohme Tohme's ideas for some reason. A Cirque De Soleil show, a musical, and a Biopic. Anyway, they're almost done with all that so then they may finally, dwell on the music.
 
I feel like the song Craze should get more clarification, we know that the song is probably just an instrumental but how does it sound like? Who's the producer? And from what era is it from? If Michael Prince has it then it was either made for Invincible, TUC or the late 2000's. Someone should ask these questions to Damien.
 
ChanceToDance said:
I feel like the song Craze should get more clarification, we know that the song is probably just an instrumental but how does it sound like? Who's the producer? And from what era is it from? If Michael Prince has it then it was either made for Invincible, TUC or the late 2000's. Someone should ask these questions to Damien.
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Wasn't it made with Drake Bell? /s
 
On a different note, the estate would never release an instrumental album only, they are focused on money and nobody’s gonna buy an instrumental album.

A duet‘s album sounds plausible, but unlikely for the foreseeable future. Crack Kills is def a top candidate for that, great message that honestly should’ve been released when it was made, crack was really getting big in the 80s and considering Michael was one of if not the most influential figure in the world at that time, it would've said a lot

Honestly, when the biopic comes out (if it even does Lmao), I don’t see new songs to companion it, I just see a soundtrack companion album that’ll just have songs in the movie, I do see a new album coming out before 2027, but we’ll see. Hopefully it’ll have songs us fans want and songs we don’t even know that exist like Loving You and Abortion Papers
 
threepea11 said:
On a different note, the estate would never release an instrumental album only, they are focused on money and nobody’s gonna buy an instrumental album.
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People don't buy music, they stream it. They can put out anything they want when it's right there for you to listen.

You know what no one's actually gonna wanna buy? The Cirque De Soleil soundtrack. Yet, here we are.

Actually, that reminds me, will they ever put out the "One" soundtrack? Some of those song mixes are killer.
 
Dorian said:
My only wish for OTW 30th and Thriller 25th was for Michael to re-record the songs and use a more modern arrangement for the instrumentals (like he did with the band show). But we got remixes.
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That would have been cool. Not to make the existing albums better that is not the point but just to freshen things up
 
filmandmusic said:
That would have been cool. Not to make the existing albums better that is not the point but just to freshen things up
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michael prob would have reacted to that idea the same way he reacted to branca saying he should do a cover album, although i would have loved that considering he sorta did that for the 2001 30th anniversary jackson 5 songs
 
Dorian said:
My only wish for OTW 30th and Thriller 25th was for Michael to re-record the songs and use a more modern arrangement for the instrumentals (like he did with the band show). But we got remixes.
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Yeah, MJ would never do that. That's what bands in their final days before retirement do. It's something cool they could do now, except for the fact it's like buying, the same record again.
 
Mister_Jay_Tee said:
Yeah, MJ would never do that. That's what bands in their final days before retirement do. It's something cool they could do now, except for the fact it's like buying, the same record again.
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and think of the tabloid headlines, they were bad enough for thriller 25 like, imagine what they could have been.
 
Beano Wild said:
and think of the tabloid headlines, they were bad enough for thriller 25 like, imagine what they could have been.
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Ehh, headlines live and die. I rarely think of em. From a certain point of view, the remixes are those re-recorded versions lol. They share the same space in my mind.
 
SmoothGangsta said:
People should be expecting tracks to be instrumental at this point, MJ didn't record proper vocals for most of his stuff unless he planned on putting it out.
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Very true, but it’s still a punch in the gut to cross tracks off the “maybe this one has enough to be released” list. It’s one of those moments where I know the reality, but facing it still sucks.
 
I want to remain optimistic and say that it probably isn't all that bad, for over 40 years Who Do You Know was just a title with no info on it and now we see that it's a song with full vocals. Maybe the countless of titles that we know of have some form of vocals on them.

As for Post-Invincible songs though yeah forget it lol. Vast majority of it are just instrumentals.
 
MJ has been one of the artists who didn't get another album out or have it ready. We've just been hoping against the case. The fact they even tried with Michael in and of itself is pretty interesting.
 
To recap everything Damien has shared so far (updated from October):

GENERAL NOTES:
  • At least three songs written/produced with Neff-U are sonically reminiscent of "The Watcher" by Dr. Dre, though they likely don't feature vocals.
SPECIFIC NOTES:
  • "11PM." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "ADORE YOU." No lead vocal. Features "some background vocals" and a full choir.
  • "BOTTOM OF MY HEART." Instrumental only/no vocals. Completely separate song from "I Have This Dream."
  • "BOY NO." Scratch vocals. Completion unclear, but at least one verse and one chorus exist. One of the instruments ("maybe a classical guitar") is reminiscent of "Days in Gloucestershire." Verses describe "seeing the city lights, being alone, and having nowhere to go," while the overall lyrical theme concerns "a vagabond who isn't welcome anywhere." Chorus lyrics variate between "Boy no, we ain't got a place for you to stay" and "Boy no, they ain't got a place for me to stay."
  • "BROKEN CHAIR" (working title). Instrumental only/no vocals. Features "booming digital drums and rock/electric guitar."
  • "BUTTER FUNK." Co-written by Michael Prince. Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "CHANGES." Scratch vocals throughout. Features a full choir and two "epic vocal solos... from members of the choir." Gospel influence. Only intelligible lyrics: "Can't cope with changes/What are you trying to do to me?"
  • "CHILDREN'S HOUR." Described as "a children's song."
  • "CRAZE." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "D.I.E." Instrumental only/no vocals. Described as “epic. Hard hitting drums and bass with really strong strings. It also has these moments where the music stops and a haunting choir type thing comes in creating an ominous build, then the beat drops again.”
  • "DARK LADY/H2O." Recorded in 2008. Scratch vocals throughout: the lead vocal was recorded in a single continuous take, with assorted background vocals added later. Verses are mostly "nonsensical gibberish." Bass line reminiscent of Queen's "Under Pressure." Verse lyrics include: "Dark lady will get what she wants every time/Dark lady don't know what she is [mumbling]." Pre-chorus lyrics include: "She get the right one/She get the right one." Chorus lyrics (sung in falsetto) include: "And you should save me from heaven/Save me from [mumbling]."
  • "DEEP IN THE NIGHT." Appears on a handwritten "to-do" list from 2009.
  • "DON'T BE MESSIN'." Appears on a handwritten "to-do" list from 2009.
  • "DON'T MAKE ME STAY." Very incomplete scratch vocals consisting of "random words and ad-libs... It seems like MJ is just feeling out the vocal melody." Complete instrumental production. Parts of the chorus are reminiscent of "Runaway" by Janet. No coherent lyrics other than the title. Recorded a significant distance from the microphone.
  • "GET YOUR WEIGHT OFF OF ME." Vocally and musically complete. Features aggressive verse vocals and ad-libs, but "lighter" chorus vocals (similar to "Unbreakable"). Sounds like a hybrid of "Invincible" and "Privacy."
  • "GREEN HORNET GROOVE." Instrumental only/no vocals. Co-written by Brad Buxer in the mid-2000s as an incidental piece for the Seth Rogen film, The Green Hornet.
  • "HE WHO MAKES THE SKY GRAY." Vocals exist, but their completion is unknown.
  • "HOT FUN IN THE SUMMERTIME." Recorded at Marvin's Room in Hollywood between 1998-2003.
  • "I HAVE THIS DREAM." All-star version vocally and musically complete. Appearances by Ciara, Snoop Dogg, James Ingram, Jermaine Jackson, Shirley Caesar, the O'Jays, and R. Kelly (who MJ sought to have removed). Leaked demo on YouTube is authentic. MJ demo vocals exist, but were intended to be re-recorded.
  • "I LOVE YOU." Written by Taryll Jackson and originally recorded for an unfinished 3T album in the late 1990s/early 2000s. MJ, who helped produced the album, wanted to use it for his own solo project.
  • "I LOVE YOU MORE." Written by MJ, Michael Prince, and Eric Kirkland. Two recordings exist: one by Kirkland, one by an unknown female vocalist. The existence of MJ vocals is uncertain.
  • "INNOCENT MAN." Chorus vocals only. Vocal delivery is "super soft."
  • "IS SHE COMING BACK." Written by Dr. Freeze. Seems to be among the several demos Freeze submitted for MJ's consideration in 2008. Appears on several handwritten "to-do" lists from 2009.
  • "JUNGLE." Dr. Freeze demo from the Invincible sessions. MJ likely didn't record vocals, though this could not be definitively confirmed.
  • "KING TUTANKHAMEN." Recorded in 2008. Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "LADY OF SUMMER." Classical piece. One of two songs discussed with composer David Michael Frank in spring 2009.
  • "LIGHT THE WAY." Full choir singing the choruses, but no lead vocal. Ballad with a brass section intro. Lyrics include: "Light the way, let's pray for peace."
  • "MICHAEL MCKELLAR." Circa 2009, "there was a CD with what appeared to be 'McKellar' written on it in MJ's handwriting."
  • "MICHAEL'S AFFIRMATION." Spoken word piece. "Photographs" is used as incidental background music. Dedicated to Roy Horn (of Siegfried & Roy), who was healing from an onstage tiger attack in 2003.
  • "MONSTER." Recorded in 1998. Multi-layered production with "dark undertones." Michael Prince arranged the string section, which MJ originally sang to him in a voicemail. The only existing vocals are the chorus: "You created a monster."
  • "NEVERLAND LANDING." Described as "a children's song."
  • "PAJAMAS." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "PHOTOGRAPHS." Instrumental only/no vocals. Used as incidental background music in "Michael's Affirmation."
  • "RED EYE." Instrumental only/no vocals. Described as a "guitar track [with] Chinese influence."
  • "REMEMBER WHAT I TOLD YOU." Alternatively titled "Just Remember." Recorded in 2008 at MJ's Vegas home. Scratch vocals throughout. Sonically "comparable" to "Speechless," in that "it starts acapella, but MJ asks for playback" and eventually "builds into an epic finale." Features a piano, layered harmonies, and finger snaps. Around 90 seconds in length. Lyrics include, "Remember what I told you, and remember for all time."
  • "ROCK TONIGHT." Instrumental only/no vocals. No relation to "Rocker."
  • "ROCKER" (working title). Recorded "sometime before the end of 2004" in a bathroom at Neverland Ranch. Scratch verse vocals consist of random phrases and sounds, while the "anthemic" chorus is "close to complete." Vocal melody and “aggressive ‘spitting’” delivery is reminiscent of Queen’s “We Will Rock You.” Chorus lyrics include, "The world is one big melting pot of life."
  • "SATURDAY WOMAN." Appears on a handwritten "to-do" list from 2009.
  • "SHE DON'T LOVE ME." Recorded in 2008. Chorus vocals only. Sonically reminiscent of the Timbaland remix of "Do You Know Where Your Children Are," in that "both sound like computer-generated video game music." Chorus lyrics include: "She don't love me/She don't want me/She don't need me/She doesn't care/She doesn't care."
  • "SHUT UP AND DANCE." Written by MJ, Michael Prince, and Eric Kirkland. Kirkland features on the demo; MJ never recorded vocals.
  • "SILENT SPRING." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "STAND TALL." Sung by an unknown male vocalist. Contains only a chorus and bridge, in addition to "what sounded like a choir."
  • "THANK HEAVEN." Sung by a session singer and full choir, though MJ appears in a spoken-word intro dedicating the song to "[his] son, Michael Jackson, Jr." Musically reminiscent of a "lullaby/nursery rhyme."
  • "THAT" (working title)." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "THINK TWICE." Instrumental only/no vocals. Features "synthesized electric guitars."
  • "THROWING YOUR LIFE AWAY" (2010 Remix). Produced by Neff-U for MICHAEL. Neff-U didn't have access to the multitrack, so strings and guitar were overdubbed on the original recording.
  • "TOMBOY." Instrumental only/no vocals. Sonically reminiscent of Captain EO, with a musical element similar to the "I bet you remember" melody from "Remember the Time."
  • "WALK AWAY." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "WATER." Recorded between 2006-2009. Features sound effects of splashing water. Chorus lyrics include: "Inches of water, water, trying to take a piece of my mind/Inches of water, water, trying to take a piece of my time."
  • "WHAT MORE CAN I GIVE." The leaked demo was recorded in 1998.
  • "WHAT YOU DO TO ME" (1985). Vocal completion is uncertain, but at least one verse, a chorus, and bridge exist. Mid-tempo, tonally reminiscent of "I'm So Blue" and "Free." Chorus lyrics include: "You just don't know, you just don't know what you do to me, do to me, do do do do to me."
  • "WHAT YOU DO TO ME" (1998). Early demo of "The Way You Love Me," with rough production and a scratch chorus vocal. "MJ is scatting/yodeling at the end."
  • "WORLD OF CANDY." Described as "a children's song."
 
Last edited:
AlwaysThere said:
To recap everything Damien has shared so far (updated from October):

GENERAL NOTES:
  • At least three songs written/produced with Neff-U are sonically reminiscent of "The Watcher" by Dr. Dre, though they likely don't feature vocals.
SPECIFIC NOTES:
  • "11PM." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "ADORE YOU." No lead vocal. Features "some background vocals" and a full choir.
  • "BOTTOM OF MY HEART." Instrumental only/no vocals. Completely separate song from "I Have This Dream."
  • "BOY NO." Scratch vocals. Completion unclear, but at least one verse and one chorus exist. One of the instruments ("maybe a classical guitar") is reminiscent of "Days in Gloucestershire." Verses describe "seeing the city lights, being alone, and having nowhere to go," while the overall lyrical theme concerns "a vagabond who isn't welcome anywhere." Chorus lyrics variate between "Boy no, we ain't got a place for you to stay" and "Boy no, they ain't got a place for me to stay."
  • "BROKEN CHAIR" (working title). Instrumental only/no vocals. Features "booming digital drums and rock/electric guitar."
  • "BUTTER FUNK." Co-written by Michael Prince. Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "CHANGES." Scratch vocals throughout. Features a full choir and two "epic vocal solos... from members of the choir." Gospel influence. Only intelligible lyrics: "Can't cope with changes/What are you trying to do to me?"
  • "CHILDREN'S HOUR." Described as "a children's song."
  • "CRAZE." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "D.I.E." Instrumental only/no vocals. Described as “epic. Hard hitting drums and bass with really strong strings. It also has these moments where the music stops and a haunting choir type thing comes in creating an ominous build, then the beat drops again.”
  • "DARK LADY/H2O." Recorded in 2008. Scratch vocals throughout: the lead vocal was recorded in a single continuous take, with assorted background vocals added later. Verses are mostly "nonsensical gibberish." Bass line reminiscent of Queen's "Under Pressure." Verse lyrics include: "Dark lady will get what she wants every time/Dark lady don't know what she is [mumbling]." Pre-chorus lyrics include: "She get the right one/She get the right one." Chorus lyrics (sung in falsetto) include: "And you should save me from heaven/Save me from [mumbling]."
  • "DEEP IN THE NIGHT." Appears on a handwritten "to-do" list from 2009.
  • "DON'T BE MESSIN'." Appears on a handwritten "to-do" list from 2009.
  • "DON'T MAKE ME STAY." Very incomplete scratch vocals consisting of "random words and ad-libs... It seems like MJ is just feeling out the vocal melody." Complete instrumental production. Parts of the chorus are reminiscent of "Runaway" by Janet. No coherent lyrics other than the title. Recorded a significant distance from the microphone.
  • "GET YOUR WEIGHT OFF OF ME." Vocally and musically complete. Features aggressive verse vocals and ad-libs, but "lighter" chorus vocals (similar to "Unbreakable"). Sounds like a hybrid of "Invincible" and "Privacy."
  • "GREEN HORNET GROOVE." Instrumental only/no vocals. Co-written by Brad Buxer in the mid-2000s as an incidental piece for the Seth Rogen film, The Green Hornet.
  • "HE WHO MAKES THE SKY GRAY." Vocals exist, but their completion is unknown.
  • "HOT FUN IN THE SUMMERTIME." Recorded at Marvin's Room in Hollywood between 1998-2003.
  • "I HAVE THIS DREAM." All-star version vocally and musically complete. Appearances by Ciara, Snoop Dogg, James Ingram, Jermaine Jackson, Shirley Caesar, the O'Jays, and R. Kelly (who MJ sought to have removed). Leaked demo on YouTube is authentic. MJ demo vocals exist, but were intended to be re-recorded.
  • "I LOVE YOU." Written by Taryll Jackson and originally recorded for an unfinished 3T album in the late 1990s/early 2000s. MJ, who helped produced the album, wanted to use it for his own solo project.
  • "I LOVE YOU MORE." Written by MJ, Michael Prince, and Eric Kirkland. Two recordings exist: one by Kirkland, one by an unknown female vocalist. The existence of MJ vocals is uncertain.
  • "INNOCENT MAN." Chorus vocals only. Vocal delivery is "super soft."
  • "IS SHE COMING BACK." Written by Dr. Freeze. Seems to be among the several demos Freeze submitted for MJ's consideration in 2008. Appears on several handwritten "to-do" lists from 2009.
  • "JUNGLE." Dr. Freeze demo from the Invincible sessions. MJ likely didn't record vocals, though this could not be definitively confirmed.
  • "KING TUTANKHAMEN." Recorded in 2008. Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "LADY OF SUMMER." Classical piece. One of two songs discussed with composer David Michael Frank in spring 2009.
  • "LIGHT THE WAY." Full choir singing the choruses, but no lead vocal. Ballad with a brass section intro. Lyrics include: "Light the way, let's pray for peace."
  • "MICHAEL MCKELLAR." Circa 2009, "there was a CD with what appeared to be 'McKellar' written on it in MJ's handwriting."
  • "MICHAEL'S AFFIRMATION." Spoken word piece. "Photographs" is used as incidental background music. Dedicated to Roy Horn (of Siegfried & Roy), who was healing from an onstage tiger attack in 2003.
  • "MONSTER." Recorded in 1998. Multi-layered production with "dark undertones." Michael Prince arranged the string section, which MJ originally sang to him in a voicemail. The only existing vocals are the chorus: "You created a monster."
  • "NEVERLAND LANDING." Described as "a children's song."
  • "PAJAMAS." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "PHOTOGRAPHS." Instrumental only/no vocals. Used as incidental background music in "Michael's Affirmation."
  • "RED EYE." Instrumental only/no vocals. Described as a "guitar track [with] Chinese influence."
  • "REMEMBER WHAT I TOLD YOU." Alternatively titled "Just Remember." Recorded in 2008 at MJ's Vegas home. Scratch vocals throughout. Sonically "comparable" to "Speechless," in that "it starts acapella, but MJ asks for playback" and eventually "builds into an epic finale." Features a piano, layered harmonies, and finger snaps. Around 90 seconds in length. Lyrics include, "Remember what I told you, and remember for all time."
  • "ROCK TONIGHT." Instrumental only/no vocals. No relation to "Rocker."
  • "ROCKER" (working title). Recorded "sometime before the end of 2004" in a bathroom at Neverland Ranch. Scratch verse vocals consist of random phrases and sounds, while the "anthemic" chorus is "close to complete." Chorus lyrics include, "The world is one big melting pot of life."
  • "SATURDAY WOMAN." Appears on a handwritten "to-do" list from 2009.
  • "SHE DON'T LOVE ME." Recorded in 2008. Chorus vocals only. Sonically reminiscent of the Timbaland remix of "Do You Know Where Your Children Are," in that "both sound like computer-generated video game music." Chorus lyrics include: "She don't love me/She don't want me/She don't need me/She doesn't care/She doesn't care."
  • "SHUT UP AND DANCE." Written by MJ, Michael Prince, and Eric Kirkland. Kirkland features on the demo; MJ never recorded vocals.
  • "SILENT SPRING." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "STAND TALL." Sung by an unknown male vocalist. Contains only a chorus and bridge, in addition to "what sounded like a choir."
  • "THANK HEAVEN." Sung by a session singer and full choir, though MJ appears in a spoken-word intro dedicating the song to "[his] son, Michael Jackson, Jr." Musically reminiscent of a "lullaby/nursery rhyme."
  • "THAT" (working title)." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "THINK TWICE." Instrumental only/no vocals. Features "synthesized electric guitars."
  • "THROWING YOUR LIFE AWAY" (2010 Remix). Produced by Neff-U for MICHAEL. Neff-U didn't have access to the multitrack, so strings and guitar were overdubbed on the original recording.
  • "TOMBOY." Instrumental only/no vocals. Sonically reminiscent of Captain EO, with a musical element similar to the "I bet you remember" melody from "Remember the Time."
  • "WALK AWAY." Instrumental only/no vocals.
  • "WATER." Recorded between 2006-2009. Features sound effects of splashing water. Chorus lyrics include: "Inches of water, water, trying to take a piece of my mind/Inches of water, water, trying to take a piece of my time."
  • "WHAT MORE CAN I GIVE." The leaked demo was recorded in 1998.
  • "WHAT YOU DO TO ME" (1985). Vocal completion is uncertain, but at least one verse, a chorus, and bridge exist. Mid-tempo, tonally reminiscent of "I'm So Blue" and "Free." Chorus lyrics include: "You just don't know, you just don't know what you do to me, do to me, do do do do to me."
  • "WHAT YOU DO TO ME" (1998). Early demo of "The Way You Love Me," with rough production and a scratch chorus vocal. "MJ is scatting/yodeling at the end."
  • "WORLD OF CANDY." Described as "a children's song."
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Can you add this all to Wikipedia?
 
This might have been discussed but I haven't seen anything on it so I'll just ask, did River Ripple ever make it past an instrumental? Like are there scratch vocals or is it just an instrumental?
 
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