5 Reasons It's The Right Time For A Michael Jackson Album

April 3, 2014 - 6:02 pm by Chris Yuscavage

It's been almost five years since Michael Jackson passed away at the age of 50. Despite the fact that he reportedly recorded tons of new music in the final years of his life, we haven't gotten the chance to hear much of it. Back in 2010, Jackson's estate gave us a taste of the music that MJ left behind when they released his posthumous album, Michael. But since then…nothing.

That's going to change in May, though. Epic Records just announced that they got their hands on eight previously unreleased MJ songs that they're going to put out in May in the form of a posthumous album called Xscape. It's going to feature unheard MJ songs "contemporized" by producers like Rodney Jerkins, Stargate and Jerome "J-Roc" Harmon. And according to Epic Records Chairman L.A. Reid, the label is "extremely proud and honored to present this music to the world." And you know what? Their timing couldn't be better. Here are the 5 reasons why now is the right time for Michael Jackson's posthumous album, Xscape.

first album michael jackson xscape posthumous album

Reason #1: We've all had enough time to forget how poorly Michael Jackson's first posthumous album, Michael, was received. Released a little more than a year after his death, Michael featured a hodgepodge of songs stuffed onto an album. Epic did call in a handful of credible producers, like Teddy Riley, "Tricky" Stewart, and Akon, to work on the project. But it was hard to imagine MJ actually cosigning the way the album came out. And while it was cool to hear a song like "Best of Joy," one of the last songs that MJ ever recorded, it was also pretty easy to hear that Michael did not feature MJ's best work. And don't even get us started on all of the conspiracy theories surrounding the album, including the rumors about how some of the vocals didn't actually belong to MJ. Ugh. Let's hope Xscape is nothing like that posthumous album was. Photo Credit: NewsOne

la reid michael jackson xscape posthumous album

Reason #2: L.A. Reid is in a position that allows him to be very hands-on with Xscape. While selecting songs for Xscape, the Epic Records Chairman was reportedly allowed to scan through more than four decades worth of MJ's music. That would be a very daunting task for anyone else. But we trust Reid's ear and his ability to pick songs that work well together. We're glad that he's working on Xscape now and that he'll play a key role in putting it all together. Photo Credit: Hollywood Reporter

producers michael jackson xscape posthumous album

Reason #3: There's a star-studded cast of producers (like Rodney Jerkins, pictured above) ready to make Xscape as good as it can possibly be. As we mentioned earlier, Michael featured a lot of big-name producers on it. But those producers didn't really work together on the album, which led to it sounding like what it was—an album that was slapped together without any direction. It sounds like L.A. Reid is trying to avoid that this time around by having a small, select group of producers working on Xscape. And that should result in a product that is ultimately much better than Michael was. Photo Credit: You Know I Got Soul

estate michael jackson xscape posthumous album

Reason #4: Michael Jackson's estate has undergone a lot of financial issues in recent months. We hate to even bring this up. But according to numerous reports, Jackson's estate currently owes more than $700 million to the IRS. Yes, 700 million dollars. And frankly, we're tired of hearing about how MJ's estate is in such bad shape. So if the estate needs to hunker down and put together projects like Xscape to help pay off old debts, we're fine with that, provided they do so while keeping MJ's legacy in mind. The last thing we want is for the IRS problems to still be around in 20 years and for MJ's name to continue getting dragged through the mud. Photo Credit: Elite Choice

anniversary michael jackson xscape posthumous album

Reason #5: The album will get to play a part in the fifth anniversary of MJ's death—without overshadowing it. We're really glad that MJ's estate isn't releasing a posthumous album right on the fifth anniversary of his death. Because if the album doesn't turn out to be good—and let's face it: There's, unfortunately, a high probability that you will be let down by it to some degree—it would run the risk of ruining the "celebration" that will surround the anniversary. By releasing it a few months ahead of the fifth anniversary, Epic is giving us all a chance to celebrate MJ's life now. And if the album is good enough, we'll continue playing it in July when the anniversary hits. If not? No problem, as the album will already be a distant memory. Now is it May yet? Photo Credit: Zimbio

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