For many, the late Michael Jackson is still the ‘King of Pop’ and can never be replaced. One of Jackson’s most well-known songs is ‘Thriller’. However, the icon himself worked alongside Queens rapper 50 Cent on a song he felt was the next ‘Thriller.’ The ‘In Da Club’ emcee worked happily alongside the late legend. Still, following Jackson’s death, 50 controversially claimed that the ‘Billy Jean’ singer was inferior to one particular artist.
Although Michael Jackson was a revered singer and songwriter who worked best alongside the renowned producer of ‘Thriller’ Quincy Jones, the icon still enjoyed incorporating rap into his music and worked with MCs such as The Notorious B.I.G. and Will.i.am. In the late vocalist’s biography, Michael Jackson, Inc.: The Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of a Billion-Dollar Empire, there is a chapter that recalls how he had an affinity for 50 Cent’s 2003 hit ‘In Da Club.’ The 2014 biography even claims that he loved the track so much he would listen to it every morning.
In a 2010 interview with MTV News, 50 Cent spoke about how their collaboration came about and recalled how he had had a telephone conversation with Michael Jackson earlier that year. Reflecting on the call, he stated, “I didn’t have the opportunity to physically be in Michael Jackson’s presence, But my DJ, Whoo Kid, he had the opportunity to actually meet Mike because he was interested in working with me, and he said that he had something he wanted me to actually hear, a song he created. He thought it would be perfect for us to collaborate on and then he put me on the telephone.”
The track was entitled ‘Monster’ and featured on Michael Jackson’s 2010 posthumous release, Michael. However, almost a decade after Jackson’s death, 50 Cent covertly dissed him on Instagram. Taking to social media, the Queens act shared a video of Chris Brown dancing on his Indigoat Tour.
The post’s caption read, “I would hate to be an R’n’B n*gga right now. This fool better than MJ, no cap!” This was not the first time the rapper (real name Curtis Jackson) insisted that Chris Brown was better than Michael Jackson. In early 2019, the ‘Many Men’ rapper posted, “CB better than MJ to me now, I can’t believe mike wanted to touch the little boys booty. What the f*ck man.” He also posted,
A week later, he shared another similar post, reading, “All I’m saying is I never seen MJ come out like this!” Michael Jackson’s daughter Paris Jackson responded to the rapper’s various posts but did it respectfully as to show respect to both her father and Chris Brown. You can listen to 50 Cent and Michael Jackson’s collaboration in the video below.
