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"Breaking News" is a song credited to American recording artist
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the " King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over ...
. The song is said to have been written by Jackson, Eddie Cascio and James Porte, produced by
Teddy Riley Edward Theodore Riley (born October 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer credited with the creation of the New Jack Swing genre. Riley credits Barry Michael Cooper with giving the genre its name.Hogan, Paul. " Ted ...
, Cascio and Jackson, and was included on his posthumous album, ''
Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian and ...
''. Along with "
Monster A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...
" and "Keep Your Head Up", the song was allegedly recorded in the Porte/Cascios' basement in 2007. These tracks have been controversial since their release, with Jackson's fans and family members doubting their authenticity since release. As of August 2018, there is a pending court case as to whether a Michael Jackson impersonator named Jason Malachi was used for the lead vocal of the song. The R&B song talks about the media wanting a piece of the pop star, which drew comparisons to
Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...
' "
Piece of Me "Piece of Me" is a song by American singer Britney Spears from her fifth studio album, '' Blackout'' (2007). It was released on November 27, 2007, by Jive Records as the second single from the album, but was actually the last song recorded. It ...
" (2007). An instrumental snippet "Breaking News" was unveiled in a promotional video which features a montage of various TV journalists reporting breaking news about Jackson, and refers to the tabloid stories and legal troubles that plagued Jackson in the years leading up to his death. "Breaking News" achieved minor success, peaking at number one on the ''Billboard'' Bubbling Under Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.


Background

"Breaking News" is said to have been written by Jackson, Eddie Cascio and James Porte, and produced by Teddy Riley, Cascio and Jackson. The song was released by
Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...
to precede the announcement of ''Michael''. On November 5, 2010, a video "teaser" for "Breaking News" was made available on Jackson's official website. The video opens with a montage of various TV journalists reporting
breaking news Breaking news, interchangeably termed late-breaking news and also known as a special report or special coverage or news flash, is a current issue that broadcasters feel warrants the interruption of scheduled programming or current news in orde ...
about Jackson. The musical introduction follows, ending before the vocals start. The video refers to the tabloid stories and legal troubles that plagued Jackson in the years leading up to his death. Three days later the full length version of the song appeared on Jackson's website and was subsequently played on some radio stations.


Critical reception

"Breaking News" received mainly negative reviews from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
. Terri Thomas, program director of radio station
KJLH KJLH (102.3  FM) is an urban adult contemporary radio station serving the Los Angeles area. It plays R&B and classic soul music under the format, and occasionally plays some hip-hop, gospel and smooth jazz tracks. Licensed to the Los Angeles ...
said, although "people miss Jackson," the song is "hard to compete with his classics and legacy". Skip Dillard of
WBLS WBLS (107.5 MHz) is an urban adult contemporary formatted FM radio station, licensed to New York City. It is currently owned by Mediaco Holding and operated by Emmis Communications under a shared services agreement, along with sister stations ...
mentioned, "listeners overall seemed to think that "Breaking News" sounds 'unfinished' and is not a representation of the level of perfection that Michael sought in his music." Ashante Infantry of ''
Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and pa ...
'' said "Breaking News" "threatens to diminish the posthumous goodwill afforded the pop star," and "is a self-referential rehash that spotlights all that was wrong with Mike. If ''Michael'' is similarly disappointing, Jackson’s label and executors will find a limit to these "Breaking News" lyrics – “No matter what, you just want to read it again/No matter what, you just want to feed it again.”" Darryl Sterdan from ''
QMI Agency The QMI Agency, a division of Quebecor Media, is an integrated news agency. Founded in 2008, it offers services to media customers in Quebec. Journalism QMI Agency engages in real-time news coverage for its subsidiaries and business partners. Th ...
'' said, "the vocals on the verses of the self-referential "Breaking News" seem artificial, as if they were recorded for a different song and heavily manipulated to readjust their pitch and tempo, then buried under layers of overdubs." A review by ''
The Christian Science Monitor ''The Christian Science Monitor'' (''CSM''), commonly known as ''The Monitor'', is a nonprofit news organization that publishes daily articles in electronic format as well as a weekly print edition. It was founded in 1908 as a daily newspaper ...
'' said, " henew Michael Jackson song prompts more controversy, fans were divided, with many loving the new single and others expressing scepticism." Cameron Adams of ''
Herald Sun The ''Herald Sun'' is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia, published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Corp Australia, itself a subsidiary of the Murdoch owned News Corp. The ''Herald Su ...
'' said the song "would have no doubt stayed unreleased", if Jackson had not died. Joe Vogel, author of the book ''Man in the Music: The Creative Life and Work of Michael Jackson'', gave the song a positive review, saying, "in spite of the backlash, the content of the song is classic Michael Jackson."


Controversy over authenticity

The authenticity of "Breaking News", as with other songs allegedly written with Cascio and Porte (like "All I Need", "All Right", "Black Widow", "Burn Tonight", "Let Me Fall in Love", "Ready 2 Win", "Soldier Boy", "Stay" and "Water"), all leaked online, was questioned by Jackson's mother
Katherine Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and other variations are feminine names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria. In the early Chri ...
as well as his sister La Toya, and his nephews T.J., Taj, and Taryll, in addition to many of his fans, who will pass on the album and future projects until this is rectified. AFP reported that it was immediately clouded by questions over whether it was really the singer's voice.
Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was establ ...
reported that the song was "sparking a new round of controversy over whether the voice is really that of the dead 'Thriller' singer". In a statement, Sony Music Group countered that it had "complete confidence in the results of our extensive research, as well as the accounts of those who were in the studio with Michael, that the vocals on the new album are his own." On November 11, 2010, Michael Jackson Estate issued a report, stating: "six of Michael’s former producers and engineers who had worked with Michael over the past 30 years —
Bruce Swedien Bruce Swedien (; April 19, 1934 – November 16, 2020) was an American recording engineer, mixing engineer and record producer. He was widely known for his work with Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Paul McCartney and Barbra Streisand. Swedien fir ...
, Matt Forger, Stewart Brawley, Michael Prince, Dr. Freeze and
Teddy Riley Edward Theodore Riley (born October 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer credited with the creation of the New Jack Swing genre. Riley credits Barry Michael Cooper with giving the genre its name.Hogan, Paul. " Ted ...
all confirmed that the vocal was definitely Michael." Sony claim two
forensic Forensic science, also known as criminalistics, is the application of science to Criminal law, criminal and Civil law (legal system), civil laws, mainly—on the criminal side—during criminal investigation, as governed by the legal standard ...
musicologists were hired by Jackson Estate and Epic to perform a waveform analysis, suggesting the vocals were indeed Jackson. Teddy Riley apologized later on Twitter to a fan, saying it was a mistake to be part of this project and that he had been "set up". Jason Malachi, who has been noted as the possible vocalist of this song, said he was not involved in the recording. On January 16, 2011, a statement appeared on Jason's
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to confess that he had sung songs on the album. He later claimed that his website, Myspace and Facebook had been hacked. After two hours, his manager Thad Nauden claimed to TMZ that "someone created a phony Facebook page in Jason's name" and "Jason wants everyone to know beyond a shadow of a doubt ... he did not sing a single note on the album." On August 23, 2018, it was reported that Sony had admitted in court that the vocals on the three Cascio songs were not performed by Jackson and were instead recorded after his death by Malachi, apparently missing the first part of Sony's counsel sentence " r purposes of the argument" which is used in court not to be an admission, but rather a statement of "even if the alleged action happened." However, the next day, Zia Modabber of Sony Music's law firm, Katten Muchin Rosenman, recanted these reports, stating that "no one has conceded that Michael Jackson did not sing on the songs". On July 6, 2022, Jackson's estate and Sony Music removed the song, along with "
Monster A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...
" and "Keep Your Head Up", from streaming services
Spotify Spotify (; ) is a proprietary software, proprietary Swedish Streaming media, audio streaming and media services provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. It is one of the largest music streaming service providers, with ...
and
Apple Music Apple Music is a music, audio and video streaming service developed by Apple Inc. Users select music to stream to their device on-demand, or they can listen to existing playlists. The service also includes the Internet radio stations Apple Mu ...
amid the allegations that the vocals are not Jackson's.


Personnel

*Written: Michael Jackson, Eddie Cascio and James Porte *Produced: Teddy Riley, Angelikson and Michael Jackson *Background vocals: Jason Malachi, Michael Jackson and James Porte *Mixed: Jean-Marie Horvat and Teddy Riley *Violin: Mark Cargill, Kathleen Robertson, Susan Chatman, Pamela Gates, Lesa Terry, Marisa McCleod, Richard Adkins, Yvette Devereaux, Jennifer Choi and Nicole Garcia *Viola: Karen Elaine, James “Jimbo” Ross, Cameron Patrick, Darrin McCann and Kaila Potts *Cello: Miguel Martinez, Peggy Baldwin, Nancy Stein-Ross, Ernest Ehrhardt, Giovanna Moraga Clayton and Stepanie Fife *Guitars: Joe Corcoran *"Breaking News" reporter voice: Stuart Brawley *String session: The Benjamin Wright Orchestra *Drum programming: James Porte *Voice talents: Stuart Brawley, Sandy Orkin, Stacey Michaels, Michael Lefevre and Lisa Orkin *Keyboards: James Porte, Eddie Cascio and Stuart Brawley *Programming and finisher: Teddy Riley *Arranger and conductor: Benjamin Wright *Bass: Kevin Brandon and Francis Lui Wu *Bass: Stuart Brawley and James Porte


Other versions

*"Breaking News" (original demo) – 4:07 *"Breaking News" (instrumental) – 4:25 *"Breaking News" (a cappella) – 3:28


Chart performance

The song received instant airplay on numerous radio stations on the debut day, as 151 US stations sampled "Breaking News" that day on several formats, from
pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' ( ...
and R&B to
adult An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a " minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of major ...
and
oldies Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music (broadly characterized as classic rock and pop rock) from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as wel ...
. A total of 246 plays were recorded on that day, reaching an estimated 2.2 million listeners. Additionally it logged 1.1 million impressions on 52 R&B/Hip-Hop stations after two days of airplay, according to
Nielsen BDS Broadcast Data Systems (also known as BDS or Luminate BDS), is a service that tracks radio, television and internet airplay of songs. The service, which is a unit of MRC Data, is a contributing factor to North American charts published by co-owned ...
. Among all stations monitored by BDS, the song registered 302 plays on 177 stations, amounting to an audience of 2.6 million, since its arrival on November 8, 2010. Drawing a mixed reaction from radio programmers, "Breaking News" bubbled under the
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...
chart at number one after two days of radio airplay. The song remained on the chart for only one week.


See also

* List of unreleased Michael Jackson material *
Death of Michael Jackson On June 25, 2009, American singer Michael Jackson died of acute propofol and benzodiazepine intoxication at his home on North Carolwood Drive in the Holmby Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. His physician, Conrad Murray, said that ...
* List of works published posthumously


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Breaking News (Song) 2010 songs Michael Jackson songs Songs written by Michael Jackson Song recordings produced by Michael Jackson Song recordings produced by Teddy Riley Songs released posthumously Songs about the media