Billie Jean
This song of legendary singer and da- ncer Michael Jackson was written and composed by Jackson and it was produced with Quincy Jones. The track was released by Epic Records on January 18, 1983, in the album Thriller.
It became a trademark of Michael Music, the lyrics of this songs describes a woman, Billie Jean, who claims that the narrative is given by the father of her newborn son, which he denies. The song was alos nominated for the Grammy Award for song of the year.
Lyrics
She was more like a beauty queen from a movie scene
I said don't mind, but what do you mean, I am the one
Who will dance on the floor in the round
She said I am the one, who will dance on the floor in the round
She told me her name was Billie Jean, as she caused a scene
Then every head turned with eyes that dreamed of being the one
Who will dance on the floor in the round
People always told me be careful of what you do
And don't go around breaking young girls' hearts
And mother always told me be careful of who you love
And be careful of what you do 'cause the lie becomes the truth
Billie Jean is not my lover
She's just a girl who claims that I am the one
But the kid is not my son
She says I am the one, but the kid is not my son
For forty days and forty nights
The law was on her side
But who can stand when she's in demand
Her schemes and plans
'Cause we danced on the floor in the round
So take my strong advice, just remember to always think twice
(Don't think twice, don't think twice)
She told my baby we'd danced till three, then she looked at me
Then showed a photo my baby cried his eyes were like mine (oh, no!)
'Cause we danced on the floor in the round, baby
People always told me be careful of what you do
And don't go around breaking young girls' hearts
She came and stood right by me
Just the smell of sweet perfume
This happened much too soon
She called me to her room
Billie Jean is not my lover
She's just a girl who claims that I am the one
But the kid is not my son
Billie Jean is not my lover
She's just a girl who claims that I am the one
But the kid is not my son
She says I am the one, but the kid is not my son
She says I am the one, but the kid is not my son
Billie Jean is not my lover
She's just a girl who claims that I am the one
But the kid is not my son
She says I am the one, but the kid is not my son
She says I am the one,
(You know what you did, (she says he is my son)breaking my heart babe)
She says I am the one
Billie Jean is not my lover
Billie Jean is not my lover
Billie Jean is not my lover
Billie Jean is not my lover (don't Billie Jean)
Billie Jean is not my lover
Billie Jean is not my love
Girl Behind the Song Billie Jean
A girl who claimed Jackson was the father of her child is the subject of this song. Jackson drew inspiration from a woman who used to stalk him and send him letters describing a son she believed to be his. Jackson hardly ever mentioned this woman, but he found it difficult to handle the unwelcome attention and grew more reclusive as a result. He used the song as a means to convey his emotions without confronting her directly.
Jackson didn't provide many specifics about the real Billie Jean, but according to his producer Quincy Jones, Jackson once discovered the woman relaxing by his pool wearing only a bathing suit and sunglasses. She allegedly claimed that Jackson was the father of one of her twins, which Jones found to be quite amusing.
A musician recognises hit material, as Michael Jackson remarked about this song in Moonwalk. It must feel natural. Everything must feel comfortable. You feel satisfied and content when you do it. When you hear it, you can tell. I felt that way about "Billie Jean." While I started writing it, I already knew how popular it would be. That song really captured my attention. Nelson Hayes, who was working with me at the time, and I were travelling down the Ventura Freeway one day during a break in a recording session. I couldn't stop thinking about "Billie Jean," it was all I could think about.
When we were about to exit the freeway, a young boy on a motorcycle approached us and exclaimed, "Your car's on fire." When we stopped after noticing the smoke, we discovered that the entire bottom of the Rolls-Royce was on fire. Our lives were possibly spared by that boy. We might have perished if the car had detonated. However, I was so preoccupied with the song playing in my thoughts that I didn't even think about the terrible possibilities until much later.
The first black face to emerge on the network was Prince, and additional black faces quickly followed, including Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" video. During this time, MTV came under fire for being racist, most notably from Rick James, whose "Super Freak" clip the network turned down. MTV was created by radio industry veterans who attempted to format it similarly to a rock radio station, however this was impossible due to a lack of rock music videos. What they did have were numerous, largely white, European bands with a long history of making music videos, such as Musical Youth.
The network might claim that there were no good black musicians videos that were deserving since record companies refused to budget for videos by their black artists because they believed MTV wouldn't show them. When Jackson created the shockingly avant-garde "Billie Jean" video, a forerunner to the video game Dance Dance Revolution, and certain parts showed Jackson performing his dance movements by walking on squares as they lit up, that argument was rendered moot.
MTV didn't air the video until the song had already reached the top of the charts, despite its high production value and Jackson's star power. Les Garland, the network's then-president, asserts that they showed the video as quickly as they could because they loved it, but discussions with officials at Jackson's record label and others with knowledge of the situation suggest otherwise. The network intended to run the "Beat It" video first since Eddie Van Halen played on it and the song fit their format, according to numerous persons who worked at MTV who were quoted in the book I Want My MTV. When Jackson's was signed to its subsidiary, Epic, Walter Yetnikoff, head of CBS Records, recalled threatening to remove all CBS videos off MTV if they didn't play "Billie Jean." He claims that after threatening to involve Jackson's producer Quincy Jones as well, the network agreed. The tape was first placed in medium rotation when it began airing on MTV, then when viewers began to enjoy it, it was moved up to heavy rotation. When "Beat Itvideo "'s was delivered, it too quickly gained popularity. Both films received consistent exposure for a two-month period in the summer of 1983, making Jackson a household name in the video industry. His subsequent video project, "Thriller," completely changed the format.
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