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NEW YORK, March 31, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 13, Epic Records, in conjunction with the Estate of Michael Jackson, will release XSCAPE, an album of new music by the internationally beloved music icon and King of Pop, Michael Jackson. The project features eight new tracks, which the world will be hearing for the very first time on the new album. For the ultimate fan experience, XSCAPE will also be available in a Deluxe Edition, which includes all of the sourced Michael Jackson recordings in their original form. The XSCAPE standard and Deluxe Edition's are available for pre-order beginning April 1 on iTunes.com/MichaelJackson and elsewhere, and available at all retailers worldwide on May 13.

XSCAPE is executive produced by Epic Records Chairman and CEO L.A. Reid, who, after an initial mining of Jackson's archives by the Estate, was granted unlimited access to the treasures representing four decades of material on which Jackson had completed his vocals.

Reid curated the final list of recordings to deliver to the producers, who retooled the production to add a fresh, contemporary sound that retains Jackson's essence and integrity. It's a process Reid calls "contemporizing. " The album's lead producer, Timbaland was one of a handful of producers Reid believed had the gravitas, depth and range to creatively engage with Jackson's work. Additional producers include global hitmakers Rodney Jerkins, Stargate, Jerome "Jroc" Harmon and John McClain.

"Modern music and artistry would look and sound completely different if not for the groundbreaking contributions Michael Jackson gifted to the world," remarked L.A. Reid. "Michael left behind some musical performances that we take great pride in presenting through the vision of music producers that he either worked directly with or expressed strong desire to work with. We are extremely proud and honored to present this music to the world."

The title of this album honors Michael's album naming process. He always chose a song from the album to name his projects and, beginning with THRILLER, used only one word titles, each with an edgy quality to them. This is true of the new project. Written by Michael Jackson and Jerkins, and produced by Jackson and Jerkins, "Xscape" has further significance in that it is the one track on the album that was 'contemporized' by the producer who recorded it originally in the studio with Michael.

John Branca and John McClain, co-executors of the Estate of Michael Jackson said,

"Michael was always on the cutting edge and was constantly reaching out to new producers, looking for new sounds. He was always relevant and current. These tracks, in many ways, capture that spirit. We thank L.A. Reid for his vision."

XSCAPE is a long awaited collection of exciting new music that will thrill the legions of fans of one of the world's most revered and best-selling artists, as well as attract a whole new generation discovering his artistry for the first time. In conjunction with the release of XSCAPE, Epic / Sony Music will launch an unprecedented global campaign with the One Sony sister companies, Sony Corporation, Sony Mobile Communications, and Sony Network Entertainment International drawing from all of Sony's strengths and consumer reach.
"Michael has long been a treasured member of the larger Sony family," said Kazuo Hirai, President and CEO, Sony Corporation. "Starting with the release of 'Off The Wall' in 1979, Sony Music Entertainment has since released all of Michael's recordings. We are thrilled and privileged to be collaborating as One Sony to celebrate Michael's latest legacy, and bringing his fans an exclusive experience through our upcoming initiatives with our products and services."
More news about Michael Jackson's upcoming album will be revealed in the coming weeks. Keep visiting http://www.michaeljackson.com for new details.

ABOUT MICHAEL JACKSON:
Michael Jackson is one of the most beloved entertainers and profoundly influential artists of all-time. He was also a dedicated philanthropist and an astute business professional. To date Jackson has sold 1 billion records worldwide, released 13 No.1 singles and became one of a handful of artists to be inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The Guinness Book of World Records recognized Jackson as the Most Successful Entertainer of All Time and "Thriller" as the Biggest Selling Album of All Time. Jackson won 17 Grammy Awards including 8 in one year, a record in itself, and received 26 American Music Awards, including the Artist of the Century Award. Jackson defined the art form of music video with such ground-breaking short films as "Billie Jean," "Beat It" and the classic "Thriller," which in 2009 became the first and only music video inducted into the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress. In his short films "Black or White", "They Don't Care About Us", "Bad and "Smooth Criminal" and others, Jackson set an aesthetic standard for video production that remains unsurpassed even today. The Estate of Michael Jackson and Cirque du Soleil have produced two top shows: Michael Jackson THE IMMORTAL World Tour is the #9 top grossing tour of all time; and MICHAEL JACKSON ONE, a new permanent show at Mandalay Bay Las Vegas, which is breaking box office records and receiving critical raves. Jackson's sound, style and dance moves continue to inspire today's performers and new generations of fans worldwide continue to discover his artistry.

March 31, 2014
It was announced today that on May 13th Epic Records, in conjunction with the Estate of Michael Jackson, will release XSCAPE, an album of new music by the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. XSCAPE is executive produced by Epic Records Chairman and CEO L.A. Reid. After mining by the Estate of Jackson’s archives, Reid was granted unlimited access to the treasures spanning four decades of material on which Jackson had completed his vocals. Reid then teamed up top producers to “contemporize” the songs while retaining Jackson’s essence and integrity, creating the best music you’ve never heard.

The list of producers include global hitmakers Timbaland, Rodney Jerkins, Stargate and John McClain.

The new album will feature eight brand new recordings. A Deluxe Edition of XSCAPE will include a selection of the recordings in their original form. Both the standard and Deluxe Editions are available April 1st for pre-order on iTunes (Smarturl.it/xscape) and elsewhere.

The title of this album honors Michael’s album naming process. He always chose a song from the album to name his projects and, beginning with THRILLER, used only one word titles, each with an edgy quality to them. This is true of the new project.

John Branca and John McClain, co-executors of the Estate of Michael Jackson said, “Michael was always on the cutting edge and was constantly reaching out to new producers, looking for new sounds. He was always relevant and current. These tracks, in many ways, capture that spirit. We thank L.A. Reid for his vision.”

Very cool. I knew one was coming out soon.

You know fans are already talking about boycotting the album?! WTF! The word fan is throwing around too much. I wonder if they really are fans!

well I wont be buying the new album, just like I haven't bought any posthumous album or listened to any of the leaks since 2009. Some call me a boycotter but I am most defiantly not. I think the SONY boycotters are deluded and delusional and twist things to suit their own agenda. My reasons for not buying posthumous releases are very different and are a personal choice due to grief.

I understand and respect what you are saying moonstreet. I was torn about buying his posthumus albums at first. I BUY them for personal reasons...grief being one of them. Whether you buy them or not, the reasons are all personal and there is no right or wrong. With this album, there will be the original version recorded by Michael before his passing and the "updated" version which I don't really care about. Also I think two of the songs were out before he died, just not formerly released. Michael wanted his music to be his legacy, to live on long after his death for future generations. It was one way (he stated) that it made him immortal.

Ditto, I will buy it too. They have a deluxe edition that is rumored to include the raw demos. Here's hoping.

While I wont be buying this, I am by no means a boycotter. My hope for this album is that it will be something the fans can enjoy just for the music without having a huge controversy surrounding it like the MICHAEL album did. I know many of my friends will be buying it and I hope that those fans who enjoy the music are not disappointed by the way the songs are presented and that the demos on the deluxe version are the raw untouched demos like on UC.

Of course. Thanks for listing. I do have this. It is one of my favorites collections. Thanks for reminding me of this abbreviation.

I agree. The songs Don't Be Messin Around, All I Need and I'm So Blue are all untouched originals and I love them. Have you heard the first Lady in My Life or Gone Too Soon? Both are all Micheal's work, but there are longer versions of both songs. He just released the shorter versions. These are not remixes either.

Hello MJ Community:

As the release of Xscape draws closer all sorts of news will be released in rapid succession. Because of the rate of these releases and some of the surprise element, we will not always be able to give you the advance notice we are accustomed to sending out.

As many of you have inquired, I can confirm (and you may have already seen on the official sources) that "Love Never Felt So Good" will be available for purchase this evening on iTunes after the iHeartRadio Music Awards premiere of the song.

So, as we head into this exciting pre-release "crunch" time, keep watching Michael's official channels for news of activities and events related to the album release.

We also love hearing about all the events that you have planned, so keep the news coming. Here is the link with the hi-res graphic assets that were provided to other promotional partners which you may use for your own events.
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/bhktcn2jk3b63g7/i3dNoodfWW

Best,

MJOnline
The Official Online Team of The Michael Jackson Estate™

Premier from the Iheart radio tribute.

Sound Cloud Link

Well,I had hear the song and I like it. I am going to buy regardless on how many other fans complain about it. I find it funny how fans complain about the estate not releasing any music and when they do,they want to complain that too. It seems like the estate can't win. Some fans always have to complain about everything.

Very true. I love the song. Love, love, love it. I really like the duet version too. Justin Timberlake killed it.

Very true. I love the song. Love, love, love it. I really like the duet version too. Justin Timberlake held his own.

My daughter loves JT as much as we love MJ. She grew up listening to MJ. So she is so excited about this song. She sent me this message this morning, "MOM!!! JUSTIN AND MJ HAVE A DUET!!!! She is and more.

I like Michael's original version the best, but surprisingly I like the duet, too. I did not like iheart's premiere performance at all. I think the dancers and . The song playing with the video of MJ would have been a better way to go. Usher...NO!

I enjoy the performance. I was just happy that it wasn't Chris Brown. I love JT. He's on point.

I didn't hear the duet yet.

Very cool, thanks for the deluxe list. I am so excited!