Michael Jackson Tracks Removed From Streaming Amid Claims He Didn't Sing Them

Jackson's estate and Sony Music released a statement about the tracks and insist they were created by the King of Pop.

BYErika Marie
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It was just about one year after the tragic death of Michael Jackson that the world received a posthumous album from the King of Pop. The 2010 eponymous album was a hit among his fans, aside from one person named Vera Serova. In 2014, Serova sued Sony Music, alleging that several of the vocals on Michael weren't Jackson at all, and accused producers Edward Cascio and James Porte of knowingly lying.

This has been a legal dispute that continues to be discussed a decade later, and although a 2018 ruling sided in favor of the estate, a handful of tracks from Michael mysteriously disappeared from Apple Music and Spotify.

Phil Walter / Staff / Getty Images

According to USA Today, "Jackson's estate and Sony Music withdrew the tracks 'Breaking News,' 'Monster' and 'Keep Your Head Up' — which fans insist use singer Jason Malachi's vocals and not Jackson's — from the album 'as the simplest and best way to move beyond the conversation associated with these tracks once and for all.'

"The album's remaining tracks remain available," Jackson's estate and Sony Music reportedly said in a joint statement. "Nothing should be read into this action concerning the authenticity of the tracks –it is just time to move beyond the distraction surrounding them."

Still, these removals have not quelled debates but rather intensified them. Check out Jason Malachi, the man whose vocals are at the center of this controversy, below. 


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About The Author
Erika Marie is a seasoned journalist, editor, and ghostwriter who works predominantly in the fields of music, spirituality, mental health advocacy, and social activism. The Los Angeles editor, storyteller, and activist has been involved in the behind-the-scenes workings of the entertainment industry for nearly two decades. E.M. attempts to write stories that are compelling while remaining informative and respectful. She's an advocate of lyrical witticism & the power of the pen. Favorites: Motown, New Jack Swing, '90s R&B, Hip Hop, Indie Rock, & Punk; Funk, Soul, Harlem Renaissance Jazz greats, and artists who innovate, not simply replicate.