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,
So far, the results for XSCAPE, have been strong for the King of Pop. The record ascended to the No. 1 spot on the iTunes charts in 52 different countries including the U.K. and France, and sits atop Amazon and Spotify’s rankings as well.
Xscape came together after Jackson’s estate allowed Epic Records chief Antonio “L.A.” Reid to browse the King of Pop’s musical archives of unreleased material. He then selected eight tracks that featured Jackson’s vocals and, with the help of a team of producers led by Timbaland, made additional sonic contributions.
“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,” said Reid in a statement. “We are extremely proud and honored to present this music to the world.”
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 Edition’s were available April 1st for pre-order on iTunes 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.”
0 Replies to “Michael Jackson. XSCAPE”