Michael Jackson was not only the King of Pop but was also the King of Pop Videos. His early videos were when he was in the Jackson 5 back in 1971 in his youth. The music video for Rockin' Robin was pretty basic, but promoted the song and showed the lip synching aspect.
Rock With You (1979)
This was one of Michael's first videos which promoted him as a solo artist. It contrasts a lot with the general time period and we first see his talent for dancing appearing slowly here. This was his leading single from the album Off The Wall where he became his own artist and left behind the Jackson 5.
Billie Jean (1982)
This was his first video that actually told a story and had a plot, it was a video that did a lot more than lip synching. The steps that light up within the video became one of his first trade marks which he interpreted on stage also.
Beat It (1982)
The music video for Beat It was Michael's first chance to show off his dancing ability to a great extent. It was themed differently to his other videos with an edgy-gang theme to it. His signature red jacket became a national trademark which audiences instantly interpreted him with - the red jacket may symbolize danger and or trouble. Like Billie Jean, this video also tells a story which begins with other people first showing in their face in it before Jackson even appears.
Thriller (1983)
Michael Jackson's Thriller is ultimately the greatest music video of all time. The original full length video is almost 14 minutes long and was one of the first music videos to be introduced as a short film. When it was released it was considered to be very scary and was not shown in cinemas until after 9:00pm. The dance moves were often improvised by Jackson and the make up effects were a phenomenon as he danced with the dead. Michael's entire outfit displayed in this video became a very famous look and people have often interpreted the dance moves from the music video in more modern movies and in theatre productions. Costing about $500,000 to make, Jackson's record company had no intention to pay for it, since the album was on the downswing and they had already financed the videos for two of its songs. (Billie Jean, Beat It). According to the director John Landis, Michael really wanted to turn into a monster so he offered to pay for the clip himself. Landis eventually took it on because it fitted into the short film genre which he loved. The video won Best Performance Video, Best Choreography and Viewer's Choice at the first MTV Video Music Awards in 1984.
Bad (1987)
After Thriller, Michael Jackson easily became the biggest pop star in the world, and his videos made the news. The video premiered on the BBC and was a huge event. People were desperate to see his new image and even more of his signature dance moves. This was the first taste of his new album Bad, in which he wore black and this video had reflections of the Beat It video back in 1983.
Black Or White (1991)
The pop video for Black Or White was very expensive and inventive. At this time, Michael Jackson had received allegations of being "strange" when he had been accused of sexual assault towards children. He used this video to almost resurrect his career after his fall. He had also been having some problems with his image - viewers said that he had been "bleaching his skin" when he was a sufferer of vitiligo. In order to get back on track, he knew he was going to have to send out a positive yet serious message to his fans about racism. It takes place in different locations and has dancers of different ethnicities and religions involved, to show that racism is a worldwide issue and that equality applies everywhere. Jackson wears white, which contrasts with his skin colour to bring in a metaphorical aspect for the message of the song. Earth Song (1995)
Like Black Or White, the music video for Earth Song also portrayed a serious message. Michael Jackson stars in this video with a look that contrasts with the other looks portrayed in his serious videos. He isn't wearing dazzling clothes, and his general appearance comes across as messy and unkempt. He walks around the earth when it is in the process of being destroyed, showing viewers that climate change and world hunger are serious issues that we will always come across, and that it is important we take care of our world. Towards the end of the video when the song becomes more dramatic, Jackson is seen clinging onto two trees either side of him, portraying him as a Christ-like figure.
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