You can destroy buildings but you can't destroy L.O.V.E.

Ai Weiwei's studio before the destruction. photo (c) The Telegraph
Chinese artist Ai Weiwei was featured here already as he is a true Soldier of L.O.V.E. fighting for the rights of the unheard voices of the lost children and as a peaceful activist for freedom and democracy in China and around the world.

He uses his phenomenal art to truely make a change and is therefore seriously and constantly under the attack of Chinese authorities, where he almost lost his life being beaten down so hard on the head.

Ai Weiwei never gives up and doesn't even turn his back on China.

On January 11th, 2011 Chinese authorities took another method to bring him down. They completely destroyed his studio building in Shanghai (worth about 1 million US-$). This was probably also a reaction to Ai Weiwei's support of Nobel Peace Price winner Liu Xiaobo.

The New York Times writes about the incident:

BEIJING — The studio would have stood at the heart of an embryonic arts cluster on the outskirts of Shanghai, a draw for luminaries from around the world.

It took two years to build, and one day to tear down. (...)

“Everything is gone,” he said. “It’s all black now. They finished the job at 9 o’clock last night.” (...)


Ai Weiwei standing in the rubble of his studio in Shanghai. photo (c) Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
Ai has come to see his escalating conflict with government officials over the Communist Party’s authoritarian rule as performance art. (...)

Full article here.

Meanwhile Ai Weiwei's fantastic work of Art "Sunflower Seeds" is still shown in Tate Modern in London.


This outstanding piece of Art shows hundreds of millions of Sunflower Seeds that seem to be identical but are apparently unique and handmade porcelaine in China.

As we all know about Michael Jackson's love for Sunflowers, the Sunflower Seeds represent the "seeds of love" and a basis for love to grow...


Ai Weiwei's "Sunflower Seeds" in the Turbine Hall of Tate Modern.
Watch the video about "Sunflower Seeds" here:


Let's show human rights activist Ai Weiwei and China our love and support!!! I guess you all saw what happened when the Michael Jackson bronze statue was unveiled in China recently...

Follow Ai Weiwei on Twitter: @aiww

June 13 - The truth runs marathons

Today marks the 5th anniversary of Michael Jackson's vindication from all charges...

We probably all remember that day more than vividly and thinking about it sends shivers down my spine. More than ever I was afraid of his life and the life of his family. The verdict made me cry of relief but all of this never stopped to crunch my stomach from pain.

When Jay-Z sang "Guilty Until Proven Innocent" it reminded me of the trial and I felt not even this applied for Michael.... WHY??!?

Now here we stand 5 years later still facing his legacy being smeared with lies and absurd accusations that those people don't even have to prove. They can just say it and make big money from it all around the world!

I'm really "tired of injustice, tired of these schemes" and I often feel hurt and helpless seeing it happen over and over again.

But then I remember what he tought me and the world and know that we cannot let this happen. We must raise our voice as one and bit by bit, piece by piece make that change.

I see so much love for Michael everywhere I go and I know millions around the world feel the same way. Let's bundle this energy and let the truth unfurl!!!

Michael deserves it.

His children deserve it.

His family deserves it.

We deserve it.


"The man's innocent. He always was."
Tom Mesereau, following the verdict, June 13, 2005
Watch:
- Tom Mesereau's tribute to Michael Jackson (slideshow)
- VICTORY short film

MJ Special True Crime - Aphrodite Jones

Within the last days a lot of turmoil was going on in regards of Michael Jackson. Unfortunately this kept away the spotlight from a TV show that REALLY deserves our attention.

The "True Crime" MJ special by Aphrodite Jones.

Most of you are familiar with her work and constant fight for truth and justice for Michael through her book "The Michael Jackson Conspiracy". For everyone who hasn't read it yet, please do!

So yesterday her "True Crime" MJ special aired and everyone should take the time and watch it and spread the word. Make sure you also thank Aphrodite Jones for everything she's done! Find contact links below.

Here's the show:

Part 1:


Part 2:


Part 3:


Part 4:


Part 5:


Part 6:



Please also read Charles Thompson´s excellent entry on Aphrodite Jones's Michael Jackson documentary:

http://charlesthomsonjournalist.blogspot.com/2010/04/preview-true-crime-with-aphrodite-jones.html


Info on Aphrodite Jones:
Twitter: http://twitter.com/AphroditeAJones

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Aphrodite-Jones/328670558273?ref=ts
http://www.facebook.com/pages/True-Crime-with-Aphrodite-Jones/300534408665?ref=ts

Websites:
http://www.aphroditejones.com/
http://www.aphroditejones.com/books/Michael_Jackson.htm

Blog:
http://michaeljacksonconspiracy.blogspot.com/

Thank you AJ, your work and loyalty is seen and appreciated!

You Don't Know What You've Got Til It's Gone... SONY!

Music Company Signs $250 Million Album Deal With Jackson Estate

Read more on Wall Street Journal today:

Sony Places Big Bet on a Fallen 'King'
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704588404575124023860735864.html

All I can say is that Janet's song lyrics come to my mind reading this...

Do you all remember his fight for getting his stuff promoted? INVINCIBLE was actually dropped from being promoted at all after one single:



Please also re-read Christopher Hamilton's great article from January of 2006 in that respect:

"Is It Because He's Black? What They Don't Want to know about Michael Jackson"
http://its-all-for-love.blogspot.com/2010/01/is-it-because-hes-black-what-they-dont.html

RIP Notorious BIG!!!

Today we especially remember Christopher George Latore Wallace aka The Notorious BIG aka Biggie Smalls (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997).

On March 9, 1997, Wallace was killed by an unknown assailant in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles, age 24.

REST IN PEACE BIGGIE!!! You are missed...

Recognizing his incredible talent Michael Jackson worked with BIG on two of his songs.

"This Time Around" from the HIStory album in 1995:



"Unbreakable" from the Invincible album in 2001 as a post-humous tribute:




In 1995 Notorious BIG presented the MTV award for "Best Dance" video "Scream" to Michael and Janet Jackson:

Children's day: Remembering the Lost Children in the fatal earthquake of Sichuan 2008

As today is children's day and the fatal power of earthquake has come to our painful remembrance in Haiti again, I would like to put the spotlight on the children that have lost their lives in the province of Sichuan that was hit by earthquake in 2008 and on a very brave Chinese artist that acts as their ambassador ever since.

Chinese artist Ai Weiwei almost lost his life remembering the thousands of children that had to die in the earthquake in the province Sichuan 2008 because their schools had been built neglecting the building code due to corrupt officials that cared more for their personal livelihood than for the lives of the children that went to study in these buildings every day.

After the government refused to issue a detailed report on the events and the names of children and adolescents who have died in the earthquake in Sichuan, Ai Weiwei has published with the help of volunteers such names on his blog.

Therefore Ai Weiwei got beaten down by government authorities for several hours in a hotel room in Sichuan. So hard that he had to under go emergency operation weeks later in Munich, Germany which was very last minute according to the doctors.

He has dedicated a huge installation called "Remembering" that was shown in Munich to the kids that lost their lives for no reason...



The arrangement of the 9000 children's backpacks, hanging on the museum's facade, resulting in Chinese characters the words "For seven years she lived happily in this world." The quotation is from the mother of a victims.

The colors in this table refer to the logo of the toy retailer "Toys R Us". Ai Weiwei has written them with backpacks, because after the earthquake in the area of school satchels, of many the buried children had been found. With his art, he puts the lost and buried in those days, the world public. In a colorful, cheerful colors change, he exposes the buried hope.

In an article I read that the journalist had asked Ai Weiwei in 2007 if he had any children and he said: "No, I have a kid inside myself." and when she asked him that same question again in 2009, he said: "Yes, now I have kids. The children of Sichuan."

This message and the whole concept of it reminded me so much of MJ's message: It's about saving the kids that have no voice, true commitment, freedom of speech and positive and hopeful energy at the same time...

Therefore I today dedicate "The Lost Children" to all children that have been harmed in earthquakes around the world. -> Make That Change!!!

INVINCIBLE

I wrote this words starting from a conversation i had with a dear friend of mine and wanted to share my thought son Michael Jackson's album Invincible which i believe it's his most underrated work.
Don't compare Michael Jackson albums - they are different in style and musical view. From the instrumental arrangements to the lyrical content.

Invincible is a great work and it shifted MJ’s lyrics from HIStory's angry and darker feeling to a more confident approach on the events that shook his life and were offered more insight into his person rather then his persona.

All of his album are great - and for me is impossible to say one is better than the other - it would have take the event to all be released within the same period of time to assess their impact in that way - but that is not possible.

Thriller sold so good because it came at a time when mainstream music was lacking a lot in creativity and many artists (especially black artists) were overlooked by the music industry and the general public. And it was revolutionary in that way - it had the power to break through the race barrier.

I believe that Invincible was intentionally overlooked by the record company, it was a bad luck it came out little time before the 9/11 attack in NY (and people were not focused on music buying and certainly not feeling invincible), still it was a success selling over 10 million copies with 3 singles released, of which one had a video, no promotion (not for real anyway) , no tour to support it - that says a lot about how was received by the public - but this didn't made the news - is not interesting that he managed to have success even without the promoting way that he help developed (videos and the whole thing). That was his power - he could do nothing to promote a song or an album and still reach millions - check out sales and charts.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invincible_%28Michael_Jackson_album%29 (Wikipedia) 

The album was voted by Billboard magazine readers's poll as the best of the decade In December 2009.

My friend wrote to me: “I think it's lucky for us fans to be able to learn more about MJ's world through his works, as he's gradually opening himself more and more since Dangerous through History to Invincible. This is the way MJ wanted us to know about him, rather than by reading tabloids. I find some lyrics in Invincible incredibly touching (as in most of his slow ballads). My current favourites from this album are Speechless, Heaven can wait, and You are my life.”

Personally i prefer Threatened - is funny and direct and cool. That is the first one that comes to mind followed at a very close range by all the others – Speechless, Whatever Happens, Cry, Unbreakable and so on.

Is also about the sound - I mean for me the best way to listen to his music is to plug in head phones and just enjoy the sound. Is like a multiple dimensions experience - there are the background vocals that he brought to perfection (one of the reason he was asked so many time to feature on other artists songs) there are the vocal and instrumental arrangements, there are the lyrics and so on and the sound effects - he pushed the limits of studio recording all the time.
I remember an interview with Rodney jerkins who was in the early 2000s the top producer who said he went into the studio with Michael and instead of doing the usual producing work he got to learn from the king new ways to record - like when everybody is eating the mic he would record from a corner and add a new effect on the recording and so on.

Sales of Michael’s albums have not kept at the level of thriller in terms of numbers (but here we must also take into consideration the overall shrinking of music industry, illegal CDs and internet P2P downloads) but that doesn't mean that his work was anything less than extraordinary.

It is impossible to recreate the time and social situation of the Thriller era, is hard to recreate the time and situation of the music industry back then, he opened the door and so many talented artist walked through and so is hard to now to get 50 million people to get focused on one album.

Invincible went against a lot of top competition much of which were MJ fans grown up and applying what they learn from him.

The music scene has changed so much from the 80's - back then the music industry was looking for the next sound and the generation leader and what we got was the number one of all time.

What I found most interesting about Invincible is that the selection of the songs had a different criterion - what he wanted to say to the world, to his children, to himself and other loved ones rather than wanting to put out another number one smashing album and that is why I believe is important and has a unique quality to it. Sometimes is important to do things that make you feel alright rather than trying to get everybody to like what you are doing. And what is most important is that he did that without sacrificing the quality of music.
Maybe it wasn't revolutionary sound-wise by some standards but it has SOUL.
And most of all it’s all about L.O.V.E.

With Invincible - MJ just took the kind of music/sound that he liked much at the time and upgraded it. Other than that it was an album (much like HIStory) where he didn't went for making trends or breaking records (though he did that) - he wanted to put good music out for his fans and managed to do that, he wanted to release some songs meant for his kids, songs aimed at reminding people about his beliefs and what could change this world for the better - it is a personal album.

All in one I say if you buy only one MJ album (if you ever manage to do that – I wish you good luck) - don't go for the obvious - go deeper and try to see into his soul - buy Invincible.
Listen to what Michael had to say about invincible and then you will know what i mean about loving this album and why sony wanted to take it down.

Michael Jackson Interview with GetMusic.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq2snwHdmOU&feature=related = part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TMC2RSlTTo&feature=related = part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQ2Jy4ow5K4&feature=related = part 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJp-YE6P7bI&feature=related = part 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJ8_4hgomsA&feature=related = part 5
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=280ZE0y_Wyo&feature=related = part 6