Chinyere Okoye With Agency Report
29 June 2009
Lagos — R&B star, R. Kelly, who is currently on THISDAY Music Festival Tour in Africa, has hinted of plans to perform an unforgettable showcase in honour of Michael Jackson, the departed King of Pop.
In a statement made available to THISDAY last night, the R. Kelly said the tragic circumstance of Jackson's untimely death "has coincided with my current tour and I want to use this opportunity to pay tribute to my mentor and remind people of his genius and influence on all our lives".
He added: "As a result, I have re-focussed my show's set-list to include a special tribute to my dear friend when I play tomorrow in Cape Town before hitting Lagos, Abuja and London. But I also hope to collaborate and return with other artists who also knew - and worked with - Michael, to perform an unforgettable showcase in the near future."
In addition to THISDAY Media Centre, The Palms Shopping Mall, Lekki, the tickets for the Lagos shows, scheduled for July 3 and 4, will now be sold at Chams City, 2 Isaac John Street, GRA Ikeja, to cater for the mainland.
The tickets for the Abuja show, holding on July 5, will be sold at THISDAY Dome, Central Business District, Abuja and THISDAY Office, Plot 1,Sector 'B', Jabi Business District, Solomon Lar Way, Jabi North East, Abuja.
Paying tribute to Jackson yesterday, R. Kelly said he "was and always will be a legend. His contribution to our generation and to music will last an infinite lifetime. Rather than losing sight and making negative judgements, I want to remind people of all the good things this man had done.
"When I was growing up everyone idolised Michael and I was no exception - he was an inspiration to me. Michael was an innovator, he inspired me to look deeper into my own music to discover the true extent of my abilities.
"Our love of music brought us together many times over a period of 15 years and he had been an exceptional friend to me."
Also yesterday, the cardiologist who was with Jackson during the pop star's final moments sat down with investigators for three hours to explain his actions, and his spokeswoman says he is not a suspect, the Associated Press (AP) reported.
Dr. Conrad Murray, a physician with a tangled financial and personal history who was hired to accompany Jackson on his planned summer concert tour, reportedly performed CPR until paramedics arrived at Jackson's rented home. The pop star was declared dead later at UCLA Medical Center.
The late pop star's records, meanwhile, were heading for the top of the charts last night.
In his interview with police, the doctor "helped identify the circumstances around the death of the pop icon and clarified some inconsistencies," Murray's spokeswoman Miranda Sevcik said in a statement Saturday. "Investigators say the doctor is in no way a suspect and remains a witness to this tragedy."
The statement said Murray has been in Los Angeles since Jackson's death, and plans to stay here until his cooperation is no longer needed.
Police confirmed that they interviewed Murray, adding that he was cooperative and "provided information which will aid the investigation."
The interview took place on a busy day when one of Jackson's lawyers was chosen to represent the family's legal interests and celebrities descended on Los Angeles for a star-studded public celebration of the King of Pop's life at the annual BET awards show.
President Barack Obama has written to Michael Jackson's family expressing condolence, White House adviser David Axelrod said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press." Obama did not issue a statement following Jackson's death, but the White House has said the president saw the pop star as a spectacular performer whose life had sad and tragic aspects.
L. Londell McMillan, who represented Jackson last year in a breach of contract lawsuit and has advised high-profile clients such as Prince, was picked to help the family by Katherine Jackson, the singer's mother, said a person who requested anonymity because the matter is private.
The legal move came as the Rev. Jesse Jackson revealed that Michael Jackson's family wants a second, private autopsy of the pop superstar because of unanswered questions about how he died.
"It's abnormal," Jesse Jackson said from Chicago a day after visiting the Jackson family. "We don't know what happened. Was he injected and with what? All reasonable doubt should be addressed."
People close to Jackson have said since his death that they were concerned about his use of painkillers. Los Angeles County medical examiners completed their autopsy Friday and said Jackson had taken prescription medication.
Medical officials also said there was no indication of trauma or foul play. An official cause of death could take weeks.
There was no word from the Jackson family on funeral plans. Many of Jackson's relatives have gathered at the family's Encino compound, caring there for Jackson's three children.
Sisters Janet and La Toya arrived Saturday at the mansion Jackson had been renting and left without addressing reporters. Moving vans also showed up at the Jackson home, leaving about an hour later. There was no indication what they might have taken away.
The Jackson family issued a statement Saturday expressing its grief over the death and thanking his supporters.
"In one of the darkest moments of our lives, we find it hard to find the words appropriate to this sudden tragedy we all had to encounter," said the statement made through People magazine. "We miss Michael endlessly."
There was no immediate word on whether the second autopsy was being performed right away. Jesse Jackson described the family as grief-stricken.
"They're hurt because they lost a son. But the wound is now being kept open by the mystery and unanswered questions of the cause of death," he said.
Organizers of the annual BET awards show - which recognizes the best in music, acting and sports - scrambled to revamp Sunday's show to honour Jackson and his legacy.
Previously announced acts, such as Beyonce and Ne-Yo, hoped to change their planned performances to honour Jackson, said producer Stephen Hill. Other artistes, who hadn't planned to attend the ceremony, including Usher and Justin Timberlake, tried to catch last-minute flights to Los Angeles to participate.
Memories of Jackson are being refreshed. At online retail store, Amazon.com, the top 15 selling albums were all by him, including two made with his brothers when they were the "Jackson 5."
Nine of the top 10 selling albums at Apple's iTunes music store were from the "King of Pop" with "The Essential Michael Jackson" leading the way.
Seven of the top 10 songs being downloaded on iTunes were by the singer, with "Man in the Mirror" the most popular.
The surge in Jackson popularity was not limited to the United States.
Jackson was also set to top the British album chart on Sunday.
His greatest hits album "Number Ones" was set for top spot and up to half a dozen of the singer's other albums could also make the Top 75, according to the Official Charts Company.
Meanwhile, experts say the person who has the strongest legal claim to Jackson's two oldest children is their mother, Deborah Rowe. As for the youngest child, Jackson's wishes will be more influential.
It remains unclear who Jackson designated as potential guardians for his children. Those details - likely contained in the 50-year-old singer's will - have not been released.
Rowe's attorney, Marta Almli, wrote in a statement Saturday that "Ms. Rowe's only thoughts at this time have been regarding the devastating loss Michael's family has suffered. Ms. Rowe requests that Michael's family, and particularly the children, be spared such harmful, sensationalist speculation and that they be able to say goodbye to their loved one in peace."
Jackson never told his family who he had in place to handle his business affairs, a person close to the family told the AP on Friday. The person, who requested anonymity because of the delicate nature of the situation, said they were told by the singer's phalanx of advisers that he likely had a will, but it may be many years old.
The person also said that the children are still in the care of the extended Jackson family for the moment.
Jackson left behind three children: Michael Joseph Jackson Jr., known as Prince Michael, 12; Paris Michael Katherine Jackson, 11; and Prince Michael II, 7. The elder children were born to Rowe, while the youngest is his biological son, born to a surrogate mother.
Prince Michael II's mother has never been identified, and while she may surface, it is likely that she signed away her rights, said Stacy Phillips, a Los Angeles divorce attorney who has represented numerous high-profile clients.
Jackson was by several accounts an attentive and loving father.
"He was a great father," said Raymone Bain, Jackson's former publicist and general manager. "Those kids knew three and four languages. Even the little one. They were well mannered and sweet. I can't imagine these children without him."
He was extremely protective of his children, who weren't often seen in public, and were photographed wearing veils, masks or other items covering their faces when they were.
Rowe, a former nurse for Jackson's dermatologist, married Jackson in 1996 but filed for divorce in 1999. She later gave up her custody rights to the children, but petitioned to have those rights restored in 2003 after Jackson was arrested on child molestation charges, and an appeals court sided with her.
Jackson and Rowe apparently agreed in 2006 regarding her rights, but the terms have never been disclosed. The couple's divorce case that was heard in Los Angeles Superior Court remains closed.
Phillips said if her parental rights remain intact, she's presumed to be first in line to receive custody of her two children. "That could still be contested," she added.
Rowe would have to undergo an evaluation by the court to determine if she's the best person to care for Jackson's children. So, too, would anyone else who applies to become the children's guardian - some of whom may have Jackson's blessing.
"If he did indicate a preference, that will be given great weight, but that will not be determinative," said Los Angeles attorney Gloria Allred. "Children are not property, they cannot be willed to another person."
Allred agreed that Rowe has better legal standing than others who apply for custody of Jackson's eldest children. "She's definitely going to have an advantage."
But judges in California often take into account who is left in the children's lives with a strong bond, said Charlotte Goldberg, a family law professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles.
"It's really a balance between continuity and stability and a biological relationship," Goldberg said.
A judge deciding the matter may even seek input in chambers from Jackson's children about who they feel comfortable with, she said.
But a court will also take into account with whom the children have a relationship bond, and that may not work in Rowe's favour. She wrote in a 2001 petition to sever her parental rights that she thought Jackson was doing a good parenting job.
"Michael has been a wonderful father to the children, and I do not wish to share any parenting responsibilities with Michael because he is doing so well without me," Rowe wrote. She also indicated in court filings during the 2006 custody struggle that she had not seen the children since 2005, shortly after his trial ended in acquittal on all charges and Jackson moved the children overseas.
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And apparently the author of this article doesn't understand that Michael had a kind of skin cancer that made his skin mottled--with white patches, and that his skin bleaching was to hide this condition, not his race, which he had on several occasions proudly declared himself to be. Also his nose and plastic surgery was discovered by accident after he broke it and needed surgery...or at least that's what I understand, and the first surgery wasn't left him with breathing problems so he had a second surgery done and that is when he, while he was at it, asked the surgeon to make his nose smaller. I think Michael Jackson continued to have nose jobs not because he wanted to be white, but because he had a low self esteem, thanks to his father. And yes I think his story is all in all, very sad. As for God creating white people first--interesting, considering the origins of the entire race is widely believed to be in Africa. I suspect the first humans were actually black, not white. But whatever. I'm not a believer in god at all, so the notion that such a being created whites first and then realized his mistakes and then came up with an improved model is rather laughable.
Is "Dr." Abati a medical doctor? The last time I read his bio, he is a journalist. Only in Nigeria is every dick and harry referred to as a Dr., an Egnr., a Barrister, SAN, Chief, Asiwaju, Turaki, Alhaji…even a mere Mr. will still have an Esqr, at the end of his name. Like Michael Jackson's Kaddafi’s epaulets and glitter, an honorary degree in Nigeria has becomes an official appellation appended to the honoree to be worn as a pendant - a la (Dr.) Turai YarAdua. I guess every Nigerian Jim and Jill's egos need to be massaged to feel a sense of importance - I think there is a name for that complex. What's the word...?
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