The Years 1994 to 1997
The important message hidden in the song “Earth Song” remained unheard due to the pointless controversy created by the media.
[Earth Song clip]
On 28 February 1996, at the 38th annual Grammy Awards ceremony, Michael won the award for Best Music Video for the clip “Scream.”
In March 1996, the MTV network US reported that “History” is the best-selling double album in the history of music.
On 19 March 1996, at a press conference in Paris, Michael announced that he intended to establish a new company called Kingdom Entertainment . Kingdom Entertainment is a multi-media company operating in Paris, in which Michael and Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the Prince of Saudi Arabia, share ownership together.
On 22 March, the clip “They Don\'t Care About Us” was broadcast by television networks around the world except America.
This clip was filmed in Dona Martin, a poor neighborhood in the south of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), and the group Olodum, consisting of two hundred female drummers from that region, was present in it.
Michael’s makeup for this clip was done by Karen Faye, his special makeup artist.
Even before filming began, the clip was the top headline. Some politicians believed that by showing the reality of poverty and hardship that the people of Dona Martin suffer, the clip would tarnish the image of the city, which was a candidate to host the 2004 Olympic Games.
After seeing the threat the clip posed to the city’s image, the governor of Rio de Janeiro simply decided to prevent any filming in the city. This decision was immediately overturned by a government official because, according to him: “In international public opinion, banning filming in Dona Martin is more destructive than showing the reality of this city.”
More than 150 security police protected the area during filming.
There are two different versions of the clip for the song “They Don\'t Care About us.” And both were directed by Spike Lee. One version was filmed in Brazil, and the other depicts a prison. This version was released after the Brazilian version, because Michael was not completely satisfied with the result of the Brazilian version.
[They Don\'t Care About us clip in Brazil] The song was not broadcast on MTV or VH1. They called it ironic, hypocritical, and anti-Semitic. While there is no sign of anti-Semitism in this clip.
[They Don\'t Care About us clip in prison]
It is regrettable that MTV immediately broadcasts clips in which animals are cut into pieces, women are used for sexual purposes, violence is promoted, and... but it refuses to broadcast the clip of a song that tries to condemn our tendency to label and accept a dominant belief about a particular group of our brothers and sisters. With this clip, Michael intended to depict inhuman behaviors of human beings against their fellow human beings.
But after some time, the opinions of these two networks changed, and they showed the clip “They Don\'t Care About us.” At the beginning of the clip, a message appeared stating that the mentioned networks have no responsibility for broadcasting this clip and that they only show it to defend freedom of art.
VH1 proudly claims that it is a defender of freedom of expression. Music is a means of expressing an opinion and must be free. That is completely correct, but why doesn’t it apply to Michael’s music?
Spike Lee, director of the clips “They Don\'t Care About us,” said about the controversy that had arisen around these clips: “Michael is an artist and must be free to express his opinion.”