Interview with the Costume Designer for the This Is It Tour
When Zaldy Goco answered his phone last April and realized that the creative team working with Michael on the This Is It concerts wanted to hire him as the tour’s costume designer, he couldn’t believe his luck.
A longtime Michael fan, Zaldy was tasked with designing outfits that would match both the legendary, classic Michael symbols and also show traces of modern fashion. He and Michael met five times over a few weeks to fit the performance costumes. Their last meeting was just a few days before Michael’s death.
Zaldy appeared in an interview with businessoffashion.com and provided photos of Michael and his outfits, which you can see below:
Question: I’m sure everyone wants to hear about your collaboration with Michael Jackson. How did this opportunity come about?
Zaldy: It was a surprising opportunity, and it started with a casual phone call from someone who introduced himself as Michael’s choreographer representative, Travis Payne. It was late April, and the tour was set to begin in July. He asked me if I was interested in designing tour costumes—and of course my answer was yes. But honestly, I didn’t take it that seriously at first because I knew Michael always had a habit of working with a specific designer named Michael Bush. He had designed all of Michael’s iconic outfits from the Thriller and Bad era. I thought maybe I could design a few costumes for him.
Later it turned out that Michael had been advised to draw inspiration from current fashion in his outfits, and he also asked to review work from some of the biggest names in the fashion industry—names like John Galliano and Alexander McQueen, I think, were among them. I believe he looked at collections from different designers to decide who he wanted to work with. When he saw my collection, they called me right away and said, “Michael was jumping up and down and saying, ‘I’ve always wanted to wear these. I’ve always wanted to wear these.’”
They asked me to go to Los Angeles the next day to meet Michael, and they told me they wanted me to handle the costumes for the entire show. Since Michael was very loyal, he asked Michael Bush to design costumes for him as well. And I thought that was a great thing to do, because this was going to be his final tour.
Question: That’s incredible. How would you describe the costumes you designed for Michael?
Zaldy: When they asked me to do the work, they told me, “We want you to recreate Michael.” And the first thing that came to my mind was that Michael doesn’t need to be recreated—especially not now. He’s one of the few artists who built his own iconic look, one that matches his iconic songs. There’s no need to recreate that image. It only needed to take on a bit of a modern feel. Nobody would accept a Thriller jacket that isn’t red and black. People wanted to see those symbols brought into the present for the tour.
My approach was this: I wanted to use today’s new techniques in my designs—techniques that Michael had never used before.
Question: What was your favorite design for Michael?
Zaldy: They all have something special for me. But if you ask the people I worked with, they’ll introduce you to the outfit for “We Are The World,” which was appliquéd with techniques from around the world—from Africa to America, from India to Japan to China. That outfit combines different techniques in a very beautiful way.
Question: His untimely death probably changed everything for you.
Zaldy: I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t know what to do with myself. For weeks, Michael Jackson was my breath and my life. When I sew for a musician, I completely immerse myself in his music. His songs were playing in my head all the time. I decided to lock myself in a hotel so I could get those thoughts out of my mind, but even that didn’t help. Wherever I went, people were playing Michael Jackson songs. There was no escape.
Question: During the meetings, did you ever feel that maybe he wasn’t doing well?
Zaldy: No, not at all. And that’s what the film (This Is It) shows. He was completely lively, full of energy, and strong. And he was fully aware of every detail. Every time I met him, he paid attention to small details. Whenever I tried the clothes on him, he was very steady and very strong.
Source: eMJey / businessoffashion.com / Zaldy Goco
Question: I’m sure everyone wants to hear about your collaboration with Michael Jackson. How did this opportunity come about?
Zaldy: It was a surprising opportunity, and it started with a casual phone call from someone who introduced himself as Michael’s choreographer representative, Travis Payne. It was late April, and the tour was set to begin in July. He asked me if I was interested in designing tour costumes—and of course my answer was yes. But honestly, I didn’t take it that seriously at first because I knew Michael always had a habit of working with a specific designer named Michael Bush. He had designed all of Michael’s iconic outfits from the Thriller and Bad era. I thought maybe I could design a few costumes for him.
Later it turned out that Michael had been advised to draw inspiration from current fashion in his outfits, and he also asked to review work from some of the biggest names in the fashion industry—names like John Galliano and Alexander McQueen, I think, were among them. I believe he looked at collections from different designers to decide who he wanted to work with. When he saw my collection, they called me right away and said, “Michael was jumping up and down and saying, ‘I’ve always wanted to wear these. I’ve always wanted to wear these.’”
They asked me to go to Los Angeles the next day to meet Michael, and they told me they wanted me to handle the costumes for the entire show. Since Michael was very loyal, he asked Michael Bush to design costumes for him as well. And I thought that was a great thing to do, because this was going to be his final tour.
Question: That’s incredible. How would you describe the costumes you designed for Michael?
Zaldy: When they asked me to do the work, they told me, “We want you to recreate Michael.” And the first thing that came to my mind was that Michael doesn’t need to be recreated—especially not now. He’s one of the few artists who built his own iconic look, one that matches his iconic songs. There’s no need to recreate that image. It only needed to take on a bit of a modern feel. Nobody would accept a Thriller jacket that isn’t red and black. People wanted to see those symbols brought into the present for the tour.
My approach was this: I wanted to use today’s new techniques in my designs—techniques that Michael had never used before.
Question: What was your favorite design for Michael?
Zaldy: They all have something special for me. But if you ask the people I worked with, they’ll introduce you to the outfit for “We Are The World,” which was appliquéd with techniques from around the world—from Africa to America, from India to Japan to China. That outfit combines different techniques in a very beautiful way.
Billie Jean pants
But personally, I love the leather jacket for “Black or White,” with three different colored button types sewn onto it, inspired by Samurai armor. That last jacket is also my favorite—especially because Michael was very excited about it. I made things shaped like drops of tears—things Michael called “hidden treasures”—and they wrapped around a shell of crystal stones.
And then there was the electric Billie Jean pants, which used Philips technology, and it really made Michael happier than the other outfits. The last time I saw him was six days before the date we were supposed to leave Los Angeles for London. I tried those pants on him during the fitting. He was silent—completely confused and amazed. After about thirty seconds, he said, “This is exactly what I’ve always wanted.” That’s why this outfit is special to me.
Question: His untimely death probably changed everything for you.
Zaldy: I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t know what to do with myself. For weeks, Michael Jackson was my breath and my life. When I sew for a musician, I completely immerse myself in his music. His songs were playing in my head all the time. I decided to lock myself in a hotel so I could get those thoughts out of my mind, but even that didn’t help. Wherever I went, people were playing Michael Jackson songs. There was no escape.
Question: During the meetings, did you ever feel that maybe he wasn’t doing well?
Zaldy: No, not at all. And that’s what the film (This Is It) shows. He was completely lively, full of energy, and strong. And he was fully aware of every detail. Every time I met him, he paid attention to small details. Whenever I tried the clothes on him, he was very steady and very strong.
Source: eMJey / businessoffashion.com / Zaldy Goco