John Branca, Head of the Foundation, Says About Michael Jackson

One of the trustees of the Michael Jackson Foundation, John Branca, recently appeared in an interview with Robin Leach of VegasDeluxe. During the interview, he talked about his relationship with Michael, the foundation’s future plans, and Cirque du Soleil shows.

The first event approved by the Michael Jackson Foundation will be held starting December 3 at Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas, before the Cirque du Soleil shows begin. This four-hour festival will take place before each of the 33 Cirque shows at the hotel. The Cirque du Soleil shows that bring Michael’s music, dance, and art to the stage are called Michael Jackson: The Immortal Tour. During these four-hour celebrations, memorabilia from Michael—items and furnishings from his Neverland ranch—will be displayed. Fans will be able to visit recreated locations from his music videos and even go behind the scenes of Immortal, play a new Michael video game, and compete with other fans. There will also be an opportunity for Q&A about Michael Jackson’s shows with the Cirque du Soleil design team.

Getting started

Robin Leach: When you took on this big responsibility (overseeing the foundation), nobody—neither his family nor his fans—knew what role you would play. You not only protected his reputation, but you built a growing industry. In those first moments after his death, when you sat down with yourself and thought that you were now the trustee of his foundation, what idea did you have in mind for running the affairs of the man you worked for?

John Branca: That’s a big question. At first, I was grateful that this responsibility was assigned to me, because many of Michael’s fans supported it. I had been with him since 1980, and fans felt that John McClain and I were the right people for the job, and that gave us confidence. But we had to prove our abilities, and there were many challenges ahead. I worked with Michael for 30 years, and I knew his business process very well—that was a strength. I felt like I knew what needed to be done now. If someone new had been chosen, it would take one or two years to get familiar with the way things worked. But John McClain had known Michael since high school, and I had worked with him for 30 years. Working for us was normal. When the judge granted permission, we started.

One of the decisions that made our work easier was agreeing to produce and release the film This Is It. When I saw the recorded footage of him, I thought to myself that people would see him through a different lens. They would see Michael as a perfectionist. They would understand why he was such a great artist. At the same time, they would see his humanity. Michael was very kind to his musicians and dancers. He was a dignified and determined man.

We thought people would see Michael differently because of this film—and fortunately, that was true. It has now become the most successful musical documentary film in history. Since he spent so much time on his work, I’m sure he had watched the recorded footage of his performances. I’m sure he reviewed it and thought about which parts he wanted to work on more. I wasn’t there, but I’m confident he had reviewed some of the footage—if not all of it.

Robin Leach: Were you criticized? What was your response to the claim that you made a lot of money from Michael Jackson’s name? Personally, I think that because of the heavy debt, you were forced to earn such income.

John Branca: We understood our commitments to Michael’s legacy and career, as well as to his mother and children. Our goal was that when we put the foundation in the hands of Michael’s three children, it would be in a much better position than it was when we took control of it. Our job is to earn and manage income. If we had just sat back and done nothing, a bad situation would have occurred.

The future of the foundation

Robin Leach: Will you eventually hand the foundation over to his children?

John Branca: In the future. In his will, Michael set a specific age for his children to receive their inheritance share, but it’s confidential. In high-income levels, this is common practice. You wait until the children are sufficiently prepared to accept responsibility.

Robin Leach: So they have to be at least 21. If Michael had witnessed everything that happened—everything you did, what you built, and what you achieved—do you think he would have been pleased and approved of your work?

John Branca: Yes, I think so. I say this based on my experience working with him for years. He didn’t talk much about himself, but he talked to me a lot about the legacy he would leave behind. I met him a week before he died, and we had an upcoming work plan. A few months before that, through his program manager, Frank Delio, he told me that he wanted me to consider plans for him. So when I went to meet him, I had a full, comprehensive work plan ready. Michael told me which of these plans he was interested in. So we’re doing exactly what he wanted.

According to what the media previously said, Michael’s children will not receive any allowance or support from the foundation from age 21 to 30. Part of each of their inheritance shares will be given to them after age 30.

This Is It

Another point is that, according to what John McClain told me, if we had gone to Michael and told him to release a film of his rehearsals, he would have answered: "Is your mind in the right place?"

Michael was a perfectionist. So his response to releasing rehearsal footage would definitely have been negative. But if we told him that you would pay him a huge amount of money for this film, that it would become the most successful film, and that his album would become number one—selling more than the combined sales of Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber—he would certainly have said, "Where do I sign?"

Robin Leach: Was the meeting you had with him a week before his death a normal business meeting to organize things, or did it mean something else?

John Branca: I hadn’t worked with Michael since 2006. I had resigned. But in 2009, he decided to go on the This Is It tour, and with humility I told myself that no one else besides me could help Michael achieve what he wanted—not artistically, because Michael was a master at that himself, but commercially. I called AEG and Michael’s manager and asked them to tell Michael that if he needed any help, he could count on me.

They called me and said that Michael wanted you to prepare a business plan. We worked on it for a few months, and I was finally ready to meet him on Wednesday. Not even for a moment did it cross my mind that he wouldn’t be alive the following week. The meeting was only about preparing a business plan related to his concerts. The timing was completely coincidental and unplanned. Later, the same plan and work framework we discussed with him became the basis for our work in protecting his legacy. These are things he wanted to do himself.

Cirque du Soleil

Robin Leach: Did he want this magnificent collaboration with Cirque du Soleil?

John Branca: I took Michael to see the first Cirque show of his life. In the early 1980s, we went together. A tent had been set up in the parking lot of Santa Monica near the Pier. He fell in love with it. We had to go backstage too, because he insisted on greeting all the members of the circus. He was a die-hard fan of Cirque. He met everyone. He went to Montreal to visit Cirque du Soleil’s headquarters and watch the members while they worked. Now he’s working with those same people. That’s something he always wanted to do.

Robin Leach: What’s your prediction for the Cirque shows?

John Branca: My philosophy is that for the work you do, you have to give it your absolute best. If you do that—and you also have Michael Jackson’s music, Cirque du Soleil, and Jamie King—then the result is clear.

Michael’s genius

Robin Leach: As a final question. You worked with him for many years. What was his genius? What was in him that connected him to people around the world with such pull and passion? Did he even know the answer to that himself?

John Branca: Michael’s genius was multi-faceted. He began his career as a child singer and dancer, and then—after passing through the music machine of Motown—he became a fully realized ringmaster. Then he started writing his own music. At that time, who knew he was also a songwriter? After the album Off the Wall, he began producing his own music. With Quincy, he produced Billie Jean and Beat It, and then the album Bad. His talent continued to grow and flourish. Part of it was because of his passion for reaching perfection and studying the styles of great artists, and part of it was due to his own lovable nature. You read stories about great artists who thought their own breath was great and nobody wanted to stay around them. Michael wasn’t like that. Michael was a great artist and a great genius, and everyone loved him.

Robin Leach: I had the chance to have a Chinese dinner with him once at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. He was the most normal and lovable man I’ve ever seen in my life.

John Branca: Exactly. And when he was ready to go on stage, he became a superstar.

John told me that Michael’s Facebook page has received 32 million likes. And that Jackie, Michael’s brother, is also working with the foundation.

"Jackie has collaborated with the foundation on many projects. Including producing leather jackets inspired by Michael, which are being displayed and sold as Cirque shows begin at Mandalay Bay."

"Michael always loved the celebrations held for Beatles fans, Elvis Presley fans, Star Wars film fans, and things like that—and he always said, ‘One day I’ll have my own fan convention too.’ Michael’s fans have told us that they want something like that as well. So we’re thrilled to make one more of Michael’s wishes come true. We can’t wait to make his other wishes come true too, with the help of our colleagues and partners."

Source: eMJey.com / vegasdeluxe.com