The MJJ Archives

MJJ Tribute website - MJ up close & personal

Many fans wonder, what were Michael's favorite performers, what was his favorite color and what did Michael enjoy eating or watching on TV? What did he want to become when he was a child? Here we will try to give you as many answers as possible and share facts about Michael's personal life.

Childhood Dreams

This page is taken from the Tiger Beat archives who featured the Jackson brothers on their pages beginning with their debut release, cementing them as teen idols. Due to the overwhelming demand for coverage on The Jackson 5 and other African-American artists, Laufer Publishing launched Right On! magazine. The group frequently graced its covers, including a notable issue in December 1971. Michael filled in these questions himself. Click on the image for a larger vieuw.

His dream was to once own an art store. Drawing pictures made him happy. He loved to go swimming when the sun was out and he wanted a holiday with LOVE as everyone should LOVE.

Food Favorites

Michael Jackson’s favorite foods ranged from Southern comfort classics to Mexican dishes. His absolute top favorites included Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) and Mexican red chile enchiladas. He also regularly enjoyed macaroni and cheese, fresh popcorn, and sweet treats like dark chocolate and vanilla ice cream. While his diet fluctuated over the years, Jackson's preferences were well-documented by personal chefs and travel itineraries.

Comfort Food KFC: Michael was a massive fan of original recipe KFC. He specifically favored skinless chicken breasts and, according to documents from a 2000s tour, sometimes requested it for nearly every meal.

Enchiladas: He loved smoky red chile enchiladas so much that they inspired him to hire his personal chef, Mani Niall. He also frequently requested the red chile sauce over potato skins and nachos...

Comfort Classics: Other go-to meals included creamy macaroni and cheese, homemade pizzas, and—when he was adhering to a vegetarian diet—grilled tofu shish kebabs with couscous.

Snacks & Sweets: Michael had a notorious sweet tooth. He loved dark chocolate, M&Ms, and maple-pecan cookies. He also loved popcorn (even having a machine installed at Neverland) and skittles. If you pay close attention to Michael, you’ll often notice him chewing gum. Two of his favorites were Bazooka and Big Red

Fruits: Michael favored fresh, exotic, and vitamin-rich fruits like pomegranates, berries (which he incorporated into smoothies and desserts), kiwis, grapes, and melons.

Drinks: Michael’s favorite non-alcoholic beverage was orange juice, which he frequently drank during tours and concerts. For his meals, he enjoyed carrot juice, açaí drinks, and orange branded smoothies. When it came to alcohol, his preference was wine. Because he was a very private drinker and wanted to avoid attention, he would often disguise his wine by pouring it into a soda can drinking it from a can with a straw.

Artists who inspired Michael

Michael Jackson's ultimate idol and favorite performer was James Brown. He also deeply admired classic entertainers like Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, and Charlie Chaplin. Among his contemporaries, he had a high regard for Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross, and Marvin Gaye, and he even counted "It Wasn't Me" by Shaggy as one of his favorite tracks.

Musical Idols: Little Richard, Jackie Wilson, and The Temptations.
Performers & Dancers: Sammy Davis Jr., Bob Fosse, and Marcel Marceau.
Modern Pop/R&B: He openly praised artists like Beyoncé, Usher, and Justin Timberlake.
Classical: He studied and cited Tchaikovsky and Claude Debussy as major

Michael was an avid student of classical composition and cited Claude Debussy, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, and Mozart among his favorite classical music artists. Though he could not read sheet music, he built elaborate string arrangements and orchestral layers for his own songs by beatboxing and humming complex harmonies into a tape recorder.
Michael Jackson notably used "O Fortuna" from Carl Orff's Carmina Burana as the epic, tension-building intro for his 1992–1993 Dangerous World Tour and in his "Brace Yourself" teaser video's promoting his HIStory era. He incorporated the dramatic choral piece to elevate the cinematic scale of his performances. Michael was a noted aficionado of classical music. His use of Carmina Burana highlights his affinity for grandiose, mythological storytelling on stage, pairing one of the 20th century's most bombastic choral works with his high-energy, electrifying stage presence.
"Will You Be There" (1991), track from the Dangerous album, notably utilizes a segment of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in D Minor. And with "Little Susie" (1995) Michael introduced this deeply tragic track on the HIStory album using a haunting sample of the choral hymn "Pie Jesu" by French classical composer Maurice Duruflé.
With the HIStory World Tour (1996–1997) Michael on utilized Modest Mussorgsky’s piano suite "Pictures at an Exhibition". During the Michael Jackson & Friends concerts (1999) and the 30th Anniversary Celebration (2001), he used orchestral opuses like Ludwig van Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" and Aaron Copland's "Fanfare for the Common Man".

Sammy Davis Jr.

Sammy Davis Jr. Michael and Sammy Davis Jr. shared a deep mentor-protégé relationship built on mutual respect. Michael often cited the legendary entertainer as a major inspiration for his dance moves, while Sammy proudly referred to Michael as "like a son".
In 1989, as Sammy Davis Jr. was battling throat cancer, a massive, star-studded television special was held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles to honor his 60 years in show business. Instead of covering a standard song, Michael wrote and composed a deeply personal original song titled "You Were There" specifically for the occasion, performing it live as a surprise. Michael later stated this would be the only time he would ever sing the song.

Jackie Wilson

Jackie Wilson was a massive influence on Michael Jackson and The Jackson 5. Michael credited Wilson as a pioneer of performing and cited Wilson's hit "Lonely Teardrops" as direct inspiration for his early songwriting. Michael even recorded a cover of "Lonely Teardrops" in 1972. At the 1984 Grammy Awards, Michael Jackson dedicated his wins to Jackie Wilson, stating, "Some people make the path and are pioneers. I'd like to say Jackie Wilson was a wonderful entertainer". Eventhough Michael and Jackie did meet backstage at the Aplllo Theater, where a young Michael Jackson watched Jackie perform from the wings of the Apollo Theater in Harlem and deeply influenced Michael's stage presence, footwork, and performance style, there are no known photo's of them together.

Gene kelly

Gene kelly and Michael Jackson shared a deep mutual admiration, with Kelly citing Jackson as one of the best performers in the world and calling him "an electric eel". Jackson studied Kelly's dance numbers closely, and as a token of respect, he notably gifted Kelly a bronzed pair of his Singing in the Rain shoes, engraved "To the best dancer in the world".

Marcel Marceau

Marcel Marceau and Michael shared a mutual admiration and collaborated as close friends. Marceau remarked that Michael had "the soul of a mime", and Michael cited Marceau's ability to "defy the laws of gravity" as a major influence on his own performance style. On December 4, 1995, Michael and marcel Marceau rehearsed for a planned HBO concert titled One Night Only at the Beacon Theatre in New York City. Marceau would perform a unique pantomime interpretation of the song "Childhood", but the special was unfortunately canceled due to Michael being sick and taken to the hospital. On April 19, 1997, Marceau made a surprise appearance in paris at the Grévin Museum to honor Michael during the unveiling of a new wax figure.

James Brown

James Brown was undeniable by far his biggest inspiration. Michael also explicitly referred to James Brown as his greatest inspiration. From the age of six, Michael's mother would wake him to watch James Brown perform on television. This drove Michael to meticulously study Brown’s electrifying energy, stage presence, and precise footwork, transforming those roots into his own iconic style.

Charlie Chaplin

Charlie Chaplin was idolized by Michael, viewing him as a kindred spirit in artistry, showmanship, and emotional storytelling. Jackson often credited the silent film star as a major influence, stating that Chaplin knew how to make audiences "laugh and cry at the same time".
During a 1979 trip to London, as a 21-year-old, Michael paid homage to his idol by dressing up as Chaplin's iconic character, "The Little Tramp". Photographed by Tony Prime on East Street—where Chaplin once lived as a child
Michael’s admiration culminated in 1995 when he recorded a cover of the song "Smile," which was originally composed by Chaplin for his 1936 masterpiece Modern Times. Michael released this track as the closing piece on his massive HIStory album.

Fred Astaire

Fred Astaire was a massive influence on Michael Jackson. Michael studied Astaire's cinematic style, precision, and anti-gravity illusions, eventually adapting them for his own iconic performances. Following Michael's legendary Moonwalk debut on Motown 25, a thrilled Astaire called Michael to say, "You really put them on their asses last night."
Michael's admiration manifested in his Smooth Criminal short film. Michael used Astaire's 1953 film The Band Wagon as a direct stylistic blueprint.

Little Richard

Little Richard was heavily admired by Michael as a foundational influence. When Michael bought the Beatles catalog for $47 million in 1985, he also unknowingly acquired the publishing rights to Richard’s early hits, which the Beatles previously owned. Michael subsequently gave Richard his publishing rights back and even offered him a lifelong job with his publishing company to work as a writer for the rest of his life. Richard noted that he didn't take it at the time but later regretted the decision. In the 50's, Little Richard signed a severely exploitative contract—earning just half a cent per record sold and nothing from movie placements or cover songs by white artists. Michael gifted the rights to Richard for free and gave him a substantial cash settlement, recognizing the systemic racism that had robbed earlier black artists of their dues.

Favorite TV & Cartoons

According to the Trigger Beat files
Michael's favorite TV shows during the
Jackson Five period were "Flip Wilson"
in the earlie seventies.

& the TV show "The Brady Bunch" also
from the late sixties and earlie
seventies

Michael's favorite television show was
"Malcolm in the Middle". Michael said it
reminded him so much of his brothers
when they were little because of the
chaotic family dynamics and the main
character's struggle to fit into society
reminded him of his own childhood.

He also loved classic programs such
as "The Three Stooges", "Charlie
Chaplin", "The Twilight Zone", and
"Good Times" who had his sister Janet
in there.

One of Michael Jackson's favorite
animated character was Pinocchio.
He related to the puppet who wished
he was a real boy. In June 1993
Michael appeared on the cover of of
Disney Adventures magazine with
Pinocchio.

But his all time favorite was Peter
Pan. Michael deeply identified with
the boy who wouldn't grow up. He
viewed the character as a symbol of
youth, innocence, and magic, even
stating in interviews, "I'm Peter
Pan in my heart". Peter Pan was who
ultimately insprired Michael to
build his Neverland home

Michael was a lifelong, devoted fan
of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse.
This affection extended to wearing
Mickey-themed clothing, decorating
Neverland Ranch with Disney
memorabilia, and privately sketching
the famous character. In 1980 Michael
appeared on the Disney World 25th
Aniversary singing a medley with Mickey
and other Disney Characters.

He was also a big fan of The Simpsons
and Tom and Jerry

MJJ Tribute website - MJ up close & personal

Artists who inspired Michael

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Favorite TV & Cartoons