Rock Euphoria » Celebs

Moonwalking with Michael

Erika Remlinger — Sun, 12 Aug 2001 16:53:22 +0000

I must have been around five years old when my mother first played Michael Jackson’s Thriller at home.

It happened one afternoon after I got home from school, and my mom was very eager to get home and play the vinyl record she had just purchased. She rushed to the living room, ripped the plastic wrap off of the record, and began playing the album on our old turntable.

I can still remember taking a look at the album cover art and seeing Jackson wearing a tailored white suit as he lay down on the floor posing with a panther. “Wow! Courageous,” my five-year-old mind thought. Little did I know how much Jackson would need that courage in ensuing years.

My mother and I danced the night away, as she held both my tiny hands and told me stories how my father and her shared their first dance to a Jackson 5 song the night they met at a school dance.

I grew up during the MTV generation, watching “Thriller” on television and was actually scared when Jackson turned into a werewolf. I liked nothing better than watching Jackson dance so perfectly to every song. One afternoon, my mother came home to find my baby brother and I learning to moonwalk as we copied Jackson in front of the TV. I, of course, was dressed in glittery silver socks beneath my black pants. After all, if I wanted to dance like him, I certainly had to look like him, didn’t I?

Almost thirty years later, Jackson is still considered the King of Pop: just ask the celebrities who attended his long-awaited 30th anniversary celebration Friday night at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

The concert began an hour late, as Jackson made a fashionably late entrance, escorted to his seat by his best pal, Elizabeth Taylor, actorMacaulay Culkin, and Jackson’s parents, Katherine and Joseph, The Associated Press reported.

The show lasted nearly five hours. Jackson had invited the biggest names in the music world to join him in celebrating his career, and they responded with gusto. R&B singers Usher and Mya opened the night’s festivities with “Starting Somethin’,” and surprise guest Whitney Houston joined them halfway through the song.

Marlon Brando arrived onstage to talk about child abuse, starvation and disease, and said that Jackson was generously donating money to build a children’s hospital in Florida.

Among the other performances were Shaggy, Ray Charles and Marc Anthony’s melodic “She’s Out of My Life”; Gloria Estefan and James Ingram’s beautiful duet “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You”; and Liza Minelli sweet croon of “You Are Not Alone,” backed by a gospel choir walking through the stadium holding candles.

Motown legends, The Jackson 5, moved the crowd with renditions of “ABC,” “I’ll be There” and “I Want You Back.” They were joined by pop sensation ‘N Sync to get down to “Dance Machine.”

“I love you…I love you,” Jackson shouted twice to the audience, the AP reported, as his brothers left the stage after a 20-minute set.

Jackson was later joined onstage by former Guns n’ Roses guitarist Slash for the epic “Black or White,” and replicated a scene from the video. “Beat It” was also performed by Jackson onstage, complete with ghetto dancers and choreography straight from the video.

The finest moment of the night came when Jackson walked out onstage with a small carrying case and pulled out his black sequined jacket and white glove for his performance of “Billy Jean,” moonwalk and all.

(Of course, for those willing to spend a little extra cash, there was a Wizard of Oz-themed after-hours party with Jackson at the Tavern on the Green restaurant. The cost? A mere $20,000 per person.)

Jackson’s concerts (there is a second tribute set for Monday night) are not just a tribute to himself, but also an attempt to revive his legendary career, which many argue is no longer extant.

More than ever, it seems his marriage to Lisa Marie Presley, his numerous plastic surgeries, and sex molestation charges have made Jackson a cause of laughter and scorn among many in the media. Some even claim thatJackson has lost his touch.

Much of the ridicule levied against Jackson simply isn’t justified.

Previously published on hollywood.com

Who’s that girl?

Erika Remlinger — Mon, 23 Jul 2001 00:34:11 +0000

The story of Madonna’s music career is really the tale of a savvy artist who invented a singular space for herself–a space that ultimately allowed for wholesale creative freedom. With her music comes Madonna’s ability to reinvent her image, constantly testing the public’s perception of the lyrical diva.

Madonna’s knack for setting fashion trends while reinventing herself has kept her in the public eye and transformed her into an international superstar. Here is a brief retrospective of Madonna’s career:

Material girl

DJ Mark Kamins of the trendy New York club Danceteria jumpstarted Madonna’s career when he took her demos–which he had played in his club to rave reviews–to Sire Records. Her self-titled debut, Madonna, comprised of hits such as “Everybody” and ” Holiday,” reached number 16 on the pop charts in 1984.

Madonna set her first fashion trend in 1984. From lace ribbon in hair to see through tank tops, from ruffled skirts to beaded necklaces, not to mention the “boy toy”-engraved belt, all became clothing necessities, as girls across the nation tried to emulate Madonna’s look from the Like A Virgin video. Madonna look-alike contests were popular in shopping malls and clubs nationwide.

This was only the beginning of her provocative sexual style. Months later, she flirted her way to No.1 with Material Girl, in which she lovingly mimicked famed blonde bombshell Marilyn Monroe, a tribute which she would repeat later.

True Blue was released in 1986, accompanied by a new, more wholesome look. Despite the girl-next-door style, Madonna received much criticism for the song “Papa Don’t Preach,” whose lyrics promoted unwed mothers keeping their babies. Though the song has stood the test of time, Madonna’s marriage to Sean Penn that same year wouldn’t. The couple broke up two years later.

Creating taboos

Madonna took on the church and Christians worldwide with the release of her album Like a Prayer in 1989. Sporting a more natural brunette hairdo, the title track’s video featured burning crosses and Madonna cavorting with a black Jesus. This led to its condemnation by The Vatican, and resulted in Pepsi’s cancellation of a sponsorship deal with Madonna.

Madonna wasn’t thrown from her megastar stride, and in 1990 released the Dick Tracy soundtrack disc I’m Breathless. Madonna starred in the film with then-beau Warren Beatty, and sported a striking resemblance–both physically and vocally–to Marilyn Monroe once again.

She didn’t stay with that look for long, as later that year, Madonna embarked on the Blonde Ambition tour, debuting both the song “Vogue” and the now infamous cone bra at the same time.

Madonna was not content to let that image of herself remain. The video to her No.1 hit “Justify My Love” is a black and white homage to orgies, which was quite naturally banned from MTV and VH1 because of its strong sexual content.

The release of the self-referential photo book Sex in 1992 dovetailed nicely with the release of the album Erotica the same year. Sex boldly revealed photographs of Madonna posing nude on a city street and wearing S&M gear. Erotica’s title track video attempted to bring those images to life, as Madonna was seen dancing sensually with a whip and locking lips with supermodel Naomi Campbell. The video was only shown late at night on MTV.

Seeing the light

Having given birth to daughter Lourdes with her former trainer Carlos Leon, Madonna began looking for yet another image renovation. When her new album Ray of Light was released in 1998, audiences saw a high-spirited, henna-tattooed Madonna.

Of course, it is not surprising that with the new millennium came a slightly different Madonna. She married Snatch director Guy Ritchie, gave birth to son Rocco, and released the album Music. Mixing folk sounds with electronica, the singer brought a new style of music to forefront of the pop stage.

The 43-year-old did not fail to entertain her fans as she performed the single Music at this year’s Grammy awards. Dancing on top of a car, wearing a sparkly tank top with the words “material girl” on it, the singer proved that nothing can stop her from giving an exhilarating performance. The single would later become Madonna’s 12th chart-topper in the U.S.

Madonna’s happy home life doesn’t mean the end of pushing limits. “What It Feels Like for a Girl,”–her latest video, directed by her husband, Guy Ritchie–was rejected for airplay by MTV and VH1 due to a depiction of a (perhaps) fatal car crash involving Madonna. MTV aired the video just once–on its premiere date at 11:30 p.m.

Madonna is currently promoting her 18-city World Drowned Tour in the United States, her first tour in eight years. SFX, her promotions company, told Pollstar that the shows would be “the most extravagant stage spectacle of her career… a celebration of artistry and technology.”

We expect nothing less from Madonna.

Previously published on hollywood.com

Sexy Stars 2001: #2 Britney Spears

Erika Remlinger — Sun, 04 Mar 2001 16:19:53 +0000

At 18-years-old, Britney Spears seductively walked on the stage at the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards in a black suit, her blonde hair tucked up underneath a black top hat. She began a rendition of the Rolling Stones’ classic tune “(I Can Get No) Satisfaction,” and just as the audience settled in, she threw off the hat, hair flying, and started singing her current hit, “Oops! I Did It Again.”

Then she ripped off the suit.

Chins dropped to the floor. Guys fell out of their seats. Britney was there to show everyone that she was “not that innocent,” and she revealed, well, more Britney than we’d ever seen. And it was a sensation.

So it’s no surprise that Spears, now 19, has made the number two spot on our sexiest stars list. She has everything going for her, gracing several magazine covers, blocking the streets of New York when she appears on MTV and “Walking This Way” with legendary Aerosmith at the Super Bowl this past January.

However, no one would have thought that the teenaged Spears would cause such a phenomenon. The Louisiana native began chasing her teeny-bopper dream at a very young age. Armed with a powerful vocal talent, an 8-year-old Britney tried her luck at shows like Star Search, and at age 10 Spears landed a role on the Mickey Mouse Club alongside her now beau Justin Timberlake of the band N’sync (fans everywhere are simply salivating over the pairing) — as well as her friendly rival Christina Aguilera.

Back in 1999, when her first solo record “Baby One More Time” burst onto the scene, it became one of the best selling albums of the year. Britney landed a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist — and gave boys everywhere the best school girl fantasy they’d ever have. She didn’t stop there, appearing on the April ‘99 cover of Rolling Stone magazine, wearing incredibly short shorts and a bra and sprawling on a bed. After that, the then 17-year-old was labeled a musical “Lolita.”

Still, teenage girls saw her as a role model, desperately wanting to become her. Britney Spears dolls began appearing on - and disappearing from — toy store shelves. The singer became a trendsetter with her tight pants and low-cut tank tops. Her next big single, Oops!I Did It Again, released in May of last year, sold 1.3 million copies during the first week of release, beating Mariah Carey’s record for the highest first-week sales by a female solo artist.

And, just like any guilty pleasure, we eagerly anticipate her next move.

Sexiest Moment:

The strip tease act she performed at the MTV Music Awards last August pretty much blew apart any preconceived ideas that Ms. Spears was an innocent ex-Mouseketeer. Co-host Marlon Wayans was speechless after her number, saying how she had suddenly gone “from the Mickey Mouse Club to the Strip Club.”

Sexiest Quote:

“All I did was tie up my shirt!” she said in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine. “I’m wearing a sports bra under it. Sure, I’m wearing thigh-highs, but kids wear those — it’s the style. Have you seen MTV — all those girls in thongs?” regarding her “Baby One More Time” video.

Hottest Music Video:

Duh. Of course it’s “Baby One More Time.” With Spears dressed as a school girl, her long blonde hair in pig-tails, her long legs clad in thigh-highs and a very, very short skirt - this could quite possibly be one of the sexiest videos of all time.

Best Physical Feature:

Those curvy hips and bare midriff that drives the boys silly. A newly acquired fairy tattoo highlights the small of her back, and a pierced navel decorates the stomach she prominently displays them whenever she gets the chance. God bless her.

In Her Future:

Spears just signed a deal with Pepsi, and her first TV commercial aired on March 25 during the 73rd Academy Awards. The deal will also include point-of-purchase promotions and Internet ties between Spears’ and Pepsi’s respective Web sites. She also co-wrote a book with her mother Lynn Spears, was released on April 10. Finally, with the acting bug firmly in place, she will begin filming a still untitled movie this month, where her character reunites with two childhood friends. Tamra Davis (Billy Madison) will direct the film.

Previously published on Hollywood.com