№ 18 · SONG
Got To Be There — Solo at 13
First solo single, October 7, 1971
MICHAEL JACKSON
The King of Pop
★ COMMON
← MICHAEL JACKSON
CARD N° 18 · SONG · ★ COMMON
Got To Be There — Solo at 13
First solo single, October 7, 1971
№ 18 SONG
Got To Be There — Solo at 13
Michael was thirteen years old when Motown released him as a solo act in parallel with the Jackson 5. His debut single, Got To Be There, peaked at #4 on the US pop chart and #5 in the UK — a hit before his voice had fully changed.
▶ THE MOMENT
Michael Jackson — Got To Be There (1971)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8N0eROkV1Y0
MICHAEL JACKSON · B·SIDE · VOL.I
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THE FACT
Michael was thirteen years old when Motown released him as a solo act in parallel with the Jackson 5. His debut single, Got To Be There, peaked at #4 on the US pop chart and #5 in the UK — a hit before his voice had fully changed.
WHAT MOST DON'T KNOW
The song was written by Elliot Willensky and produced by The Corporation. The strategy was Berry Gordy's: keep the Jackson 5 going at full speed while Michael also released solo records, doubling the revenue stream and softening the eventual leap Michael would have to make as he matured. The album of the same name was Motown's fastest-selling debut for any solo artist in the label's history at the time. The single's B-side — Maria (You Were the Only One) — would be Michael's first solo composition credited under his own name, written when he was twelve. Lou Rawls, who heard the track on the radio, reportedly called Berry Gordy and said: 'You're going to ruin that boy by working him this hard. But God, that voice.'
▶
THE MOMENT
Michael Jackson — Got To Be There (1971) — His first solo single — recorded at age 13.