Michael Jackson, a famous pop star, was diagnosed with the skin disorder vitiligo, which results in white patches on the skin and sensitivity to sunlight. To treat the condition, he used fair-colored makeup and likely skin-bleaching prescription creams to cover up the uneven blotches of color caused by the illness. Jackson claimed that he had vitiligo, which causes patches of his skin to turn white due to dead pigment-producing cells.
Despite rumors about his “turning white” and numerous surgeries, Jackson denied changing his skin color for vanity reasons and repeatedly asserted that he had a disease called vitiligo. The immune system attacks cells that produce melanin, the pigments that make up the skin. Many theories developed as to why Jackson may have purposely altered his skin tone, including some believing that he wanted to look like a white person. However, the star himself and now his son have had a complicated relationship with the condition.
One of Michael Jackson’s most famous lyrics proclaims, “It doesn’t matter if you’re black or white”. However, when it comes to the late singer’s identification with vitiligo, it is important to remember that his skin did not turn lighter because he wanted to look like a different race. He had vitiligo, so he bleached certain parts of his body to even out the skin tone. His mother admitted this, and there’s nothing wrong with it.
The question of what drove Jackson to so radically alter his appearance gradually came to rival, if not overshadow, his brilliance as a performer. Michael Jackson’s father sexually abused him as a child, and his mother admitted that there’s nothing wrong with it.
📹 Why Michael Jackson’s Skin Turned White as He Got Older
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📹 A DEEP Analysis of Michael Jackson’s Changing Skin Tone! | the detail.
Michael Jackson’s skin and its complete transformation has been a fascination as well as source of controversy for the artist even …
I personally think he should’ve opened up to the world about his skin condition during his 1986 award speech. I’m sure the public, especially the fans would understand. It would’ve been a weight off his shoulders, and it would raise awareness on Vitiligo. Something like this can be very traumatic, and you can see the sadness in his eyes during those years trying to cover it. Unfortunately he was very private and insecure, which led to the media starting rumors of their own
I think people often forget he was the most famous person pretty much on the planet. Imagine dealing with several conditions whilst already being insecure from your family teasing you whilst going on stage whilst having millions of people constantly perusal you. I mean you would have to be Jesus himself in order to take the amount criticism Michael took. 99 percent of people would completely break in his situation
I remember as kids, my siblings and I sat around the tv awaiting the world premiere of Black Or White. We were surprised at how much different he looked at first (Compared to the Thriller and Bad Era), but we were happy that he was back with new music and articles and didn’t focus on the lighter skin tone. (He always looked cool no matter what!) That’s the way Michael wanted it to be, that we enjoyed and appreciated his talent first and foremost.
Michael had vitiligo. It was on his autopsy report. It was listed very high up on the report which means it was readily visible to the eye. It was one of the first things noted. It was his choice on how to treat it, no one else’s. It was his business, no one else’s. Besides it doesn’t matter what shade a person’s skin is. As Michael himself said a person should be judged by the content of their character not the shade of their skin. And the content of Michael’ s character was impeccable.
I must give major respect to The Detail as this platform is the ultimate example of professional journalism, (literally) detailed researched information and respect for Michael Jackson himself. There’s no gimmicks, zero sensationalism, embellishments, slick cheap shots or personal opinions about the person for whom is being discussed that is Mr. Jackson. There’s caring involved in this content and it shows. I appreciate this website so much. Respect on all levels.
Man, vitiligo is an awful thing to have. And I’m saying this from first hand experience. Covers at least 60% of my legs arms and face. My hands and feet are now 100% white. The changes began to happen about 16 years ago, and showing now signs of stopping completely(although it has slowed). Some people deal with it better than others. But I can imagine how difficult it must’ve been for MJ to go through it at a time when he was the most famous person on the planet. I can comprehend why he decided to make other changes overtime. But those decisions were made by a man not thinking with a great deal of clarity. May he rest in peace 🙏🏾
It doesn’t matter if you black or white, but seemingly it did matter if you black and white. But in all seriousness. I’m sorry you had that trial MJ. The world still loves you just as you were. Still. Just wish you’d have been able to look past the flaws and be happy as you were. May you rest in peace and may we see you again one day.
the last quote of michael’s brother describing his vitiligo was painful too hear…the fact that everyone still chooses to believe that michael wanted to be white TO THIS DAY shocks me, he was way too precious for this world. love how informative this article is, i hope many see it so they are educated about his skin condition
For people who are saying they are insecure about their skin tones is okay. You don’t have to change to be lighter or darker we are created the shade given. People like Micheal had a skin condition meaning he had no other choice but to even the tone out with makeup to match the color his skin was getting or in other words kept the natural vitiligo look. We all are beautiful human beings luv u all❤️also pls do not tan or bleach every single time if you choose to lighten or darken ur skin it causes skin cancer.
I can’t stress enough how spot on you guys are with helping some of us fans crack the code to questions and feelings we’ve had for decades. The fact you even bring up how he looks brown off stage Vs light skinned on stage in the mid to late 80s truly shows how embedded you guys are to us fans. Because we all tried to make sense of it and find better understanding as well.
All the changes with Michael Jackson’s features, his immense shyness and comments he made both verbally and in writing about himself makes me sad about the world in general. He’s just a more famous example of how people are forced to hate who they are and what they look like. The way they are born. The qualities and features that make each of us unique. This society has a mission to not allow people to be comfortable in their own skin. Love you Michael.
She sat and cried. How much purity and love was in these songs. Almost all texts are about love for children. His voice, so gentle and charming, which does not speak, but cries about human cruelty, anger and hatred! Michael broadcasts that he is not omnipotent, but will do everything possible in this world to make it cleaner, brighter and happier. Thank you dear for being with us. You continue to live in our hearts!
It’s crazy cause growing up as a kid we never thought about it. It never crossed my mind that he looked different from Thriller to Bad, he was still Michael Jackson. Even now showing my 4 yr old daughter his articles she’s never asked why does he look different. She just knows that’s the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. I think there’s a beauty in that no matter how he looked we just saw him!
He started having the patches during the thriller era, so yeah it definitely took more than 3-4 years for drastic change in skin colour, those acne creams and spf left a white base, and definately worsened the state of his skin . That redness on his face looked like he had harshly exfoliated his face probably due to acne insecurities he had, or had a terrible reaction to some product. It’s sad that the vitiligo skipped one generation in his family and Michael was the only one who had the worst of it, Jermaine had on his thigh, and clearly it didn’t spread that much lucky for him .
I found his statement to Oprah to be the most truthful thing he may have ever said about his skin, when he says something like “people don’t care when others tan to become other than what they are”. I read into that statement as a confession of sorts. I really don’t care if he lied, did or didn’t have vitiligo, he should do what makes him happy, at the end of the day it really is nobody’s business if he bleached his skin or not.
Poor guy, he had many things going for him like his extreme talent and wealth but he was also disadvantaged by his numerous health conditions and life traumas, I honestly feel bad for him. He was a big part of my childhood and his music still inspires me as a 29 year old man. I hope if there is a heaven he’s performing for all the people up there, I love you Michael.
It is different when you are not in the spotlight, Michael was so famous and all eyes of the whole world were on him.No wonder he wanted to look perfect, I really feel sorry for him these tabloids were picking on every aspect of his life. He had so many health conditions to fight with plus he was a very sensitive person and he still kept going.I love you Michael. Thank you@The Detail for another amazing article and creating great MJ fans community. Can’t wait for the next article 🙂
I grew up in the 80s on Michael Jackson and didn’t know anything about plastic surgery, vitiligo etc…. I just remember when the bad album came out and saw his pic on that album. We were all like “wow, what happened to Michael?” As late as 1989 and 1990, I remember Bad concert footages where he looked just like Thriller and Off the Wall MJ after he sweated off the makeup or whatever he had on – and there were no pale spots anywhere. His face structure was changing though with his plastic surgeries (chin implants, nose etc) But he def did something in the early 90s that permanently changed his pigmentation. I think he was a troubled man with self image issues vitiligo or not. I was an obsessed young MJ fan and probably too young to comprehend whatever was going on. The greatest performer ever anyway. RIP.
I bet it was weird af being a MJ fan back in the 80s and seeing in real time how his complexion changed after Thriller. Being a 96 baby and growing up with the Invincible era MJ. I thought he was a white man until I saw the Thriller MV later on. It’s so sad that such a kind hearted soul had to deal with so much issues throughout his lifetime and many of it being out of his control
2:06 the picture in the right was edited by myself back in 2018, I explained I did that with the purpose of explaining how his vitiligo would look like if he had no makeup on. So it was already known it is an edited picture, and not meant to be used as a real one, but many fans did, that’s why you said it was “debunked”.
That is so sad, I can’t even imagine going through what he had to endure, please let’s not judge another unless you walk a mile in their shoes, unless you went through what he did, you’ll never really understand how he felt, the toll it took on him, and just to bring himself some level of comfort, what he did to relieve and/or escape it. I can only say, wow what strength of character he has, especially knowing that he would never be a white man no matter what. Personally I think that he should have been even more proud of himself, for overcoming. Rest In Peace. Mr. Jackson, rip, what a hell of a life you had.
Let’s not forget his father used to say to him that he was “too black” and had a “huge nose”. It doesn’t surprise me in the least even though it is deeply heartbreaking that he carried those words with him always and they distorted his self image forever, making him change his appearance so much. It wasn’t a race thing as it was a colorism thing. He saw nothing wrong with being black in itself but rather his own complexion because his father put that into his brain at a young age. RIP 🤍
Honestly, I didn’t think he was being truthful about the vitiligo until I saw the They Don’t Care About Us article based in Brazil. That’s when I noticed the patches on his arm. Also years later, I saw a home article where he was dancing outside. It looked like it was between the Thriller & Bad era because his skin was brown, but he had white patches on his hands.
I feel so pained for Michael though he’s no more. I can imagine what he went through. I’ve happened to have disliked myself alot too and tried dealing with my insecurities by myself. I’ve been mocked at for having more or less of some parts of my body and it’s been so traumatizing that at times I don’t want to step out of the house. Seeing how courageous he was dealing with his shows despite the critics really encourages me. To an extent I think maybe he was bullied if not he won’t have noticed the changes, and that’s why he took the initiative of changing alot on his skin.
Com certeza durante os primeiros anos do vitiligo a pele dele devia voltar ao “normal” retomando a cor e depois clareando novamente, acho que com o tempo as manchas avançaram e acabou sendo muito mais fácil assumir o tom mais pálido, Michael sempre cobria o corpo o máximo que podia, sempre usando chapéu, óculos, maquiagem, é muito triste que ainda hoje as pessoas ainda continuem a fazer piadas com a aparência dele, ele fez o que podia para lidar com o vitiligo e o lupus, isso só me faz o admirar ainda mais.
My older sis has vitiligo and lupus. My mom found a patch on her eye when she was 12. No one could figure this out and this was the damn 80’s. She wasn’t diagnosed with Lupus until 1998 after my nephew’s death. Hers is noticeable, but my sister is lighter in skin tone than both Winnie and Michael. No matter how you want to see it, no one understands something like vitiligo and Lupus. He was treated like a freak by the media. Why would he want to tell them the truth when he did and they still didn’t believe him. I don’t blame him. He didn’t have to hate himself. With the world and his father constantly being on his case about his looks, vitiligo and the debilitating disease that Lupus is, were not a help for someone with a deeply scared mental view of himself. No one needs to fess up about anything. I was young when his skin was fully white and I never said anything and I was born in 96. It could be bc of my sister, but I was never interested in his looks as much as his music and the articles. He was still a black man to me. The same thing he told people many of times and they still thought this man wanted to be white. So I don’t blame him at all. They wouldn’t listen then, why keep repeating yourself?
I only wish we can begin to tell everyone in our circles that we love and accept them the way they look! MJ could have had a better self esteem if he heard those words of acceptance over and over and over again! I’m in my late 40s and grew up hearing about MJ even in Nigeria. I never really listened to his songs but of course they were regularly aired on many of our radio and television websites and I remembered well the day I noticed his skin colour change, I was somehow irritated. But recently as an adult, I stumbled on his bio on YouTube and I literally wept: because of how much he was misunderstood and because he’s no longer here by the time the world got to understand his condition. I wish he was here to hear some of the good things people say about him just because they had a better knowledge of his secret pains. Two things: 1. Don’t die in silence and don’t live for people. Accept who you are, no matter what. 2. Love genuinely and accept people irrespective of what they look like and ensure you regularly verbalise your acceptance of them. Cheers!
As both a fan and sceptic of MJ, I cannot believe that he did plastic surgery and applied products to his skin because he wanted to be white. In fact, when they were getting ready to script and film his documentary, he said it would be humiliating for a white man to play him. And, kind of as a side note, the speculation of him being LGBTQ weirds me out because he clearly wrote songs about romance with girls, was openly an heterosexual, Jehovah’s Witness, and married Lisa Marie Presley!! Thanks for making this article and I hope that more people appreciate him for who he was and the music he wrote. Just a man under terrible circumstances who did his best and wanted to be generous. And, even though it could be true, it’s hard for me to believe he hurt children with the heart he had to protect, educate, and bring them healthy homes. God Bless!
Very thorough take on MJ’s skin. Great job. One thing that you may have missed is the 1991 song ‘Word to the Badd!! by Jermaine Jackson that was leaked in 1991. It was and angry declaration directed towards MIchael with lyrics…”Once you were made, you changed your shade, was your color wrong?… could not turn back, it’s a known fact, you were too far gone.”
Wait I find your explanation about Thriller era so fascinating and eye-opening. He wasn’t trying to be lighter with lightening products, he was going too far with acne scarring treatments. Just like how he went too far with his nose, he didn’t know how to stop. Because in the 70s he was obsessed with both his acne and his nose from being made fun of. This makes so much sense. But I’m just confused on when exactly the struggle went from wanting an even complexion to battling vitiligo. I thought for the longest time that he battled vitiligo since the Off the wall era based on some photos that I know now were just perceived the wrong way by the fan community. I then realized that and the fact that he wasn’t actually diagnosed with vitiligo until 1986. Is it possible the acne scarring treatments induced a more vicious spreading of vitiligo when he probably only had a few spots on his body originally? I do know there are photos of him with almost unnoticeable vitiligo on his fingertips as a child and I do know that oddly enough it’s usually the groin area where people have the most vitiligo. That might’ve been the extent for him all his life up until 1986 when he realized it was a serious condition that was spreading and needed evaluating. Which once again not sure if it was aging or was he inducing it? Either way he started out always having a small amount of vitiligo and it’s just so amazing how he was able to lighten his skin so much BECAUSE those products work best on people with vitiligo.
It must have been hell for Michael to be as famous as he was and deal with his vitiligo, and even worse the media trying to ridicule him. He did so much for other people next to entertaining. And yet there are always people with negative energy who love these propaganda stories! So sad he had to live this way. RIP Michael 🙏
It is a known fact to everybody in the Dermatological field that vitiligo causes pigmentation areas and patches over the skin however since Michael was in the public eye and nobody knew anything about his Vitiligo until 1993 then I know for a fact that the white glove with sequins was the first signs of the disease and he had advisors advised him that his Vitiligo would get progressively worse and would inevitably cover a lot of his surface area of skin so it was the decision to lighten the darker areas so that way it will blend in better with makeup when he applies it most people who have done this though would use Brown Makeup but Michael for whatever reason used whiter makeup and he did not change himself completely White you can see that in 1985 it was just a tiny bit lighter than he was on Thriller and then in 1987 he was a little bit paler but again not completely White and even in 91 and 92 though he was paler he was more yellow. It is common knowledge in the medical field that lightening cream was a common treatment for Vitiligo and some cases is still used to lighten the darker areas with a steroid cream. many people use it today and Freckle lighteners or skin eveners and they don’t even realize they’re using a skin bleaching cream to help lighten hyperpigmentation of the skin in little dots people will put a hyperpigmentation cream on that is a skin lightening cream. He made the decision to gradually lighten the rest of his body so that way when he sweat during a performance.
I do believe Michael had a vitiligo. But at the same time for somebody who is not a fan of Michael Oher doesn’t know much of his life it’s kind of hard to tell them that he didn’t want to look or appear more white then he was black. It wasn’t just the skin but it was also his face that changed drastically in a short amount of time.
People fail to mention that vitiligo can also be caused by the overuse of bleaching creams. Michael ironically gets progressively lighter after selling 40 million records? Then, he gets a new nose job with each album & a new complexion? Bad (tan skin with chin cleft), Dangerous (yellow skin), History (pale skin with tattooed pink lips).
Dermatology resident here. At the time there was no effective treatment for vitiligo. Even today we JUST started using very newly developed JAK-inhibitors. In my country they haven’t been approved yet. I have vitiligo patients every week who I have to inform that unfortunately we cannot offer any effective treatment. There are topical treatments called Tacrolimus and Pimecrolimus that can work a little bit if treatment starts early and specifically works best on the face. UVB-light treatment can also be attempted as a treatment but doesn’t really work that well either. Michael Jackson likely chose to even out his skin tone with skin bleaching products. That’s how he chose to deal with this. That’s his right and his business.
If I was Michael, I would’ve used creams to even out the vitiligo too. Makeup could only do so much, especially while he’s performing. He would just sweat it off anyway. On top of that, he was already wearing long sleeved shirts, jackets, etc in places where it was tropic/humid. Not to mention him carrying an umbrella. This is the same MJ that loved swimming pools, amusement parks, and traveling. You really think he jeopardized being outside because he “wanted white skin”?. Before his death, when was the last time you seen a picture/video of MJ outside with a short sleeved shirt on? Don’t say “In The Closet” or “They Don’t Care About Us (Brazil)” because those areas were: A. Shaded or had cloud covering. B. Was only for brief moments.
despite being a hardship for MJ, i believe God intended for every aspect of him. He was the greatest entertainer God put on this Earth and he said it himself his gift to music came from God. I believe he was a beacon for God’s love and that God made him go through such a change to really show the world that we are all alike in His eyes, in the same way we see Michael for the wonderful and talented guy he was, with the same eyes, wether we are seeing him in his dark skin days or his light skin days. We see that he was always the same great guy, and that is how God sees all of us
I remember when i was young, I only heard rumours about how he bleached his skin and he’s having a bad reaction to it because he keeps getting lighter..sad I only learnt years later that it was a skin condition…I don’t think he was self hating at all..he included blackness, black people and culture in his career it’s amazing…jus sad he had insecurities like we all do or did (his father didn’t help at all with bullying him on his features)
5:08 – To your point about the rash, it was actually very indicative of lupus. This type of rash is a common occurrence amongst victims of lupus. It is known as the butterfly rash or malar rash. 6:07 – As to your point about the Victory Tour, there is evidence that he had started wearing makeup to cover up his vitiligo. Michael stated that he was diagnosed with vitiligo right after Thriller. Pictures of his makeup kit during the Victory Tour can attest to this. His makeup kit consisted primarily of a product called Dermablend. This is a high-pigment makeup created to cover burns, scars, and skin discolorations. Many people with vitiligo use this product as a sort of cover stick for the entire face. Due to the fact that it makes the entire surface of your skin one color, you have to use a few shades to avoid looking mask-like, and it’s very difficult to achieve a natural look. This also explains the more androgynous look that started around this time period, as you also have to provide color for everything else on your face – lips, eyelashes, bush, eyeshadow. As his skin progressively lightened, he used lighter shades of the product (which comes in tones for a variety of skin tones for a variety of skin colors). By the way, to avoid the presumption that Michael used the makeup for any other reason besides vitiligo, I have to point out the fact that there are pictures of of his glove that was stained on the inside with the Dermablend that he used to cover the vitiligo on his hands.
Biggest Mj fan ever. But I feel like maybe the initial nose job was a catalyst to all of the cosmetic changes. He was confined and limited to black categories when it came to awards and radio play, so him wanting to change his appearance and sound sonically to fit a broader audience makes sense. Don’t think it had anything to do with him not wanting to be black but more so with wanting to reach a larger audience and set himself apart from the rest. The more he changed his appearance the more success he gained in the early 80s, so it makes sense why he chose to keep pushing the limit when it came to his look. It’s almost as if he wanted to be a completely different person with each album. It may have backfired later on but he gave us so many iconic looks and moments, I think he accomplished what he was initially trying to achieve.
Yeah that Noxema would destroy my skin too. I’m sure that’s what caused the redness during the early and mid 80s. It sounds to me like Michael’s face and hands were largely unaffected by the vitiligo during this time but harsh acne treatments were destroying his skin so he used make-up to cover it while his torso was affecting his torso and legs mostly. When the Vitiligo got out of control on his torso and legs he started to lighten his whole body which is why we didn’t see white blotches on his hands and face, only gradual pigment changed. Michael just had bad skin. It’s a shame that the media at large refused to except this truth. They just loved to make him suffer. Very shameful.
We would hv loved him even more if we knew his true condition. His condition could hv given hope to those suffering the same fate. So sad the doctors n dermatologists did not help him accept his condition but instead tried transforming him. A legend he was, a legend he is n a legend he will always remain. Rest well King of Pop
Why are people acting clueless on this matter? Why do you think being lighter skinned in India and many countries in Africa is still admired today? If you are part of the Black community, you would know, why is “team light skin” seen as more advantageous than being “team dark skin”? There has always been privileges being light skinned and looking more European- in Michael’s time, and in 2022. I am 26 years old and still struggle with this stigma today. It is not rocket science. Michael knew the advantages. He took the opportunities to appear the way, he viewed, society would honor him the most if he looked like that way- in order to achieve the stardom he always dreamed of.
Well, in that case, he COULD HAVE chosen to use “white skin” on the “Dangerous” album cover, since it is simply hand drawn, but all images of him on there are clearly black/dark skin. In the end, the POINT of the matter is yes, he probably did have a certain level of “control”. So the question is, why not make himself appear white around the eyes, behind the mask on Dangerous and all the pictures of him on the amusement rides from childhood and adulthood are that of his original color?! Furthermore, there is context. While I do see a contrast in how he depicted himself day to day in his personal life, in his music, however, and the short films that accompanied them, his image had become MORE BLACK. That is why in Remember The Time for instance, Egypt, which has been historically “white washed”, he chose a more “accurate” representation of the true features of the people from that land. The SOUND of his music along with the lyrics were more centered and rooted in his blackness. The only conflict I see really is the hair, nose, wife, and children. If I have any doubts, it would be more rooted as to why he made certain decisions in those areas but honestly, I think the media was looking for a smoking gun in DEATH, to prove he was EVERYTHING they said he was, so to the shock of many the doctors involved in the autopsy CLEARLY said he had vitiligo. Had there been any deception or somehow self induced, that would clearly be discovered by the trained eye in that profession and the media would have had a 💩storm on the same level of the false sexual allegations that would resonate to this day!
For a very long time I was passenger on the bandwagon of those with believes that Michael Jackson intentionally bleached his skin to become white and because he wasn’t comfortable being black. WRONG WAS I. This man was dealing with more on the inside that was bigger, heavier than the lyrics he pours his heart, in effort to make music and entertain. It makes me feel really bad because we often quick to judge people in order to feed our personal convenience without actually being in their shoes. Sorry MJ and Family. Rest Well.
I found Jermaine an unreliable narrator in “You are Not Alone”. His description of Michael looking like white man splashed with coffee is so much more dramatic than the earlier candid images of Michael which show “splatters” if anything. I assumed he had the rare form of vitiligo (universalis) but after the points in the article I wonder if he had a more typical, limited form and decided to be proactive with the more extreme topicals. Good article as always! Looking forward to the next one. 🙂
Heck I technically use skin bleaching for my acne scaring. It’s not called that but I’m super pale. I’m a classic redhead. I think he just over did it with the treatments because of his insecurities. Nowadays he could open up about all this and it wouldn’t be a big negative thing. Too bad he didn’t get that chance
Discoid lupus doesn’t always result in such severe rashes, I have a cousin with it and it only gives him the malar rash. However, both him and MJ had to take prednisone a LOT for it, which also changed the shape of his face on and off because of water retention. He did in fact have discoid lupus, it wasn’t “harsh topicals” that made those rosy swollen cheeks, and the lupus is why his nose kept collapsing after his last intentional nose job in 1984. He only had “lifts” done after that and later in 2009 some more work using skin from around his ears, and it worked very well. As far as his stage makeup changing, I think a lot of that had to do with it being light reflective. Many have been known to do this, it makes them easier to track and their faces sort of reflect the colors of the stage lighting. Given MJ was the center of attention, it’s not surprising, especially in late 1984, that he’d want more focus on himself than his brothers given his growing dislike of touring with them, hence breaking the group up without even telling them beforehand he would. A bit of disinformation in this article for sure. This website is generally good but has been hit or miss for some time.
Its so crazy cause if you look at him as a young teen then him on 85 to 89 he actually looks nothing like his self …the person he created himself his appearance well if you seen him at 15 16 years old then seen him again at 30 being out of his life for those 15 years you would never ever know that it was the same person at all you wouldn’t know ever seriously unless him and his family told you that it was him for sure it’s so crazy how different he looked compared to how he looked as a little boy and teen ……he was an incredible singer he was absolutely amazing a true icon period just amazingly talented
I grew up always knowing Michael was a black man even with “white” skin and with zero knowledge of the Jackson dynasty. He was an entertainer whose physical image was just as critical to his success as his likability, savvy, and talent. It is obvious that he used lightening treatments to brighten and lighten his complexion. Because he started doing this during a time when it was uncommon for darker-skinned celebrities to lighten their complexions, it seemed bizarre and self-hating. However, it is not uncommon today for celebrities of all skin tones to lighten their skin. Procedures and products are far more advanced now, so many fly under the radar. I hate that people are still so critical about the changes to his face and skin, albeit drastic. He lived a very different kind of life that few can relate to. That life came with pressures, stresses, and a whole heap of crap that would kill the average person long before 50, really. We need to stop idealizing his life and start appreciating it for what it was – a spectacular, otherworldly human experience. Once in a lifetime.
“Damned if you do, damned if you don’t”. If he didn’t make an effort to even out his skin tone he would have been ridiculed. I’ve personally used hydroquinone for a little bit to even out my skin tone on my neck (not on my face) because I was insecure and my dermatologist recommended it. If it made him feel better about himself then good for him.
I really like this website. But I do have to disagree a bit. I have knowledge of both vitiligo and Lupus personally. And where it concerns MJ. Mike did have vitiligo during thriller, and before. My Mother knew his family as she worked in the music biz in the late 70s in LA during her early 20s. She saw the patches for herself. Things she has told me over the year’s. And MJ his father and Mother. It is amazing. She said MJ was shy and very kind and his brother’s were too. And his voice was really that tone. Lot’s of things people thought were fake or made up that MJ said were true. He also did have lupus. My Mom and I know have friends and family with both conditions MJ had. You can see it in pics and articles. And vitiligo can really make you look like whole different person. I know he had work done on his nose and chin, but the vitiligo really was taking over. Ther is also and interview with actress Cicely Tyson. Where she talks about the reason why he wore the glove. She states she asked her makeup artist who was his makeup artist at the time what the fashion Choice behind the glove was, and the artist says he has vitiligo spot on his fingers. It is his way of covering it up. Also as a black person, our skin can appear lighter are darker during the different season of the year. Just non black people never notice because all the see is a brown skin person. But we tan and lighten like everyone else. In winter I’m cinnamon brown (my normal color) but with a more gray ashy tone. In summer, deep to dark brown.
Below is what I know to be certain by fact, followed by what is my opinion Facts: I. Michael Jackson had vitiligo (autopsy report confirmed) II. Michael Jackson used a set of depigmentation creams e.g. Benoquin and Hydroquinone to fully transform the color of his skin head-to-toe (30 tubes were found in his mansion at the time of his death, physicians/staff of Michael’s team confirmed his use) Opinion: I. Along with his Vitiligo (depigmented patches of skin) he had since era of Off The Wall/Thriller, his deep insecurities stemming from childhood, multiple nose jobs, hair texture changes, other plastic surgeries, body dysmorphic disorder, lupus, and the stigma that he wasn’t beautiful- Michael Jackson made a full transformation and bleached his skin head to toe. My opinion is that he didn’t make this transformation solely because of a medical condition, my difficult to digest opinion is that he made this transformation to appear less “Black” looking. This is also supported by the part of his letter 9:20 ‘A lot of the blacks have been ugly to look at. You must be beautiful looking.’ He was brainwashed to not see the beauty in his race. He also was brainwashed, or reasonably convinced, that the way he naturally looked was a set back to achieving more with the stardom he dreamed of. I also think a component of this is that Michael wanted to look somewhat universal and global- not part of one race. This is solidified by what he writes in his letter ‘I will change this now with the power of my songs and dance and LOOKS and total reclusiveness and mystery world.
Wow I’m glad they presented the “Details”. So it seems like MJ might of had some form of Vitiligo but he took it to the extreme by using heavy creams and depigmentation treatments to remove most of the brown pigments. I’ve never seen a case of Vitiligo like MJ. And I’m a huge MJ fans, just seems like it went to far. I’ve seen pictures of MJ with minimal of no makeup from the Bad Era and I never saw light patches..
I think he had a really tough life… Vertiligo and an abusive father plus constantly being in the spotlight… I basically watched him negatively progress thru the nineties up until his death and I think as time went by he struggled more and more with low self-esteem and deep depression if there is a heaven I hope he is in a better place
The Detail, this is is by far the most concretely ACCURATE article on his skin change!! EVER! You deserve an award on this-you even mentioned things I didn’t know…such as his “Thriller” Era color being prevalent during the Bad Era! All of these are conclusive evidence that he did NOT have natural/genetically induced vitiligo. Anyone that choses to believe so is downright foolish. In Part 2- please mention how skin color directly correlates to how someone is treated on a daily basis, in everyday life. Mainly with covert microagressions today, and OVERT aggressions during Michael’s time. Michael was a victim of White Supremacist world. Particularly with regard to the social(color-based) hierarchy that still exists. With the devastating, dehumanizing discrimination that people with Medium Brown(and darker) skin face in virtually EVERY society today-in jobs, dating prospects, perceived attractiveness, intelligence, criminality, etc. If all of this is STILL prevalent today…just imagine it being 1000x worse in the 50’s-2000’s. Michael was simply “playing the game” to win in this WS world…and he super-seeded every limit anyone could place on him! Regardless of his skin lightening. In ANY/every era-he was incredibly attractive, pure, kind-spirited, supremely talented, cultured/worldly, and downright magnetic! He knew the confines that people would place on his brown color-and did what he had to do to shatter those bias. Classic example of “don’t hate the player, hate the (white supremacist) societal game!
I only want the truth. I don’t like hero worship and people shouldn’t be hero-worshipping, in the comments . As a Black American, pre-1980 baby…who loved the Jacksons, since 1979…I am not a LATE, trendy “fan”. Therefore, I don’t need white fans, non-Americans…..or younger, LATE “fans” dismissing the significance of Black luminaries altering their appearance. I was a young, Black male with BROTHERS, who saw Michael and HIS brothers—since 1979. I BLAME JOE JACKSON. 100% He put these self-hate ideas, into Michael’s brain. How does nearly ALL of the siblings (including Tito’s sons) get nose surgery/rhinoplasty!? COME ON. Even Michael said Joe ridiculed his skin tone and nose. The evidence is: the autopsy info (but not listing the extent of the body coverage)….and tubes recovered from his bedroom (although he denied this, to Oprah). Also, Dr. Klein’s interview with Larry King (ie; going “lighter” with the special cremes). Michael’s Mom, Katherine stating (to Oprah, in 2011): “Michael kept saying he doesn’t want to look like a cow…” and lightened his skin. So, what was the extent? How does Michael have a complexion in the 1991 Oscars (with Madonna as his date, in February/March)….but, suddenly paler skin AND A DIFFERENT NOSE—by the release of “Dangerous ( November, 1991)” ?🤨 He also lied about the amount of nose surgeries 😑 I get it…Michael wanted to be private and “old school”. But, when he lies with a straight face….it makes people like me look foolish.
Oh Michael! I am sitting here imagining my own younger years obsessed with makeup because the complements I got but hated the work and going anywhere without and that’s a female with just face makeup as a regular person! Poor Michael had to battle this all while in the public eye, makeup while dancing, hiding from the sun, constant touch ups and experimentation with shades and makeup brands and creams under the makeup, not to mention surgery and healing time from surgery. Not always being able to have a makeup person by your side but a man as famous as he was he was constantly surrounded by maids, bodyguards, family, friends all the staff. It’s not like he can just go home and close the door and take it all off without eyes of non family members around. Oh not to mention he was wearing a wig most of the time after the tragic accident and burns to his head. Goodness! It’s hot wearing a wig, makeup is difficult to keep looking fresh in the summer or warm days. He has medicated creams on under his makeup then layers of thick makeup then constant touch ups to that through the day or on set, HOT bright lights while wearing this wig and heavy makeup as well as long sleeves and pants and trying to pull it all off to look as natural as possible wishing you just looked the way your trying to keep up looking like but because it’s not real, it’s constant work. If you change one thing then it might make something else look a bit off so you gotta fix that. Then you have to deal with trying not to get makeup on everything like your expensive clothes or on other people.
He should not have had to justify anything to anyone. That’s just what I think, but because he was famous people were nitpicking the hell out of his physical features….wanting to know why this and why that. He really didn’t owe anybody any explanations, though, because just like any other person, he was entitled to his privacy and to keep his medical issues just between he and his doctor. If he had wanted to speak out more candidly about his skin condition then he would have, but I think that he was too self-conscious to do so. He just wanted to be loved and not criticized, and I don’t blame him. ♥️
He should’ve just been open and honest and vulnerable. It could have helped so many people worldwide especially in the black community dealing with the same condition. Like the bad album came out in 87’ and everyone especially people in the black community felt neglected, like you can’t make such a drastic change and give no explanation lol
This article is really well made. Much was said and yet there’s much that we people do not know about Michael’s skin. He had the vitiligo condition, he was very self-conscious but he was proud of being a black man. Nevertheless, there was a whole lot of information I didn’t know about the disease itself and the application of the creams. Great job!
To those who thought that he bleeched his skin… Michael never did that, he had a skin disorder that is called Vitiligo. He can’t control it whatsoever, He hid the blotches on his skin with makeup so others can’t ridicule him. In his time, there were many racial issues and people judge you on what you look. He hid his insecurity because his love for music and for entertaining us. And also… MICHAEL WAS PROUD BEING BLACK.
So during the Bad era he appeared artificially lightened on-stage and during music article & publicity shoots yet in the majority of the private footage, from this era, he clearly has his original skin-tone without a single blotch or discernible sign of his supposed skin ailment… I’m calling BS on the Vitiligo excuse. Even in the Black or White article, he is clearly still a Black man albeit with a ton of pancake makeup on his face. Then six months later he’s magically completely white in the “Remember the Time” article. Look, I’m a big admirer of MJ’s musical talent but the guy clearly had issues with his appearance and took drastic measures to not look like Joseph. If he didn’t, there would be no need to photographically doctor the Bad album cover to appear more racially ambiguous before a single sign of his supposed disease was visible on his face. And if you don’t believe me, just look at the photograph at the 7:58 mark of this article… Where’s the Vitiligo there? He looks just like the Thriller MJ with longer hair, a smaller nose and a cleft-chin. He obviously underwent a drastic and invasive procedure, in 1992, to alter his skin. Sorry delusional fanboys but that’s the truth.
when he was brown the patches got bigger use a lot of makeup while performing or out of public. he wore that white glove for reason in the 80s..before it was easier to where heavy make up to hide the parches.. over the years the patches got so big and pigments of skin was crumbling.and giant patches.. now he had to tone it to white or even bleach it
I’m a fan of his music and think he was a fascinating person, and certainly felt insane pressure by being a public figure, but he was also very stubborn and entirely too fixated on his appearance to the point of going to extremes, which didn’t help his public image. People are saying how terrible it is that the public believed he was bleaching his skin, but he was clearly so disturbed by his own condition that he did several things to hide his skin. He lied about his plastic surgeries many times. He never accepted himself and used his money to alter his look in extreme ways that isn’t normal for other celebrities who come into a lot of money. He would just continue to do whatever he wanted in the public eye and then would lament over rumor and speculation that he would fuel himself.
He did have vitiligo: It’s in his autopsy report. Nevertheless, it’s unnatural for it to spread in such a uniformed fashion. Doctors have postulated that his prior abuse of skin bleaching agents led to what is known as chemically induced vitiligo. In short, vitiligo alone does not could for his unnaturally white (translucent actually) complexion. Edit: MJ was the richest entertainer in the world, and arguably one of the most powerful men on the planet. Are you guys actually going to dig in your heels and deny that he could have afforded to maintain at least SOME of his brown complexion? Dr Stephen Hoefflin & Arnie Klien behaved unethically by practically changing Michael’s species.
Just fyi if someone without vitiligo uses topical medications for it, not only will it be ineffective, but if it happens to depigment even a small patch of a normal person’s skin, it will return back to its original color since it only affects the epidermis and nothing deeper or follicular. A person with vitiligo is already loosing their melanocytes so they will not experience repigmentation of their skin when using topical medications, it just speeds up the inevitable. Michael Jackson had to have vitiligo because his skin transformation is literally impossible without it.
sometimes I get the feeling you’ve had enough of MJ. if you wanted to go over another celebrity I would be OK with that. I like MJ but I’m not part of his “cult” (okay maybe a little) but like other celebrities have “cults” too so I don’ think it’d be a betrayal if you wanted to branch out. This website is amazing. as for his skin imo he can be any color he wants and if I had vitiligo I’d be more concerned about the evenness than the color.
Michael was diagnosed with lupus right after Thriller. He had the typical butterfly rash around the nose and cheeks. Lupus can cause migraines, joint- and muscle pain and later inflamed lungs, shortness of breath. It also leads to a discoloration of the fingernails, he later taped his fingernails, that you can’t see the discoloration. It is confirmed in his autopsy. He had also vitiligo. He had white spots in his face and body and the white spots were getting larger. He went to Dr. Klein, a dermatologist. Michael had to protect his skin, that’s why he had always an umbrella, because the white spots are photosensitive and it can easily cause skin cancer. Michael said the truth in the interview. “You can’t bleach the skin”. You can only lighten the skin. That’s the typical treatment of a dermatologist. They give you Hydroquinone to even out the skin and then the patient is even out the skin tone with make up. That is a long process. As Karen Faye, his makeup artist, confirmed, in the beginning they had to cover the white spots with darker makeup. Then the white spots got so big, that they had to cover up the dark spots with lighter makeup. There are no lightening chemical peels, there are only acne peels and healing peels for acne scaring. He might have had some chemical peels for his scaring. But I don’t think that he had chemical peels, because the white spots are so sensitive, a chemical peel would have burned the light spots. Melanin, the brown pigments in the skin, is our defense system.
A pele o externo do corpo nao diz nada e sim a essência do eu interno,ele sempre foi e um grande homem pelo se carácter e transmissão do seu eu para com o próximo,e era o anjo desfalsado na terra,transmitiu sabedoria atraz de músicas,foi professor de amor ao próximo perante sua letra composta,sempre humilde e bom senso,sentiu sempre a dor do próximo,matou a fome de muito e ajudar indiretamente a muito que usa sua caracterista de dança e música e faz comércio da vida de Michel,foi um importante para todos,mesmo vivo ou não ele deixou um legado de bom homem mais foi invejado por muito,mais todos que tentaram lhe derrubar,estão a pagar suas contas com o divino,por deus tarda,mais não falha e Michel será sempre o rei anjo que alegrou e continua alegrando a muito 🙏