Michael Jackson

=== Move to Epic and ''Off the Wall'' (1975–1981) ===
[[File:Jackson siblings 1977.jpg|thumb|upright|The Jackson siblings in 1977, without Jermaine. From left, back row: [[Jackie Jackson|Jackie]], Michael, [[Tito Jackson|Tito]], [[Marlon Jackson|Marlon]]. Middle row: [[Randy Jackson (Jacksons singer)|Randy]], [[La Toya Jackson|La Toya]], [[Rebbie Jackson|Rebbie]]. Front row: [[Janet Jackson|Janet]]]]
The Jackson 5 left Motown in 1975, signing with [[Epic Records]] and renaming themselves the Jacksons.<ref>{{cite web |first=Steve |last=Huey |title=The Jackson 5 – Artist Biography |work=AllMusic |access-date=April 8, 2019 |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-jackson-5-mn0000083013/biography |archive-date=June 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200614154543/https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-jackson-5-mn0000083013/biography |url-status=live }}</ref> Their younger brother Randy joined the band around this time; Jermaine stayed with Motown and pursued a solo career.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2009|pp=138–144}} The Jacksons continued to tour internationally, and released six more albums between 1976 and 1984. Michael, the group's main songwriter during this time, wrote songs such as "[[Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)]]" (1978), "[[This Place Hotel]]" (1980), and "[[Can You Feel It (The Jacksons song)|Can You Feel It]]" (1980).<ref>{{cite web |title=The Jackson 5 Biography |publisher=[[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]] |access-date= May 31, 2015 |archive-date= March 31, 2019 |url=https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/the-jackson-five/bio/ |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190331180213/https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/the-jackson-five/bio}}</ref>

In 1977, Jackson moved to New York City to star as the [[Scarecrow (Oz)|Scarecrow]] in ''[[The Wiz (film)|The Wiz]]'', a musical film directed by [[Sidney Lumet]], alongside [[Diana Ross]], [[Nipsey Russell]], and Ted Ross.<ref>{{cite web |first=Bill |last=Gibron |title=You Can't Win Michael Jackson and 'The Wiz' |website=[[PopMatters]] |date=July 7, 2009 |access-date=May 10, 2017 |url=https://www.popmatters.com/feature/107586-you-cant-win-michael-jackson-and-the-wiz/ |archive-date=July 30, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170730230644/http://www.popmatters.com/feature/107586-you-cant-win-michael-jackson-and-the-wiz/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The film was a box-office failure.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2009|pp=178–179}} Its score was arranged by [[Quincy Jones]],{{sfn|Bronson|2003|p=207}} who later produced three of Jackson's solo albums.<ref name="Who's Bad">{{cite news |title=Who's bad? Michael Jackson's estate owes Quincy Jones $9.4m in royalties, jury decides |newspaper=The Guardian |agency=Associated Press |date=July 27, 2017 |access-date=April 14, 2019 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/jul/27/michael-jacksons-estate-owes-quincy-jones-9m-royalties-jury-decides |archive-date=April 14, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190414001040/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/jul/27/michael-jacksons-estate-owes-quincy-jones-9m-royalties-jury-decides |url-status=live }}</ref> During his time in New York, Jackson frequented the [[Studio 54]] nightclub, where he heard early [[hip hop music|hip hop]]; this influenced his [[beatboxing]] on future tracks such as "[[Working Day and Night]]".<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Elias |last=Leight |title=10 Things We Learned from Spike Lee's Michael Jackson Doc |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=February 5, 2015 |access-date=January 27, 2017 |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/10-things-we-learned-from-spike-lees-new-michael-jackson-doc-20160205 |archive-date=February 5, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170205203736/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/10-things-we-learned-from-spike-lees-new-michael-jackson-doc-20160205 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1978, Jackson broke his nose during a dance routine. A [[rhinoplasty]] led to breathing difficulties that later affected his career. He was referred to [[Steven Hoefflin]], who performed Jackson's operations.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2009|pp=205–210}}

Jackson's fifth solo album, ''[[Off the Wall]]'' (1979), established him as a solo performer and helped him move from the [[bubblegum music|bubblegum]] pop of his youth to more complex sounds.{{sfn|Young|2009|p=25}} It produced four top 10 entries in the US: "[[Off the Wall (Michael Jackson song)|Off the Wall]]", "[[She's Out of My Life]]", and the chart-topping singles "[[Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough]]" and "[[Rock with You]]".<ref name="FourUSTop10s">{{cite magazine |first=Gary |last=Trust |title=Ask Billboard: Remembering the Time When Michael Jackson Kept Hitting the Hot 100's Top 10, From 'Thriller' to 'Dangerous' |magazine=Billboard |date=January 21, 2018 |access-date=April 7, 2019 |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/8095269/michael-jackson-bruno-mars-ed-sheeran-ask-billboard |archive-date=May 10, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180510101751/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/8095269/michael-jackson-bruno-mars-ed-sheeran-ask-billboard |url-status=live }}</ref> The album reached number three on the US [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]] and sold over 20{{nbsp}}million copies worldwide.<ref>{{cite web |title=Michael Jackson: Off The Wall |publisher=[[Virgin Media]] |access-date= May 31, 2015 |url=https://www.virginmedia.com/music/classicalbums/michaeljackson-offthewall.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150701200501/https://www.virginmedia.com/music/classicalbums/michaeljackson-offthewall.php |archive-date=July 1, 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In 1980, Jackson won three [[American Music Award]]s for his solo work: Favorite Soul/R&B Album, Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist, and Favorite Soul/R&B Single for "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough".<ref>{{cite news |title=Donna Summer and Michael Jackson sweep Annual American Music Awards |date=January 20, 1980 |newspaper=[[The Ledger]] |agency=[[Associated Press]] |access-date=May 31, 2015 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wYEsAAAAIBAJ&pg=6776,1201107 |archive-date=June 13, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200613061154/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wYEsAAAAIBAJ&pg=6776,1201107 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Ida |last=Peters |title=Donna No. 1, Pop and Soul; Michael Jackson King of Soul |newspaper=[[Baltimore Afro-American|The Afro-American]] |date=February 2, 1980 |access-date=May 31, 2015 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=EaMkAAAAIBAJ&pg=3100,419518 |archive-date=June 13, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200613061153/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=EaMkAAAAIBAJ&pg=3100,419518 |url-status=live }}</ref> He also won a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for 1979 with "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough".<ref name="grammy mj">{{cite web |title=Michael Jackson |publisher=National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences |date=February 15, 2019 |access-date=April 7, 2019 |url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/michael-jackson |archive-date=November 17, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171117085231/https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/michael-jackson |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1981, Jackson was the American Music Awards winner for Favorite Soul/R&B Album and Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist.<ref>{{cite news |title=Few Surprises in Music Awards |newspaper=[[Sarasota Herald-Tribune]] |agency=Associated Press |date=February 1, 1981 |access-date=May 31, 2015 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=sPIcAAAAIBAJ&pg=6226,95260 |archive-date=June 13, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200613061150/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=sPIcAAAAIBAJ&pg=6226,95260 |url-status=live }}</ref> Jackson felt ''Off the Wall'' should have made a bigger impact, and was determined to exceed expectations with his next release.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2009|p=188}} In 1980, he secured the highest [[Royalties|royalty]] rate in the music industry: 37 percent of wholesale album profit.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2009|p=191}}