Zeenews Bureau
London, July 03: Michael Jackson had attributed
his changing skin colour to the rare disease of vitiligo but
his close friend and 'Thriller' producer Quincy Jones has come
out saying that the singer altered his appearance because he
did not like being black.
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Jones claims that Jackson, who died last week, lied
about his skin condition as he just "didn't want to be black",
Sun online reported.
Jones, the man behind some of Jackson's greatest hits
including 'Bad' and 'Thriller' said that whenever asked about
his changing appearances, the pop star always claimed that it
was a disease that lightened his skin from black to white.
"You're justifying something that's destructive to
your existence. But when somebody's hell-bent on it, you can't
stop them. What his face turned into is ridiculous. Chemical
peels and all of it. And I don't understand it. But he
obviously didn't want to be black. You see his kids?," said
Jones.
The music mogul also said that he never understood why
Jackson has such an issue with his appearance.
"He'd come up with, 'Man, I promise you I have this
disease,' and so forth, and 'I have a blister on my lungs,'
and all that. It's hard, because Michael's a Virgo, man, he's
very set in his ways. You can't talk him out of it.
"I'm just a musician and a record producer. I'm not a
psychiatrist. I don't understand all that stuff. We all got
problems," he added.
Jackson funeral on Tuesday
MJ will receive a final goodbye from millions of his fans in a
public memorial on Tuesday amid reports that his ex-wife is
gearing up for a court battle over the custody of his two
elder children.
Debbie Rowe, a former nurse, who is the mother of
Prince Michael, 12 and Paris, 11, made her intentions clear
when she appealed for and won a delay in the custody hearing,
which has been now postponed to July 13 by the Superior Court.
"I want my children. They are my flesh and blood. I'm
going after my children," Rowe, 50, said in an interview to
NBC yesterday in her first official comment over the issue but
her attorney Eric M George claimed that she was yet to make a
final decision.
Jackson's 79-year-old mother Katherine Jackson has
been given the temporary custody of his three children by the
court while the pop star's 2002 will names Katherine and
singer Diana Ross as the legal guardians of his children,
cutting out Rowe from the picture.
Rowe, 50 who married Jackson in 1996 and divorced him
three years later, gave up the rights to her two kids after
her divorce in 1999, with Jackson getting the full custody.
Phillips, the president and CEO of AEG, said the service will begin at 10 a.m. (1700 GMT) at the 20,000-capacity Staples Centre with live images screened on widescreen televisions for an overflow crowd expected to gather in the plaza outside the huge basketball stadium and convention centre.
Information was also released about registering for free tickets for Jackson's public memorial. There will be a draw of lots through which over 11,000 tickets will be issued to those who register.
Plans to hold the memorial at Jackson's home in Neverland had to be cancelled because of the difficulties expected in dealing with thousands of fans in the remote region. But Jackson's brother Jermaine told the Today Show Thursday that the family still hoped to make the fantasy-like refuge his final resting place once permits were obtained.
Powerful sedative found in MJ's homeThe powerful sedative Diprivan was found in Michael Jackson's home, a law enforcement official said Friday.
Diprivan is an anesthetic widely used in operating rooms to induce unconsciousness. Also known as Propofol, it's administered intravenously and is very unusual to have in a private home.
The law enforcement official spoke on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak about the matter.
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