Sadly, the solidarity that the Jackson family displayed in the wake of Michael Jackson’s untimely death earlier this summer seems to be showing signs of fraying. News broke today of not one but two separate Michael Jackson tributes being planned. The first, and presumably the most exciting, will come during the MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday night, when Janet Jackson will reportedly take the stage with twenty backup dancers moonwalking behind her. TMZ is reporting that rehearsals for this performance, details of which are still top secret, have been lasting upwards of fifteen hours per day, so we’re expecting to see something other than just an elaborate re-creation of the “Scream†video. Meanwhile, Michael’s older brother Jermaine is planning a global tribute concert that, for some odd reason, will be held in Vienna on September 26. Unfortunately for Jermaine, though, other members of the Jackson clan don’t seem to be too psyched for this show.
Although Jermaine has done a decent job lining up talent for his show — Mary J Blige, Akon, and Chris Brown (really?) are among the fifteen or so artists who are allegedly going to be on the lineup — unnamed members of the Jackson clan have gone straight to TMZ honcho Harvey Levin to voice their disapproval of the event they’re labeling as “the Jermaine Jackson Show.†They claim their mom, Katherine, was “badgered†into voicing her support for the show and that none of the rest of the family will be in attendance that day. They also make the (admittedly very good) point that there is no particular reason to hold a concert of this magnitude in Austria, a country that didn’t hold any particular resonance for either Michael or his fans. Jermaine refutes this, saying that the location was chosen because Michael (and we quote) “loved castles.â€
Janet Jackson – If the Glove Fits [TMZ]
Blige, Brown to perform at Vienna Jackson tribute [AP]