Jacksons, buffs join for UK tribute gig

CADRIFF: Thousands of Michael Jackson fans gathered at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday for a controversial concert attended by his mother, three children and some, but not all, of his siblings.

"Michael Forever" is going ahead despite a series of setbacks, including squabbling in the Jackson clan, angry fans and a major headline act pulling out at the last moment.

"It's going to be a huge and spectacular event," said Chris Hunt, head of Global Live Events, which is staging the show for up to 50,000 fans.

In a sign of the difficulties he has faced putting the tribute together and promoting it, 10,000 tickets were still unsold in the days before the gig.

Among the acts taking part will be Jackson's brothers Marlon, Tito and Jackie and his sister La

Toya, who will be performing live in public for the first time in nearly 20 years.
Also expected are his mother Katherine, three children and several other close family members.

But brothers Jermaine and Randy have criticized the concert, because it coincides with the involuntary manslaughter trial in Los Angeles of Jackson's doctor. Janet Jackson has declined to take part citing the same reason.

"Thriller" singer Michael, one of the most successful yet troubled artists of the pop era, died in 2009 aged 50 while rehearsing for a series of comeback concerts.

"BEST THERE IS"

In addition to the Jacksons, the lineup includes Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Jamie Foxx, Gladys Knight and Smokey Robinson, and among British stars appearing will be Leona Lewis, Alexandra Burke, JLS and Diversity.

Beyonce will appear in a video performance but Black Eyed Peas, originally confirmed to attend, pulled out earlier this week without explanation.

Some fan clubs have also protested against organizers, questioning the timing of the gig and confusion over charitable donations.

Hunt told Reuters earlier this week that some of the profits would go to two appointed charities as well as a trust for Jackson's children.

While acknowledging that the difficulties had taken some of the gloss off the event, fans gathering outside the stadium were excited to be able to pay homage to their idol.
"He was the best there is," said Kerry Hall-Smith, from Cardiff, who had a special T-shirt printed for the event.

"He's one of the legends, he's like Elvis. They are the people you remember forever." (Reuters)

Michael Jackson doctor due in court in LA

LOS ANGELES: Michael Jackson's doctor Conrad Murray finally goes on trial Tuesday accused over the King of Pop's death two years ago, aged 50, from an overdose of a powerful drug.

A jury of seven men and five women will be sworn in at Los Angeles' Superior Court to decide Murray's fate on involuntary manslaughter charges over the star's death on June 25, 2009.

Murray, 58, faces up to four years in jail if convicted at the twice-delayed trial, expected to last five weeks.

Murray is accused of giving Jackson an overdose of the powerful sedative propofol to help alleviate his insomnia at a rented estate in the posh Holmby

Hills neighborhood while rehearsing for a series of London comeback shows.

The doctor has never denied administering the drug -- typically used as an anesthetic during surgery -- to Jackson, but denies having "abandoned his patient" at the fatal moment.

His lawyer Ed Chernoff is expected to argue that the world-famous "Thriller" singer, desperate for sleep, administered more of the drug himself while Murray was out of the room.

The trial will be televised live, but judge Michael Pastor has stressed that jurors cannot be recorded in any way. He has rejected a defense request for them to be sequestered, as took place during the O.J. Simpson trial.

Security will be ratchet-tight at the court in downtown Los Angeles, where a major media circus is expected to be joined by often colorful Jackson supporters lamenting the star's demise and demanding justice.

Some fans complain that Grenada-born Murray, who was being paid $150,000 a month by Jackson at the time of his death, faces only four years in jail. He has been free on $75,000 bail since being charged in February 2010.

"I believe the trial is going to be a big disappointment no matter what the outcome is," said Wesley Noorhoff, head of the Legendary Michael Jackson Fan Association, which has members in over 180 countries.

The jurors include high school graduates, some with a college education and one with an MBA. Six substitute jurors were chosen in case any of the first 12 selected drop out.

Half are Jackson fans -- one of those selected, a 54-year-old woman, wrote that she "loved his music as a very young girl, as an adult not so much," while a man of the same age said he thought Jackson was a "gifted performer."

The trial was originally due in March, but was delayed twice. In that time the judge has rejected a string of requests, notably to let Jackson's former doctors testify, in what the defense hoped would prove he was a drug addict.

On the eve of the trial the judge ruled that footage of Jackson the London comeback shows cannot be shown in court.

Murray's defense lawyers claimed the footage showed Jackson already under the influence of drugs -- by implication out of control -- while prosecutors said the footage was "absolutely irrelevant."

Jackson's family is expected in court -- his mother and father, Katherine and Joe Jackson, as several of his siblings who attended six days of pre-trial hearings in January.

But simmering tensions between them were stirred in July, when Katherine Jackson announced a tribute concert for her son, scheduled in Britain on October 8, a couple of weeks into the trial.

Two of her sons, Randy and Jermaine, immediately criticized the plans as "inappropriate" and an "ill-timed event" during the LA trial of their brother's doctor. (AFP)

Plans for Jackson tribute show ignite family row

Michael Jackson's mother and four siblings announced Monday plans for a star-studded tribute concert for the late pop icon, but the show was blasted as "ill-timed" by two other Jacksons.

Jermaine and Randy Jackson said the family should be concentrating on the upcoming manslaughter trial of their brother's doctor, which will be going on in Los Angeles when the planned show is staged in Britain in October.

The Michael Forever show is set for October 8 in Cardiff, Wales, and will be broadcast to 30 countries around the world, said his mother Katherine Jackson, sister La Toya and brothers Tito, Marlon and Jackie.

"The world's greatest performing artists" will play at the show, according to its website, although promoter Chris Hunt declined to name names, saying they will announce artists at another press conference in London on August 3.

Jackson's mother said "as many members of my family that are available" will be at the concert, adding: "Michael gave his entire life to the world through his love, his music and his devotion to healing the planet.

"I am positive that this event will be an event great enough in scale, talent and imagination to form a worthy celebration of Michael's life," she said at a press conference in Beverly Hills.

But Randy and Jermaine Jackson -- who tried but failed to organize a tribute show after Jackson's 2009 death -- blasted the timing of the new show, which will coincide with the September manslaughter trial of Jackson's doctor.

"While we wholeheartedly support the spirit of a tribute that honors our brother, we find it impossible to support an event that is due to take place during the criminal trial surrounding Michael's death," they said.

Doctor Conrad Murray, charged with manslaughter for giving the singer an overdose of powerful sedative propofol, is due to go on trial with opening statements on September 20, less than three weeks before the Cardiff concert.

"In light of this, we feel it is inappropriate to be involved with such an ill-timed event and its promoter, Global Live," said Jermaine and Randy Jackson in a statement.

"Furthermore, the decision to proceed with this concert disrespects opinions and wishes expressed in the strongest terms to Global Live during conversations in April when this event was presented to the majority of the family."

Global Live chief Chris Hunt defended the Cardiff plans, saying they would be "worthy of Michael's musical genius ... something fun and authentic that you would envision Michael attending with excitement and joy."

Tickets for the concert in the 75,000-seat Millennium Stadium in Cardiff -- with a fully retracting roof the biggest indoor venue in Europe, according to the organizers -- will go on sale online on August 4, they added.

The concert will raise money for charities including Prince Charles' Prince's Trust in Britain, and the AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA). (AFP)