Hip-Hop producer Swizz Beatz has claimed that he is working on the production for a Michael Jackson tour.

Although details have yet to be confirmed about Jackson’s tour plans, it’s been widely reported that the singer will announce live shows in 2008.

Speaking to MTV, Beatz claimed that he woould be working on the dates, although he didn’t specify any more details.

“I’m probably gonna be producing his tour and everything,” he said.

Click Here to read the complete interview.

Source: MTV

By Roger Friedman

Michael Jackson had better wake up and smell the coffee. He’s got a real, solid, $1 million-a-night offer on the table to play London’s Millennium Dome.

AEG Live, as I told you a few weeks ago, wants Jackson to play its Millennium Dome in London. Sources tell me they’ve made him an extraordinary offer.

The deal that’s been offered could total up to $30 million. It begins with a $10 million guarantee for 10 nights, with a maximum of 30 nights adding up to $30 million.

The first grouping is all he has to do, though, just those 10 shows. With bump-ups, etc., he could gross around $17 million.

It’s not a hard show to do, either. The proposal, as I’ve been told, is for Jackson to stage his bestselling album “Thriller” from beginning to end at each show. Then, for encores, he would add in several hits from “Off the Wall” and other albums.

The catch: These shows must be completed by the end of 2008, to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the album. The promoters originally thought it could happen this spring, but they’ve revised their plans to the fall.

“Thriller 25″ — with tracks remixed by Akon, will.i.am and others — was released Tuesday and is said to be selling very well. Hitsdailydouble.com predicts the package could sell between 90,000 and 120,000 copies.

Not bad for a 25-year-old recording.

This whole deal for Jackson to perform at the Millennium Dome is tricky. I’m told the AEG people really wanted Jackson to make some kind of appearance at the Grammys on Sunday to drum up excitement.

The AEG offer should pique Michael’s interest for other reasons, too. If he can complete the 30-concert run, he’d beat Prince’s record of 21 shows. And, sources say, Prince didn’t clear the $1 million-a-night take. Why?

“He charged 31.21 British sterling per show. He got the number from the album that was out at the time, called “3121.” And that was taken from his address. And the numbers added up to seven, which he also liked.”

Luckily, Michael Jackson has no address at this time, so that shouldn’t be a problem.

Source: FOX News

MJFC works diligently to bring you, the fans, the most reliable information concerning Michael Jackson. We never speculate on what Michael might be thinking or why he may or may not do something. Therefore, in regards to the Grammy absence, we have no reliable information as to why he didn’t attend and/or perform. Should this information become available it will be posted immediately to our news.

Source: MJFC-USA

By Roger Friedman

Michael Jackson’s manager of the last two years, Raymone Bain, may finally be gone.

Bain, who started out as Jackson’s publicist during his 2005 child-molestation trial, was fired, re-hired and then asserted a new role. She was incredibly unpopular with fans, who felt she isolated Jackson from them.

More importantly, under Bain’s regime, Jackson was sued several times which resulted in several expensive settlements. Right now, Jackson’s Neverland Ranch faces imminent foreclosure — maybe as early as Tuesday, if Fortress Investments decides it wants to auction it off for the $23 million owed.

Bain is telling insiders she’s quit, by the way.

But the conventional wisdom in Jackson-land is that the King of Pop may have finally awakened to the chaos in his kingdom and sent her to the gallows.

More to come, as we all know.

Source: FOX News

By Roger Friedman

First of all, Michael Jackson has evidently found someone to buy his $300 million main loan from Fortress Investments.

The dubious winner of this prize is said to be HSBC, the same bank that recently wrote down $3.4 billion in losses on bad credit and closed several hundred branches.

Details are sketchy, but the international bank — with Sony’s help — is nevertheless taking on the debt. The refinancing should kick out about $20-$25 million in cash for the liquidity-free singer.

But it’s not all a golden story. Jackson still owes Fortress $23 million for the loan secured by his Neverland Ranch. The default notice issued Oct. 12, 2007, had a 90-day moratorium, which means time is running out. The deadline before foreclosure would run somewhere between Jan. 12 and 19.

And guess what? Jackson, my sources say, will not use that new cash to pay the Neverland debt.

“It’s all the money he has,” one source says. “And you know how fast he can run through that.”

More than likely he won’t pay off the $4 million mortgage he’s got on his parents’ home in Encino, either.

But Jackson may have a way to make money. As I told you last week exclusively, AEG Live has been talking to Jackson about doing a tour. Now I hear that the proposal is to do a series of shows just at the O2 Arena outside of London, the same venue where Led Zeppelin just played.

The shows would run from March through April, all at O2. They’d be stripped down, and not big productions. Fans would be expected to travel to Jackson rather than make him go around the world.

They’d also be pricey for fans, because Jackson would by then need some big, big bucks to fill his emptying coffers. But it might be worth it: the word is that the basis of the show would be, soup to nuts, a 25th anniversary re-creation of “Thriller” to go along with the soon-to-be-released Sony CD and video package.

AEG’s Randy Phillips, who used to co-manage Rod Stewart, is behind the plan. Sources say he and Jackson have met several times, and that Michael “is in good shape.”

But insurance is still an obstacle, and so is Jackson’s mental health. Whether he would actually be able to fulfill such a contract remains to be seen.

“This is just in the talking stages and you never know what will happen,” says a source.

Source: FOX News

According to Jermaine Jackson, The Jackson Five are to reunite for a tour, with Michael Jackson set to take part.

He told BBC 6 Music that concert dates have been discussed and could take place “sometime in 2008″.

“Michael will be involved,” the singer and guitarist confirmed. “We feel we have to do it one more time. We owe that to the fans and to the public. ”

The group last toured as The Jacksons - with six members - in support of the Victory album in 1984.

Lead singer Michael, who had already released the million-selling Thriller album, was reportedly reluctant to go on the road with his brothers.

He told the audience on the last night of the tour that he was leaving the group.

They released one more album, 1989’s 2300 Jackson Street, before formally disbanding in 1990.

Rumours of a reunion have circulated for years, and Jermaine confirmed that the project was delayed by Michael’s trial for child abuse in 2005.

“There’s been so much going on, getting over all the hurdles that we all were faced with during Michael’s trial,” he told the station’s The Music Week programme.

“But we are stronger than ever. I’m gonna say thank you, thank you, thank you so much to all the fans and the supporters of my family all over Europe, all over the UK especially, who came out to show their love and their support.”

New material

Jermaine, who sang lead vocals for the band until his younger brother took over, added that Michael would definitely be part of the reunion.

“He has to be,” he said. “He is a Jackson.”

“He was at the meetings. Michael will be involved.”

The star also hinted at new material, saying that the band was “in the studio at the moment”.

The Jacksons - featuring brothers Tito, Marlon, Jackie, Jermaine, Michael and Randy, found fame in the 1970s with hits such as I Want You Back, ABC and Shake Your Body (Down To The Ground) and Can You Feel It.

Michael’s success eclipsed that of his brothers in the 1980s, while sister Janet also rose to prominence - racking up seven US top ten singles from her Rhythm Nation 1814 album.

In the UK, Jermaine Jackson was seen as a contestant on this year’s Celebrity Big Brother.

Source: BBC

In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Senegalese R&B singer Akon, who currently holds US #1 spot with `Don’t Matter’ and features on Gwen Stefani’s #2 hit `The Sweet Escape’ said that he is planning a meeting with Michael Jackson to talk about Michael’s next album.

The two were supposed to meet up in Las Vegas last week but previous commitments Akon had made to his charity foundation for African kids unfortunately forced him to call off the appointment. He is now hoping to meet with Michael before the end of April.

Akon said that he already has big plans for the superstar’s comeback and is very much looking forward to it:

“I’m excited because I think it’s gonna be magic when we get together.

All the stuff that he’s going through, that he’s been through the past two years, the stuff that’s been out in the media… the stuff that hasn’t been out, I think he needs to just take all that (and) put it in his records. It’s a big story.

Nobody’s ever really heard Mike’s story… If he takes that and accepts what’s been out there and expresses his opinion, express his feelings, express what he felt on a record I think it’d take his whole album to a whole ‘nother level because the album now becomes a soundtrack of his life from that point to this point and that’s something people are gonna want to know about.”

Source: Rolling Stone Magazine, MJFC-USA

Asked about recent rumours that there are already detailed plans for a new world tour by Michael Jackson, Raymone Bain told MJFC the following:

“This is a hoax. Please let everyone know.”

Source: Raymone Bain

Michael Jackson has no tour or Las Vegas show in the works, no release date for his unfinished album and no knowledge of a 50-foot laser-firing robot.

In the most definitive statement on Jackson’s future since his return to the U.S. in December, his spokeswoman Raymone Bain told Vegas Confidential, “His No. 1 priority is completing his music and until that time he’s not going to be entertaining any thoughts of a tour or a show.”

Jackson is, however, getting in shape to begin dance rehearsals for the video that will accompany his music, she said in a telephone interview.

She characterised as “a hoax” a party invitation that surfaced last week that claimed Jackson was kicking off his tour with a performance and meet-and-greet at the Luxor in June. “That is just not happening.”

“A Vegas show was always a rumour,” she said. “He’s never said it was a priority. He moved to Las Vegas to be closer to producers and songwriters and studio technicians.

Jackson began recording last fall and has continued to work with Will I. Am of the Black Eyed Peas, she said.

She said the report about a five-story robot in Jackson’s likeness is another fabrication. “He knows absolutely nothing about that and has never met with anyone to discuss it.”

As far as Jackson’s recent meetings with uber-producer Simon Fuller and choreographer Kenny Ortega, she said she knows of “no business relationship at this time.”

Source: Norm Clarke, Vegas Confidential

Joe Jackson and MGM Mirage disavowed an Internet report Thursday that Michael Jackson was launching a tour June 10 at the Luxor.

“He’s not doing nothing like that, and I was with him this morning,” said Joe Jackson, Michael Jackson’s father.

Jenn Michaels, vice president of corporate relations for MGM Mirage, said the Luxor “has nothing scheduled with Michael Jackson on that date or any date for that matter.” In addition, she said, the Luxor Theatre will be undergoing renovation and will not be available.

The Hollywood-based gossip Web site TMZ.com ran a copy of what appeared to be an invitation to the Jackson tour kickoff event at the Luxor.

The event includes the show, dinner and a two-hour meet-and-greet, according to the invitation.

“Join the Luxor in celebrating the ‘Live Forever’ tour,” said the invitation, wording that raised eyebrows and the possibility that it was a hoax.

TMZ.com said the invitation was “first obtained by” Michael Politz, a Las Vegas food and beverage publisher who co-writes a weekly blog about local happenings and celebrities.

Politz, reached by telephone, said he received the invitation from someone involved in designing it. He said he passed it along to TMZ.com before posting it on his own site because “I wanted to get more traffic to my site.”

Politz said he was “nervous” about the validity of the invitation but, six hours later, still had not received any complaints about the TMZ.com report that named him.

He acknowledged he didn’t call Luxor executives for comment. “They know how to reach me. I knew if I called (Luxor President) Felix (Rappaport), he would deny it, so I decided what’s the point.”

The invitation asked that guest responses be made to event coordinator Arial Martinez and listed a Luxor Internet address. The Web site appeared to be connected to the Luxor, but the requested page could not be found.

Asked if he had any involvement in the event, Politz said no, but he added, “Wouldn’t that be awesome?”

Earlier in the day, Fox News columnist Roger Friedman reported that Michael Jackson was hospitalized with pneumonia. Jackson’s publicist, Raymone K. Bain, told The Associated Press that the pop singer was “under the weather” but was “not in the hospital, and he has not been in the hospital.”

Source: Las Vegas Review Journal