Patent for Michael Jackson’s Anti-Gravity Shoes in “Smooth Criminal”

Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” video featured a famous 45-degree lean assisted by patenting special shoes to achieve the effect of defying gravity:

“A system for allowing a shoe wearer to lean forwardly beyond his center of gravity by virtue of wearing a specially designed pair of shoes which will engage with a hitch member movably projectable through a stage surface. The shoes have a specially designed heel slot which can be detachably engaged with the hitch member by simply sliding the shoe wearer’s foot forward, thereby engaging with the hitch member.”

Looks like MJ filed the patent himself, and it certainly worked out well for him. Very cool find. Check out the live performance of Smooth Criminal to see the wild effect.

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Exclusive Video: Michael Jackson Memorial Times Square

I remember when I was a kid watching Michael’s Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour, and seeing him take off in a jet pack at the very end. I remember watching his music videos, falling in love with his sister Janet, and listening and dancing to his music. The older I got, the more I appreciated him. To this day, I still think Thriller is as great as ever. I still think some of the tracks on Dangerous and HIStory were ahead of their time by many years, especially the song and music video for Scream, which isn’t STILL the most expensive ever made for no reason.

But the best part about Michael Jackson was, despite his shortcomings that inevitably come with being one of the most famous people in the world, he was a wonderful human being – a service-oriented and respectful soul who put love and kindness above all else. The memorial today and all its tear-filled celebrities and family members did more justice to MJ’s legacy than words in a blog post ever could, so I took to the streets of Times Square to capture some of the magic thousands of miles away from the Staples Center in LA. You definitely want to watch the whole thing.

Also, if you go to 3:45 on this video, you’ll see me in the tan fedora behind the lady in the black dress during Heal the World on CNN when they cut to Times Square. Pretty cool!

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Rest in Peace, Michael Jackson: The King of Pop

An icon and a legend has passed away. The music industry, and the world, was forever changed by the one and only King of Pop. Rest in peace, MJ. I’m out and about right now but you can expect a lengthy post soon. Long live the Thriller!

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Free Concert on Friday! Kid Cudi & Chester French in NYC

Two very up-and-coming acts will be performing this Friday from 5:30pm to 9:30pm at the South Street Seaport, for free! Chester French features two recent Harvard graduates, whose music has been described as “indie pop” and have toured with the likes of Lady GaGa and N.E.R.D. Kid Cudi, who has already enjoyed success on the charts with “Day ‘n Nite” and “Make Her Say”, will be performing at the free show also.

It’s great to see new artists rising to success and making a name for themselves by using the web to promote their music. Judging by their friends and tour buddies in the industry, they definitely learned how to network too: Kanye West, Common, Wale, Talib Kweli, Pharrell, and Lady GaGa, to name a few.

Free Concert in NYC This Friday! [via The Chester French Blog]

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New @MariahCarey Single Drops Today, Album in August

Mariah’s new single “Obsessed” will debut today on Chicago radio, the album “Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel” now has a release date of August 25, 2009. Last year she topped Elvis Presley for most #1’s by a solo artist with “Touch My Body,” her 18th. Songs from the new album may put her at or over the Beatles’ 20 number ones. The new song is written and produced by MC herself, The-Dream and Tricky Stewart.

Mariah Carey Puts Finishing Touches on New Album [MariahCarey.com]

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Can’t Get Enough of “Diversity” – Britain’s Got Talent Winners

If you haven’t seen this yet, meet the dance troupe that completely crushed the competition in Britain’s Got Talent last week (including internet phenom and runner-up Susan Boyle). If you have seen it, join me in contributing to the view count again and again. Epic!!

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New Music Video for “Chillin’ ” by Wale featuring Lady GaGa

DC Chillin’! Ben’s Chili Bowl being featured is pretty awesome. Follow Wale and Lady GaGa on Twitter; both musicians that personally update their status. Legit!

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