Michael Jackson buys Eminem's music rights after Eminem 'disdained' him

Question

In the song, Eminem references Jackson's child molestation trial, plastic surgery, and the 1984 incident in which Jackson's hair caught fire in a Pepsi commercial. Three years later, in 2007, Jackson seemingly retaliated by buying the rights to Eminem's entire catalog for a staggering $370 million.

Answer 1

This is true, but, the information is a bit exaggerated. Eminem's music catalog was bought out by SONY/ATV, Michael Jackson's parent company. Jackson had bought Famous Music, a music publisher then later sold a 50% stake to Sony in 1985. The company then bought Famous Music, a music publishing company, giving them the rights to over 12,000 songs from multiple different artists in 2007. Eminem bought his catalog back awhile after MJ's passing in 2016 which is missing from the post completely. I think another thing to know is that the catalog was for only pre 2006 releases and not his future music. I think the post provided is not sufficient enough due to the lack of background information on whether or not the purchase was indeed made out of spite or if the deal was connected to the bit of drama that did occur. I think the original poster is using popular celebrities like Eminem, who has been known to be involved in drama to draw attention and establish a bit of believability. The account itself is verified which is why most are so quick to believe that what they post is true but they do not provide any evidence besides quotes taken out of context and the fact that the purchase was made and relies on those two strategies.

Source: https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/michael-jackson-eminem-catalog/

Comments

This is a great fact check. You do a goof job at presenting the information found to help determine if the original claim is true or not. The information given here clearly and concisely describes the research you conducted to determine the claim to have been misleading.

Answer 2

After doing some digging it does look like this claim is mostly true. Multiple websites confirm that Michael Jackson may have been petty enough to buy the rights to Eminem's music. I did discover that the way he bought the music was a little 'round about though. He owned a 50% stake in the company that bought Eminem's music rights meaning Michael Jackson partially owns his music. I also discovered that he did in fact make comments about Eminem's video in an interview. He talked about how he thought it was disrespectful and he was disappointed in how the video was made/done. Even though he was upset by Eminem's actions and did have some ownership in the purchse of his back catalog, there is no evidence to prove that Michael Jackson bought the music because of the video. It just happened to take place after the video and comments were made. 

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/michael-jackson-eminem-catalog/ 

Answer 3

This claim is misleading. Prior to his death, Michael Jackson did not mention purchasing Eminem's music rights after Eminem "dissed" him in his song "Just Lose It" in 2004. Jackson's 50% partnership with Sony/ATV media company bought approximately 125,000 songs, including Eminem's back catalogue (Shakira and Christina Aguilera's songs were also bought). However, there is no evidence of Jackson saying he purchased his rights due to his song and music video. The Guardian reported that Jackson did threaten to sue Eminem, saying ""I am very angry at Eminem's depiction of me in his video. I feel that it is outrageous and disrespectful. It is one thing to spoof, but it is another to be demeaning and insensitive. I've admired Eminem as an artist, and was shocked by this. The video was inappropriate and disrespectful to me, my children, my family and the community at large." 

Answer 4

Through research, I discovered the claim that Michael Jackson bought the rights to Eminem's music catalog in retaliation for Eminem's diss track "Just Lose It" is a popular rumor that has circulated for years. However, there is no concrete evidence to support this claim. In reality, Michael Jackson did indeed purchase the publishing rights to various artists' catalogs, including Eminem's, through his company Sony/ATV Music Publishing. This acquisition occurred in 2007 for a reported $370 million. However, there's no evidence to suggest that this purchase was motivated by a desire for revenge against Eminem specifically.

Additionally, it's important to note that owning the publishing rights to a song or catalog does not necessarily grant control over the lyrical content or allow for alterations to be made. The publishing rights primarily pertain to the use and distribution of the music, as well as the collection of royalties.

Regarding the claim that Jackson did nothing with the lyrics of "Just Lose It" despite previously criticizing the song, there is no substantial evidence to confirm or refute this. It's possible that Jackson chose not to take any action regarding the song's content, or that any attempts to alter the lyrics were unsuccessful or deemed unnecessary.

In conclusion, while it's true that Michael Jackson acquired the publishing rights to Eminem's music catalog in 2007, there is no concrete evidence to support the notion that this acquisition was motivated by a desire for revenge over the "Just Lose It" diss track. The claim remains unsubstantiated and should be treated as a rumor until proven otherwise.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2011/01/25/michael-jackson-secret-business-genius-music-business/?sh=5ba190601862

https://exploration.io/what-are-lyric-rights/