Music / Xscape (Michael Jackson Album)

Winning back MJ's fanbase since 2014.

The best you've never heard.

Xscape is the second posthumous album^note Eleventh, if you count all the compilations released between Jackson's death and Xscape and twelfth studio album overall by Michael Jackson, released in 2014 through Epic Records and MJJ Music.

After Michael's tepid and controversial reception by fans and critics alike, both Epic Records and Jackson's estate went back to the drawing board for Xscape. Producer and Epic CEO L.A. Reid, who worked with Jackson before, enlisted hip hop producer Timbaland to lead a team of other record producers to remix and contemporize eight selected unreleased tracks for Xscape. Among those selected to produce the album were StarGate J-Roc, John McClain and Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, the latter of whom was the only producer from the eight songs to have been involved with the original production prior to Jackson's death.

Several of the tracks, including "Blue Gangsta," "A Place With No Name", "Slave To The Rhythm" and the title track, were leaked online years prior, and were highly requested by fans to be released on the first posthumous album, which didn't happen (Though "Slave To The Rhythm" and "Blue Gangsta" just barely missed the tracklisting for Michael).

Unlike many of Michael's tracks, Jackson's vocals lack Auto-Tune or any other type of vocal processing, allowing them to sound more natural. Also unlike Michael, a deluxe version of Xscape was released, featuring a second disc containing the original versions of the tracks, along with a few remixes and a behind-the-scenes DVD. The album was also heavily promoted by Sony, allowing Xperia Z2 owners and Music Unlimited members advance access to the album and an exclusive remix (which led to the whole thing getting leaked less than 48 hours prior to the album's official release).

Despite the leak, Xscape was met with positive reviews on release, and peaked at number two on the Billboard 200.

Not to be confused with the four-woman American R&B group Xscape, known for such 1990s hits as "Just Kickin' It," "Understanding," and "Who Can I Run To?".

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Tracklist (tracks marked with a single asterisk are deluxe edition tracks and with two asterisks are special edition remixes):

1. "Love Never Felt So Good" (3:48)
2. "Chicago" (4:05)
3. "Loving You" (3:15)
4. "A Place With No Name" (5:35)
5. "Slave To The Rhythm" (4:15)
6. "Do You Know Where Your Children Are" (4:36)
7. "Blue Gangsta" (4:14)
8. "Xscape" (4:04)
9. "Love Never Felt So Good" (original version) (3:21)* ^note recorded in 1983, during the Thriller era
10. "Chicago" (original version) (4:43)* ^note recorded in 1999, during the Invincible sessions
11. "Loving You" (original version) (3:02)* ^note recorded between 1985 and 1987, during the Bad sessions
12. "A Place with No Name" (original version) (4:56)* ^note recorded between 1998 and 2008, during the Invincible sessions
13. "Slave To The Rhythm" (original version) (4:36)* ^note recorded between 1989 and 1991 and also 1998 and 1999, during Dangerous and Invincible sessions
14. "Do You Know Where Your Children Are" (original version) (4:39)* ^note recorded in 1987, 1990 and 1991, during the Bad and Dangerous sessions
15. "Blue Gangsta" (original version) (4:17)* ^note recorded between 1998 and 2002, during the Invincible sessions
16. "Xscape" (original version) (5:44)* ^note recorded between 1999 and 2001 and during late 2002, during the Invincible sessions
17. "Love Never Felt So Good" (Remix/Duet with Justin Timberlake) (4:05)*
18. "Chicago" (Papercha$er Remix) (4:19)** ^note released as a Sony Xperia Lounge bonus track

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Do You Know Where Your Examples Are?

• Concept Album: While not one by intention, many of the songs are centered around various love tropes, raging from the typical mushiness, to infidelity and Domestic Abuse.
• Cover Version: Overlaps with Freestyle Version and The Cover Changes the Meaning. "A Place With No Name"'s instrumentation is near identical to America's "Horse With No Name", which it's based off of. However, the lyrical content and meaning is totally different. America's version is about being isolated from stress and drama in the desert, while Jackson's version nixes the desert entirely and implies he got killed in a car accident and was sent to heaven.
• invokedCut Song: Invoked Trope. The entire album consists of songs that were recorded between Bad and Invincible, but did not make the final tracklistings.
• Distinct Double Album: The special edition of Xscape features a second disc with the songs in their originally recorded form, and some extra remixes.
• Great Escape: The original version of "Xscape" has an intro that takes place inside a prison, which soon leads into a manhunt once they discover Michael had xscaped. The song is then sprinkled with sound effects of police choppers and a speeding car, presumably Michael's getaway vehicle.
• Let's Duet: The duet version of "Love Never Felt So Good" features Justin Timberlake.
• Love Martyr: The female protagonist of "Slave To The Rhythm". She does everything for her lover and breaks her back to support both of them and their kids, but he basically treats her like dirt.
• One-Word Title: "Chicago" and "Xscape".
• Parental Incest: The protagonist of "Do You Know Where Your Children Are" runs away from home because her stepfather was sexually abusing her for God knows how long, all the while making empty promises to buy her things.
• Posthumous Collaboration: The Album. While Rodney Jerkins and Timbaland have done work with MJ years before, others such as J-Roc and Gorgio Tuinfort have never worked with him at all.
  • A straighter example would be the duet version of "Love Never Felt So Good", featuring Justin Timberlake
• Product Placement: As I drove across on the highway/My Jeep began to rock...
• Record Producer: Several. Here's the full list:
  • Timbaland: The leader of the album's production group, and has co-production credits on everything except "A Place With No Name" and "Xscape".
  • StarGate: Remixed "A Place With No Name".
  • John McClain: Remixed "Love Never Felt So Good".
  • Gorgio Tuinfort: Assisted in the remix of "Love Never Felt So Good".
  • J-Roc: Assisted Timbaland on all songs except "A Place With No Name" and "Xscape".
  • Dewy Bunnell: Credited on "A Place with No Name" due to Jackson originally sampling "A Horse With No Name".
  • Paul Anka: Co-wrote "Love Never Felt So Good" and was the one who provided the piano accompaniment in the original demo.
  • L.A. Reid: Executive producer of the album, and original co-producer of "Slave To The Rhythm".
  • Babyface: Original co-producer of "Slave To The Rhythm".
  • Dr. Freeze: Original co-producer of "Blue Gangsta" and "A Place With No Name".
  • Cory Rooney: Original writer and producer of "Chicago".
  • King Solomon (no, not that one): original co-producer of "Blue Gangsta".
  • Daniel Jones: Original co-producer of "Blue Gangsta".
  • Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins: Original co-producer of "Xscape", and is the only producer to have been involved in any of the songs' original composition and it's remastering.
  • And finally, Michael Jackson himself, who co-wrote and produced all songs, and produced the original version of "Loving You" entirely by himself.
• Sampling:
  • America's "A Horse With No Name" was the basis for "A Place With No Name", and are virtually identical in composition.
  • "Xscape" features samples from Jackson's "You Rock My World", also produced by Rodney Jerkins.
• Title Track: Xscape.
• Xtreme Kool Letterz: Xscape.

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