Photo Credit: Gregg Musgrove (The Hollywood Reporter)
A man who purchased an old, abandoned storage unit has discovered the ultimate treasure—twelve unreleased Michael Jackson tracks. Here’s the latest.
The storage unit was deep in the San Fernando Valley and used to belong to Bryan Loren, music producer and singer. An associate contacted Gregg Musgrove about the tapes, which appear to be from a time period around 1989 to 1991 and before the Dangerous album.
“I’ve gone to all the fan sites. Some of [the songs] are rumored to exist, some of them have been leaked a little bit, Musgrove told The Hollywood Reporter about the discovery. “A couple aren’t even out there in the world.” Musgrove compiled the tracks into a list, which he shared with the trade publication. The songs include:
- “Don’t Believe It”
- “Seven Digits”
- “Can’t Come Back”
- “Son of Thriller”
- “Truth on Youth”
- “She’s Got It Baby”
- “All the Truth You Need”
- “Call It Off”
- “She Got It”
- “Man In Black”
- “Work That Body”
- “A Pretty Face Is”
- “To Satisfy You”
- “Pressure”
- “Serious Effect”
Musgrove also includes notes with the track release, stating which songs are completely available online and those that have never been released. At least a handful of songs include a minute or two of the creative process discussion between Jackson and Loren.
“I’m listening to this stuff, and I would get goosebumps because nobody’s ever heard this stuff before,” Musgrove tells The Hollywood Reporter. “To hear Michael Jackson actually talk and kind of joke back and forth, it was really, really cool.”
Musgrove says he approached the Jackson Estate with his findings earlier this year. The estate declined to purchase the tapes without a reason, but did provide an official letter stating they do not claim ownership over the tapes. That letter states that whoever purchases the tapes does not own the copyright on the recordings or the composition, so it’s unlikely they will ever be released publicly.
That doesn’t mean they won’t be available and put into a private collector’s hands very soon. Musgrove says he plans to take the tapes to auction, where they could fetch a pretty penny among Michael Jackson enthusiasts. Especially because one of the unheard tracks includes Michael Jackson rapping alongside LL Cool J.