Michael Jackson New Album, "Xscape" , debuts first single "Love Never Felt So Good"

Bad 25, the King of Pops last posthumous project hit shelves back in September of 2012, and now he is back and jamming with his upcoming album, "XSCAPE".
Due out May 9th, this record will come in both a standard and deluxe edition featuring a compilation of previously unreleased material, produced by the talents of the King of Pop himself, John McClain, Timbaland, and many more.

"Xscape" is composed of 8 tracks which have been retouched, completed and modernized for fans and music lovers to enjoy, including the highly fan anticipated "Chicago" (Also known as "Chicago 1945" and "She Was Loving Me"). The deluxe edition will contain the same songs as the standard edition alongside 2 videos and the 8 tracks in their original state as Michael had composed them along with a bonus mix of the first single "Love Never Felt So Good" featuring Justin Timberlake.

"Love Never Felt So Good" made its debut last night on the iheartradio music awards, delivered with a solid choreography performance from Jackson's pupil and friend, Usher, followed by a midnight release through iTunes.
Both the Standard Album edition and Deluxe Edition featuring Justin Timberlake can be heard below.

[video=youtube;0wnuTGGuAVs]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wnuTGGuAVs[/video]

[video=youtube;bmMk3pAnAI4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmMk3pAnAI4[/video]

 

I was surprised by how good the song actually was. The last posthumous album wasn't too great. I personally prefer the version with JT. I might actually consider getting this, if some other songs turn out to be good too.

 

Isn't he dead?? how is he dead and still creating new music?

 

Same here. It has a very "Off The Wall" sound (Michael's 1979 album, for those of you who might not know). According to people who went to the listening party, it seems like this isn't the best out of the bunch. Looking forward to hearing the rest.

He recorded years of material, not exactly sure how much, just know it's over 100 songs. They are reworking and or releasing previous material that never made it onto the final albums. No different than how LP releases LPU songs, tracks that weren't finalized for their studio albums.
In the case of "Love Never Felt So Good", Michael wrote and produced the song along with Paul Anka, back in 1984. The demo leaked in 2010 (5 other songs from the album have also leaked within the last 12 years). I think Sony is using this as an advantage so they have more material that they can profit off of in the coming years.

 

The title track, "Xscape", leaked a while ago, and is still available to listen to on Ultimate Music. That track alone has got me so hyped for this record. Makes you think about some of the jems Jackson left behind in that vault of his!

There's a collaborators series starting up, where they talk to producers and artists behind the Xscape, and the first episode is up! Quite interesting:

[video=youtube;eDWiTqPOlRM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDWiTqPOlRM[/video]

 

The single clearly sounds like a desperate attempt at salvaging a song that obviously was a throwaway.

edit: Xscape sounds a lot better.

 

Correct, "Escape" (Original title) was leaked back in 2002. As for the collaborators series, I believe it is just a series of small clips from the deluxe edition containing the bonus video interviews.

I've always enjoyed the track since it leaked back in 2010, wouldn't say its a throwaway (mainly because that's one's own opinion), but I don't believe it was a track Michael and Paul ever meant to release, just remain as a demo (along with "This Is It") to have the opportunity to work with one another and expand on future projects.

 

I say let the man rest in peace. Say what you want to about releasing this because the fans want it, but it's all about the cash for those that have the rights for his music. Sickening.

 

I dislike the idea of this too. It's like reworking an old Picaso painting in Photoshop because he never released it. There is a reason artists choose not to release something.

 

Let a dead man be a dead man, for crying out loud.

These songs were obviously not ready for release and they never will be without the man himself being involved.

 

In Sony's case, it most definitely was simply for the money. After his death, Michael's sales rose 400% which lead to their $220 million deal with Michael's estate. As for the estate, they didn't have much of a choice because Michael was $500 million in debt and that responsibility fell into their hands.

Nonetheless, that's the legal system for you. All money with no morals. I'm sure Warner would do the same with LP if they could no longer make music for some reason.

On another note, maybe not the news you guys would wanna hear, but the next single titled "Chicago" has been released in full via Sony's Music Unlimited program.
two separate snippets can be heard below.

https://music.sonyentertainmentnetw...d474b97577431692651ca/Michael_Jackson/Chicago
https://www.twitmusic.com/alandukecnn/songs/michael-jackson-s-chicago

As was also the case with a couple of his other songs like Hold My Hand.

 

[video=youtube;4VNclQlQjg4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VNclQlQjg4[/video]

 

Xscape will clock in as a 34 minute album! Even Linkin park don't make albums that short!

 

Linkin Park, on average, makes 12 track albums.
XSCAPE is composed of only 8 songs. 4 more tracks certainly would have been more than enough to beat Linkin Park's average album length.

EDIT: Sony, via their Music Unlimited program, is streaming the tracks from the album one by one each day. It's too late to listen to Chicago and Loving You, but today you can listen to A Place With No Name, this will continue within the next 5 days with the rest of the album streaming.

 

Or you can listen to all the tracks here!

 

I really dig Slave To The Rhythm!

 

haha, just got home to realize the album leaked. Nice Find. Good mixes, much better than the IMMORTAL remixes.