Michael Jackson: 'I Feel ... Very Young' at 50
Speaks Exclusively to "Good Morning America" About His Past, Future, Dreams for His Children
Music and Fame
He said he hopes to "be myself" in his future work, but also that he is "inspired by many great artists," noting he wished he could have worked with Brown or Fred Astaire.
He sees his influence in some of today's artists, specifically mentioning Chris Brown.
He said he sacrificed his childhood with "a lot of hard work," and that he remembers "giving up your life for the medium."
But he'd do it all again.
"I think I would," he said. "It is very much worth it. I have always loved show business and have always enjoyed making people happy through that medium. I love the celebration of music and dance and art. I just love it."
Asked if he'd like his two sons and daughter to have the same sort of upbringing as him, he said he'd prefer to let them "enjoy their childhood as much as possible."
"I let them go to the arcade and go to the movies and do things," he said. "I want them to get to do the kind of things I didn't get to do. So, I fill them with a lot of enjoyment that way -- a lot of amusement. You know?
"I get pretty emotional when I see them having a wonderful time," he added, "when they are on a ride and they are screaming and they are happy. ... It makes me emotional, 'cause I see they are having a real good time."
Jackson said his kids "love music ... they are very much into the arts," but that, "I don't push them."
If he could go back and give himself some advice at age 9 or 10, the approximate age of his oldest children, he would advise himself, "if you are going to do it, commit yourself, know your craft and be really involved." He'd say to be strong and to have "rhinoceros skin" when it comes to dealing with the pressures of fame.
Perhaps Jackson learned to have a thick skin after enduring years of controversies.
Born Aug. 29, 1958, in gritty Gary, Ind., Jackson rose to fame as the youngest member of the brother act, The Jackson 5. The group released its first single on the Motown label in 1969, when Jackson was 11 years old, and enjoyed a string of hits in the early 1970s.
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