As we know, the Estate has been approving licenses to a whole range of companies around the world. From Queen Studios in China to Chilli Beans in Brazil, there’s suddenly an influx of Official Michael Jackson Products, and if you’re a collector – that’s great news!
The latest product is from the Spanish company called MINIX.
MINIX is a brand under the company “Toys and Humans SL,” which is based in Spain. The company specializes in designing and manufacturing of collectible figures, known for their high-quality designs and attention to detail. These figures are typically around 12 cm in height and are packaged in premium window boxes, making them highly collectible. There are also smaller 7 cm versions available in different formats, including keychains and multi-figure packs.
MINIX figures span a wide array of popular culture themes, including famous TV shows, movies, anime, and even football players. The company has licensed characters from well-known franchises such as Stranger Things, The Witcher, Naruto, and has also created figures for top footballers like Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé. The brand has been quite successful, with over 4 million units sold worldwide.
The figures are made from durable, high-quality materials, ensuring they are safe for all ages. This dedication to quality is evident in their rigorous safety and quality control processes. The company has been expanding its product lines by acquiring new licenses to create more figures. And one of them is Michael Jackson!
We have already two of them ready to collect: “Thriller” and “Smooth Criminal”.
But what is the difference between MINIX and other companies? Believe it or not, one of the owners of MINIX actually met Michael Jackson and even organised a Birthday Event for one of Michael’s children.
Before working for MINIX, Dutch born Wibo Westdijk worked in the Toy industry for over 2 decades. His love for toys started in New York in early 2000’s at the FAO Schwarz toy store (yes, the same toy store that Tom Hanks dances on a dance-on piano in the movie BIG).
As Event manager in the store, he was responsible for many events there. But one day in 2001, the King of Pop himself called to organised a sleep-over Birthday party for one of his children.
Wibo recalls, “When Michael called, he did not have many requests, one was to have all the store windows to be blocked off, which was challenging, the second was no unnecessary staff to be present and all staff present should focus on the birthday party”.
“It was a fun night but more guests turned up so I had to find at the last minutes some sleeping bags. I went to the store where we purchased the first batch but I arrived just few minutes after closing time. I banged on the door and the lady opened the door and told me to come back tomorrow. I said, it is for now, it is really important. She said “I am sure, but come back tomorrow” and I told her: “It is for a very important person, the Birthday party is tonight. I need those sleeping bags… It’s for Michael Jackson” – She open the door and let me purchase the items.”
Wibo told us that the party was a success and that Michael was really fun and childlike. Children were everywhere and at one point, Michael was missing. After asking all the staff if they’d seen Michael, Wibo found him playing alone in the storage room with marbles. “Are you ok Michael? Wibo asked, “Shall we go back to the party?” Wibo recalls that Michael was deep in his thoughts and after a moment Michael said “Oh yes! The party! Let’s go!”
“Michael was a great and cool guy, we really had fun and I am so proud I did this event for him”
Originally the idea for MINIX was to make caricature football figurines to bring the personality of the heroes to life, but due to the success the company decided to grow the portfolio with iconic figures from the past and present and they managed to get the licence for Michael Jackson.
Living now in Paris, France, Wibo told us that he wanted to do more Michael Jackson figures and hopefully we will have a full range of them soon. Having this link between MINIX and Michael is so special, especially for us the fans, there is a connection between the product and Michael directly unlike some items we saw popping in this year, like TUD (The Ugly Duck… literally).
Don’t wait too long to grab the first Michael Jackson MINIX Thriller edition—it’s a collector’s item that’s finally affordable for everyone. MINIX is listening to the fans, so get ready for a special figurine in 2025 to celebrate a unique anniversary… but I won’t reveal any more details just yet!
I hesitated to write this piece for a few days, unsure of how to approach a subject that leaves me with mixed feelings. It’s been widely reported that the Michael Jackson Estate has surpassed $2 billion in global ticket sales across their various projects. Over the past 12 years, John Branca, the estate’s co-executor, has orchestrated deals that have generated an astounding $2.5 billion. These ventures include high-profile successes like “Michael Jackson’s THIS IS IT,” the highest-grossing concert film ever; “MJ The Musical,” a Broadway sensation with four Tony Awards, now captivating audiences across North America, London’s West End, and soon in Hamburg and Australia; “Michael Jackson THE IMMORTAL WORLD TOUR,” ranked among the top 10 touring shows of all time; and “Michael Jackson ONE,” Las Vegas’ premier show.
Financial experts and the media have praised Branca for pulling the Estate out of debt and generating massive revenue. There’s no denying his talent for negotiating deals under the Michael Jackson brand. But let’s be honest: all of this was possible because of the immense talent and legacy of the King of Pop himself. The ticket sales, music sales, and lucrative contracts weren’t just because of savvy business maneuvers — they were fueled by the extraordinary artist that was Michael Jackson.
As someone with a Master’s degree in Business, I understand why experts commend Branca and the Estate for their financial management. I get it — their goal is to grow, develop, and ultimately, make money. But as a fan, I see many gray areas in the deals and projects the Estate has pursued, such as the controversial “Michael” album, the sale of Neverland Ranch, the sale of the ATV Catalog, certain products they’ve released, and most recently, the sale of half of Michael’s music catalog to Sony for $600 million. As fans, we know how much Michael valued owning music catalogs, especially his own. I fully supported Katherine Jackson’s attempt to stop this latest sale, so it felt like a real slap in the face to hear it was going ahead regardless.
What disturbs me even more is seeing some fans happily sharing articles praising Branca and the Estate, as if all is well. Don’t get me wrong — I respect everyone’s opinions. But as a Michael Jackson fan, I find it hard to understand this blind approval, especially when these same fans have repeatedly told us to “stick to the facts” since 2019. Did we not all watch the same Michael Jackson interviews where he passionately talked about his music? Did we not rally against anyone who publicly slandered him? Why does Lynn Nottage get a free pass? Why aren’t we angry at Branca for selling MIJAC? Why are some of us willing to cross moral lines just to gain recognition from the Estate? They are not Michael Jackson — so what’s the point?
I know the fan community is deeply divided regarding the Estate, but if we all ask ourselves the right questions and reflect on our moral compass, shouldn’t we arrive at the same conclusion?
With the upcoming biopic and the musical’s expansion into Germany and Australia, the sales figures will only continue to rise. It seems the Estate is focusing its efforts on appealing to the general public, rewriting HIS story to fit their narrative, while forgetting the fans who have been there from the start. A glaring example is the annual Las Vegas Birthday celebration, which has become a complete joke. Fewer and fewer fans are showing up, and those who do are often just there to curry favor with Branca and Langford. The event has turned into a Karen Langford show, with no consistency or thought put into the organization, offensively neglecting both the fans present and Michael’s own memory.
And let’s not forget: Branca takes a cut from every single deal he makes for the Estate. That should give you a sense of the gravity of the situation. What also concerns me is that Michael’s son, Prince Jackson, seems to be spending a lot of time with the Estate. I can only hope he is learning what to do — and more importantly, what not to do — in the name of his father’s legacy.
But here’s the headline: over $2 billion in ticket sales! Congratulations… MICHAEL JACKSON!
Music executive, Tommy Mottola stopped by Sway in the Morning on Shade 45 recently during his promotional tour for his new book, Hitmaker: The Man and His Music. During his chat with Sway he opened up about his relationship with Michael Jackson, those explosive comments MJ expressed about him, and his reaction to the King of Pop's passing.
"I was terribly shocked because it happened, but not that it happened." Says Mr. Mottola.
He also spoke on how his business relationship with Mariah Carey turned into a marriage and even gives advice to musicians and aspiring entrepreneurs about the music industry. Watch our full Deep Cover video below.
Subscribe Here! http://bit.ly/SubscribeSU
Watch the Best of Sway In The Morning! http://bit.ly/BestOfSITM
Check out More From Sway’s Universe
http://swaysuniverse.com / swaysuniverse / swaysuniverse / swaysuniverse #SwaysUniverse
About SWAY’s UNIVERSE
Exclusive interviews from Sway Calloway and the Sway In The Morning/ SwaysUniverse.com team with some of today's biggest celebrities, like Kevin Hart, Kanye West, Eminem, Usher, Jessica Alba, Steve Aoki, Torey Lanez, Julia Stiles and so much more.
Deep Cover: Tommy Mottola Talks Working With Michael Jackson and Marriage with Mariah Carey | Sway's Universe
• Deep Cover: Tommy Mottola Talks Worki...
Sway’s Universe
/ ucus96jklkptagb_ownwzv_a
Bilal Khbeiz (1963, Kfarchouba) is a poet, essayist, and journalist. He regularly contributes to the newspapers Beirut Al Masa’, Al Nahar, and to Future Television Beirut, among other publications and networks. Published poetry and books on cultural theory include Fi Annal jassad Khatia’ Wa Khalas (That the Body is Sin and Deliverance), Globalisation and the Manufacture of Transient Events, The Enduring Image and the Vanishing World, and Tragedy in the Moment of Vision.
Michael Jackson Died for No Reason
(and the Vampire that is His Life)
Bilal Khbeiz Issue #16 July 2009
Many American media outlets considered the possibility that the King of Pop’s death could have been a media stunt designed to promote the “comeback” concert scheduled for this summer in London. But what could have been a media stunt later became a possible homicide. In order to prevent further speculation, the media went to work correlating and double-checking the putative cause of death. Few went so far as to accuse Michael Jackson’s personal doctor of causing his patient’s untimely death by administering the wrong medicine; most decided to investigate the side effects associated with common drugs. Tylenol, the most widely used drug worldwide, was at the center of these media investigations (the stronger varieties of Tylenol contain Codeine, and have a long list of serious side effects). Other news networks followed developments surrounding the death of a forty-year-old woman, reportedly due to a Tylenol overdose. Michael Jackson’s sudden death needed a culprit in order for it to be justified in peoples’ minds, and Tylenol provided the perfect suspect due to its reach and ubiquity.
Meanwhile, the same media outlets that looked upon Jackson’s death with suspicion treated Neda Agha-Soltan’s death by the hands of the Basij in Iran as a fact. The Basij are known to be first-rate killers, and Neda is but one of their many victims, yet the Basij do not roam the streets of Los Angeles and New York City in search of their next kill. Who, then, is responsible for the death of Michael Jackson? It could only have been Tylenol: a lawless murderer, out of control.
Why is it so difficult to believe that Michael is dead? This question is intimately tied to his career. As is always the case with the death of a legendary figure in art or politics, the difficulty people have in accepting such death contributes to the immortality of the person in question. There are countless reasons for someone who has made it to the top to not take his own life, and Michael was at the top. Doctors were at his disposal the whole time, and he had unlimited access to medication. If there is no good reason for Michael to have died, then what could have killed him? The ultra-realists have a quick answer: he knew his grip on fame was slipping, and his creditors simply helped him off the cliff. He lived a life of abundance and spent more than he earned, even though he produced so much.
This view certainly has merit; celebrities die this way, their falls from grace haunt them at their greatest moments, and they begin to take sudden steps into the growing darkness around them. And when they retrace their steps back into the limelight, they are willing to expend whatever they have left in their possession to stay there.
Michael Jackson was one of these celebrities. He spent the last two decades of his life in freefall. During those years, he tried to invite attention to his private life and to his body. Many saw objectionable things in him despite the fact that he achieved unequalled fame as a black man in racism-plagued America. He even skinned himself, literally, to a point where he was more white than white. The boy who sang for the loss of his loved one seemed in his later years asexual. The consummate performer, a firecracker on stage, spent his last days in a pile of shaved skin and bone and the muscular remains of memories. Michael Jackson died with half a body, half a gender, and half a color. Who was he in his last days? Indeed.
It’s a tragic race to the top. Michael was, without a doubt, the greatest entertainer of his time. However, he was locked in a struggle with his own image: how could he transcend his own creation and conquer the summit he created for himself, with full knowledge of its perils? Can a sick horse outrun its younger, healthier self? Michael was more aware of his own obsolescence than anybody else in the business, and with that knowledge he was left with no choice but to transcend his body by pushing his act to its limit. He started his career as a musician, singer, and dancer, and ended up fragmenting his body into severed limbs, rendering himself unrecognizable to his audience. What is left of young Michael in this pile of humanity? Only he himself could have answered such a question. Piece by piece, he offered his body to the stage until he reached the point of no return. That was when he began to eradicate the remains of his former self, his memory: the idealized image of a beautiful black man, the innovative dancer (it’s rumored that he wore himself out during the rehearsals just before his death). Anything else that emerged from the mediasphere after his long sabbatical became, in the eyes of viewers, images of a dying man.
Did Michael Jackson die, or did his image? Let’s assume for a moment that his downward spiral was not preordained. He might not have foreseen the outcomes of his actions, but he was most certainly conscious of the alterations he was making to his body. It started with local surgeries, and ended up leaving him without evidence of a former self. Yet under extremely complicated medical, nutritional, and environmental conditions, this image could still breathe and move. This painted, surrogate self was whiter and skinnier than the body it represented. In a way, it managed to sustain a life that speaks and moves and shakes hands with world leaders and celebrities—a life that comes back to sing and dance.
He killed his body for his image, performing a true work of art. Had he not been captured by death and successfully ascended the stage, he would have assumed yet another image that was not his. We will not reference the many installation artists who have used their bodies as canvasses because none of them reached Michael’s Deleuzian relation with art. He succeeded in sealing off all his orifices, becoming an image that cannot nourish itself or breathe, or has perhaps discovered an alternative to life, one so far unknown to humans. There is more “art” in his image than flesh and bone.
Michael forced this rubble of image and human remains to survive on very little for years. It is those years that are at the center of the way images are studied from a Barthesian perspective, in the way they encapsulate eternity in a single frame. Who could have imagined, prior to Michael’s expensive experiment, that a dead man’s image could stay alive? Who could have imagined that a man might replace his body with an image that would then become a shrine, beckoning visitors for eternity?
Michael was the object of envy and admiration when he was on the rise. However, those sentiments dissipated as he began to perform his alienating physical transformations; people rejected the idea of him and the desire to emulate him in any way. And it remains likely that many will be similarly crowned the greatest artists of their time, but it is less likely that they will approach what he attained as an eternal image of the artist’s obsolescence.
People couldn’t believe that Michael was dead because there was no longer anything left of him upon which nature could take its course. This kind of death is so alien and rare that the only way of dealing with it is to imagine the impossibility of its occurrence. And if it did indeed take place, then it is not so different from destroying a Van Gogh at the Louvre.
Neda Agha-Soltan is dead because she lived her life with her body. Michael, on the other hand, was nothing but an image whose death could have been prevented by injecting it with some human blood.
