14 DAY TRIAL // There was bound to be some controversy about the new Michael Jackson album coming out next month, simply because everything that has something to do with the King of Pop these days is scandalous to some degree.
Earlier this week, the release of Michael's second posthumous album was announced, and it advertised brand-new, never-before-heard material, songs that didn't make it to his previous albums and that were given a more modern sound.
Today, Contactmusic is reporting that one of the songs from the new “Xscape” album tackles the thorny issue of child abuse, something which plagued the pop singer during the latter part of his career.
The song is called “Do You Know Where Your Children Are,” and in it Michael talks about a 12-year-old girl that was abused by her stepfather and ends up working as a prostitute. That's not a very happy song, but Michael was known for tackling less commercial issues in his songs, like environmental awareness, abuse and racial abuse.
The lyrics of the song reveal that “She wrote that she is tired of step-daddy using her / Saying that he'll buy her things, while sexually abusing her,” before adding the chorus “Save me from this living hell.”
It has been speculated that Michael wrote the song himself back in 2005, when he was cleared of child molestation offenses. At the time, the trial received much exposure, and many thought that the evidence presented in court would spell a conviction for the superstar, but the verdict clearing him of all charges surprised everyone.
The last time Michael's molestation charges came into the spotlight was last year, in 2013, when dancer Wade Robson, who actually testified in Michael's defense during his trial, claimed that he had been, in fact, molested by Jackson when he was younger.
Despite many believing that the claims are bogus, a hearing has been scheduled to take place in June.
The song is slated to appear with the album, which is dropping in May, with the help of some big producers in the industry, such as Timbaland and LA Reid. The latter had only good things to say about the album, “We are extremely proud and honoured to present this music to the world.”
He went on to praise Michael's influence on the current musical scene, “Modern music and artistry would look and sound completely different if not for the groundbreaking contributions Michael Jackson gifted to the world.”