Janelle Monae deletes video recreating Michael Jackson's infamous baby-dangling moment after backlash

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: Janelle Monae has removed a video where she reenacted Michael Jackson's controversial moment of holding his baby over a balcony.

The 'Make Me Feel' singer stirred controversy after she posted the parody clip on social media with critics arguing it was insensitive and in "poor taste" given that King of Pop passed away in 2009.

The now-deleted clip showed Monae, dressed as Jackson in a red shirt and black wig, holding a robotic dog out of a hotel balcony, echoing Jackson's 2002 incident when he briefly displayed his son, Bigi (formerly Blanket), to the public, as per Daily Mail.

Michael Jackson's infamous balcony-baby incident

Several reports suggest that in a dramatic turn of events in 2002, Michael Jackson went from serenading fans from the balcony of his luxurious suite at Berlin’s Adlon Hotel to precariously holding his 9-month-old son, Prince Michael II (Bigi Jackson), over the edge with one arm.

When he dangled his baby over the balcony of his hotel room, approximately 200 fans were gathered outside. 

The child, obscured by a blanket, dangled dangerously as Jackson looked on.

Following the incident, Jackson referred to it as a "terrible mistake" and acknowledged that he had "got caught up in the excitement of the moment."

In a statement to Entertainment Weekly, he emphasized, "I would never intentionally endanger the lives of my children."

However, Monae has not yet clarified why she deleted the video. 

Internet criticizes Janelle Monae for parody clip

Janelle Monae faced severe backlash on social media after she posted the clip recreating the moment Michael Jackson held his 9-month-old son over a balcony.

One user wrote, "Good, even if you don't like Michael Jackson that was in poor taste."

"I guess when she came out, she didn’t get the attention or response she was hoping for, because if she thought this was it, it was an epic fail. Child endangerment is never funny, so she missed the mark completely on this," another opined.

"She's such an attention seeker," declared someone else.

One individual stated, "Such a silly fool."

How many children does Michael Jackson have?

Michael Jackson has two children—Prince, 27, and Paris, 26 with Debbie Rowe while his third Bigi (formerly Blanket), 21 was born via surrogacy.

Jackson and Rowe married in 1996, and Rowe became pregnant shortly after. The couple divorced in 1999, and Jackson was granted full custody of their children.

While all three of his children have spent their lives in the public eye, during their childhood, Jackson shielded them from the paparazzi using elaborate masks and veils.

In 2007, Jackson’s longtime bodyguard described them to People as "well-mannered and level-headed," while the singer’s publicist emphasized that the children were "Michael's first priority."

But the 13-time Grammy winner had accumulated more than half a billion dollars in debt at the time of his death.

How much did Michael Jackson owe at the time of his death?

According to new court records, Michael Jackson was over $500 million in debt when he died in 2009, owing money to over 65 creditors.

Estate executors are now seeking reimbursement for expenses related to managing his $2 billion estate since 2018.

Jackson faced "more than half a dozen lawsuits pending worldwide" and had over "65 creditor claims" filed against his estate, leading to additional litigation.

The executors managed to renegotiate and restructure existing financing arrangements at much lower interest rates, allowing the estate to avoid asset loss and settle outstanding debts.

Under the agreement with Jackson's children—Paris, Prince, and Bigi—who are the beneficiaries, the probate court oversees the estate's financial affairs.

The new filing specifies that the estate's attorneys must obtain court approval every six months to receive 30% of their compensation, with the remaining 70% retained by them.

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