There’s no doubt that Michael Jackson is one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century with his four decades-long career, lasting contributions to music, dance, and fashion. He is a global figure in popular culture and has influenced countless artists with his impeccable career across many genres.
Much like his professional career, the King of Pop also had a highly publicized personal life. From his love affairs to changing appearance, he was constantly under the spotlight. One of the most popular aspects of his life was his family and three children. To keep them away from the paparazzi, Jackson came up with an idea to cover their faces when in public.
Michael Jackson Covered His Childrens’ Faces
During his massive HIStory World Tour, Michael Jackson married Debbie Rowe, who was six months pregnant with his first child at the time. The couple welcomed their son Michael Joseph Jackson Jr., commonly known as Prince, on February 13, 1997. A year later, his sister Paris-Michael Katherine Jackson was born on April 3, 1998. Jackson and Rowe divorced in the following year, and she conceded custody of the children with an $8 million settlement.
Prince and Paris aren’t Jackson’s only children, as the singer decided to have another child via an anonymous surrogate mother in 2002. That’s when his third child Prince Michael Jackson II, nicknamed ‘Blanket,’ was born. Perhaps he is the most famous one since he was first spotted when Jackson briefly held him over the balcony of his Berlin hotel room.
Since he grew up as a child star himself, Michael Jackson suffered from the pressure of living a life in front of the entire world, especially the press. To prevent the same thing from happening to his kids, the musician came up with a peculiar way to protect them.
Whenever the King of Pop was seen with his children, Prince, Paris, and Blanket were all wearing masks, veils, or pretty much anything to cover their faces. Jackson was aware of how attention and criticism can affect people psychologically. Therefore, he kept his childrens’ faces hidden while they were in public to protect them from the paparazzi.
Paris Jackson Is Happy With Her Father’s Decision
Although his actions drew attention much like anything else in his career or personal life, his children are actually happy that their father tried to protect them from what was inevitably coming. In fact, Paris Jackson opened up about his father’s decision on a new episode of her reality series ‘Unfiltered: Paris Jackson & Gabriel Glenn,’ and her statements were heartbreaking.
According to the young musician’s recollection, his father envied children who could freely play with their friends at the playground, unlike him. Knowing what it feels like to have his childhood stolen, Michael Jackson didn’t want the same thing for his kids and made them wear masks. Paris revealed that she feels grateful for her father’s decision because it helped her and her siblings do everyday things like other children their age.
In the episode, Paris said:
“When Michael was young, he would be in the studio, and he’d look outside, and he’d see kids on the playground, and he couldn’t do that. He didn’t want that for us, so we wore masks. I appreciated it. It was nice. Because we were able to go to Chuck E. Cheese and Circus Circus, and we were normal.”
Regardless of the criticism towards Michael Jackson’s not-so-private life, the musician carried the weight of his childhood traumas on his shoulders during his entire life. Since his own children admitted wearing masks and hiding their faces allowed them to lead a normal childhood, it seems like his plan worked after all.
