Epic Records and Michael Jackson's estate have announced they'll release "Xscape," an 8-song collection of previously unreleased tracks from the late King of Pop, on May 13.
Label ceo, and the project's executive producer, L.A. Reid, took the lead in cultivating recordings from Jackson in which his vocals were completed, and went about "contemporizing" each. The album's lead producer was Timbaland, with additional work courtesy of Rodney Jerkins, Stargate, Jerome "Jroc" Harmon and John McClain.
"Michael left behind some musical performances that we take great pride in presenting through the vision of music producers that he either worked directly with or expressed strong desire to work with," Reid said in a statement on Monday. "We are extremely proud and honored to present this music to the world."
"Xscape" continues the tradition of naming Jackson's albums after one of its songs. The title track was written and produced by Jackson and Jerkins, who recorded the original with the singer.
Epic will release a deluxe edition of the album that will include all the sourced recordings in their original form. Both the standard and Deluxe Editions are available Tuesday (April 1) for pre-order on iTunes and elsewhere.
A global campaign will incorporate One Sony sister companies, including Sony Network Entertainment. In February, Sony and Jackson's estate announced a partnership with Sony Mobile that saw the release of an ad incorporating a new version of the track "Slave to the Rhythm."
More information, including track listing, will be released soon.
Jackson's history on Billboard charts is, of course, legendary. He tallied 13 Billboard Hot 100 No. 1s, the best sum of any male soloist. (And, that's not including his four No. 1s as part of the Jackson 5.) He also scored six No. 1s (as a soloist) on the Billboard 200, from 1982's "Thriller" through 2009's posthumous "This Is It" soundtrack. "Thriller" is the all-time top-selling studio album in the U.S., according to the RIAA, which has certified the landmark set as 29-times Platinum. His total U.S. album sales stand at 75.5 million, according to the RIAA.
Via billboard