Producer recalls Michael and Janet's 'competitiveness' while recording 'Scream'
What's the story
Jimmy Jam, the legendary songwriter and producer, recently revealed that there was a bit of "competitiveness" between Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson while they were working on their iconic song Scream. Speaking to People at the Hollywood premiere of the biopic Michael on Monday, he said it was "interesting" due to the family dynamic.
Family dynamics
Janet thought she was a guest on Jackson's song
Jam said, "When we did Scream, it was really interesting because Janet always felt like she was just guesting on Michael's song." "She didn't ever think of it as a duo. And she kind of treated it like that." "She just kind of said, 'Whatever my brother wants to do... this is the key he wants to do it in, these are the words he wants to say.'" "She was very much deferring to what he wanted to do."
Vocal sessions
The siblings recorded their parts in different cities
Interestingly, the siblings recorded their vocals in different cities: Jackson in New York and Janet in Minneapolis. Jam recalled, "When Michael heard Janet's vocal, he said, 'Where'd you do that vocal?'" "We said, 'Minneapolis.' He said, 'I'm going to come to Minneapolis.' So I felt a little bit of the competitiveness, which was cool." Jam added, "He wanted to see her do well. She wanted to see him do well, and that happened, and it was captured beautifully on video."
Video accolades
About the song 'Scream'
The song, released in 1995, reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent a total of 17 weeks on the chart. The single and video also won a 1996 Grammy for Best Music Video, Short Form, and bagged 11 nominations at the MTV Video Music Awards. Jam says the music video is "beautifully done."
Song significance
Janet once spoke about what 'Scream' meant to her
In 2024, Janet told the BBC that working on Scream helped her understand what Jackson was going through at that time. She said, "Mike and I wrote that song in New York, in his apartment." "So [I relive] that whole journey, listening to him sing it [and remembering] what he was going through at that time." Scream came out in 1995 shortly after Jackson settled a 1994 child abuse lawsuit, according to The New York Times.