Prince Jackson Says Dad Michael Jackson Had 'Insecurity' Over His Vitiligo

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00:00 he had a lot of insecurity around kind of looking blotchy.

00:04 - Prince Jackson is opening up about his late father,

00:06 Michael Jackson struggles with his physical appearance.

00:10 The 26 year old was on a recent episode

00:13 of the Hot Boxing with Mike Tyson podcast

00:15 and spoke about Michael's vitiligo,

00:17 a condition that causes the skin

00:19 to lose color or pigmentation.

00:22 In the candid episode, Prince reveals

00:24 when he first learned about the condition

00:25 and shut down any rumors about his famous dad's appearance.

00:29 - When I was younger, you know,

00:30 he was always explained to me, speaking about that.

00:33 He had a skin condition called vitiligo.

00:36 It had been kind of an,

00:39 I don't know what the actual medical term is.

00:41 I'm trying to get into it.

00:42 - So I'm hearing from you, that is real.

00:44 This is officially not a rumor.

00:45 - Yeah, yeah.

00:46 I think it was even on the autopsy report.

00:48 So there was things, I think the cause of it,

00:50 it's up for speculation, but it's either vitiligo

00:55 or some form of lupus that contributed to the vitiligo.

00:59 - He then got into detail about the impact

01:01 the skin condition had on his dad's self-esteem.

01:04 - He had a lot of insecurity around kind of looking blotchy

01:07 in his appearance.

01:08 So he wanted to see if he could, you know,

01:10 smooth out his appearance to help with his security

01:14 on his, I guess, physical appearance.

01:16 You know, I think the glowing may have probably

01:18 also had something to do with it

01:19 'cause he was visionary, I guess,

01:21 in the way that he thought, right?

01:23 - Michael died in June, 2009, when Prince was 12 years old.

01:27 While chatting with Mike,

01:28 the producer admitted he's still learning about his dad.

01:31 - He was very interesting.

01:34 You know, we were doing a lot of research.

01:35 Personally, I'm doing a lot of research on him

01:37 and just learning a lot about his history.

01:39 And there's so much to cover, right?

01:40 It goes back to early '70s, late '60s.

01:43 And when you see the performances and like on the "Bad" tour,

01:47 the "Dangerous" tour, you see it from his perspective

01:51 when he's looking out

01:52 and it's just a sea of people watching him.

01:53 And I always wondered, doing that night after night,

01:57 month after month, what impact does that have on you?

02:01 - Super distinct. - You know, to see a sea

02:02 of people just singing your lyrics back to you

02:05 and wanting to reach out and touch you, whatever it is,

02:08 just being mesmerized,

02:09 the impact of that has gotta be very profound.

02:13 - Recently, Prince and his younger brother, Biggie,

02:15 who used to be known by his nickname, Blanket,

02:18 honored their dad at the Michael Jackson

02:19 Blue Sapphire birthday celebration.

02:22 Biggie's appearance at the event was a rare one

02:24 as the family has mainly kept him out of the public eye

02:27 since his father's death.

02:29 Their sister, Paris Jackson, wasn't at the celebration,

02:32 but that doesn't mean she isn't close to her family.

02:35 In October 2022, AXIS Hollywood spoke to Prince

02:39 at the annual Thriller Night Halloween party,

02:41 and he gushed over his relationship with his siblings.

02:45 - Love your costume. - Thank you, thank you.

02:47 I love yours. - What was the inspiration?

02:49 - During the pandemic, my girlfriend and I

02:51 got really into "Mario Brothers," and I was always Mario

02:54 and she was always Peach, so we said, "Let's do it."

02:57 - I love it, I love it.

02:58 So how does it be here to honor your father's song,

03:01 reaching such a milestone?

03:02 Must be extra special knowing your father's musical legacy.

03:05 - 100%, 100%.

03:07 We were talking about it with my team in the morning.

03:10 You can feel it in the air.

03:11 There's this electricity, it's just incredible.

03:13 I wasn't here when "Thriller" was made,

03:15 but a lot of my cousins were here.

03:17 A lot of people who were on this property were here,

03:19 and to hear their stories, and here we are 40 years later,

03:23 like you said, it's a monumental achievement.

03:25 - Totally, do you ever see a world

03:27 where you and your siblings

03:28 might release music together someday?

03:30 - Oh, definitely not for myself.

03:32 - Not a singer? - No, definitely not.

03:34 I can't say anything for my brother,

03:36 but my sister has her own fantastic musical career.

03:38 - I love that, and yes, fans love the bond

03:40 you share with your siblings.

03:42 How does it feel having that close-knit family

03:45 tie in with your siblings?

03:46 - Family's important, it's what we were raised with,

03:48 and it's a community that we can always rely on,

03:52 and for that reason, it's an honor

03:54 to have that bond with them.

03:55 I feel supported, I know that I support them,

03:58 and it's just such an incredible relationship.

04:01 - I love that, and obviously, you're dressed as Mario.

04:04 Are your siblings coordinating with you tonight?

04:06 - No, my girlfriend is coordinating with me tonight.

04:08 I don't know what my sister is gonna be,

04:10 and I don't know what my brother's gonna be,

04:12 so I have a feeling my brother's gonna be something

04:14 that you won't recognize him in, so he can hide.

04:16 He's very incognito like that,

04:18 but my sister always does a really awesome costume,

04:21 so I'm excited to see what she comes in.

04:22 - Oh my gosh, I can't wait.

04:23 So do you have any fun memories of Halloween

04:25 growing up with your dad and siblings?

04:26 - Yes, yes, when we were younger,

04:29 when we didn't go out to trick or treat,

04:31 my dad used to come in with bags filled with,

04:33 like garbage bags filled with candy,

04:35 and we used to trade them around

04:36 while we were on the arcade room floor,

04:38 or the game table floor,

04:40 and it's just such a great holiday,

04:43 because I feel like nobody takes themselves seriously

04:46 when you're in costume, you know what I mean?

04:47 And it brings down those barriers,

04:49 so I feel like it rekindles that inner child,

04:52 which is what my father is all about,

04:53 so it just emulates that feeling.

04:55 - Totally.

04:56 Okay, and we spoke to Ola Ray,

04:58 who starred as your father's girlfriend

04:59 in the famous Thriller music video,

05:02 and she told us what it was like seeing him do his thing.

05:05 We have a little video right here for you.

05:07 - It was so exciting watching him.

05:09 He was so powerful, and just, he was such a perfectionist.

05:13 He kept saying, "Okay, let's do it again,

05:14 "let's do it again, let's do it again."

05:16 - What's it like hearing that

05:17 from someone who works so closely with him?

05:19 - That is, from my experience with my father,

05:21 that describes him very, very well,

05:23 and from other people that I've connected with recently

05:25 that knew my father, that worked with my father,

05:27 he was a perfectionist,

05:29 and I think that's what made him so great,

05:30 his attention to detail and his dedication

05:32 to getting it right.

05:33 - Totally, and I heard also, he's such a prankster.

05:36 Did he pull any crazy pranks on you guys

05:39 when you guys were younger?

05:40 - Yes, when he actually showed us the Thriller music video,

05:42 he told us it was real,

05:44 and then started acting like he was transforming,

05:45 and my sister and I ran out the room.

05:47 - Stop.

05:48 - Yeah, yeah, it was terrifying.

05:49 - Total freak out?

05:50 - Terrifying, thought it was real.

05:51 - Good, I love that.

05:52 Well, thank you so much, friends.

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