![]() ![]() We tried several times to get the shots for the cover. I was not only designing and creating a cover I was branding a person. But I wanted to put that kid in a tuxedo – a tuxedo and white dress shirt, looking like Sinatra walking into the spotlight to the applause of a sold-out Vegas performance. I begged his agent to let me create the cover for Off the Wall!Īt the time, young Michael was a gangly kid with an Afro. Suddenly I was struck by lightning – I knew the look for Michael. In The Wiz, he was grown man and a person in his own right. He out-danced, out-sang, and out-performed the rest of the cast, and with a personality bigger than the screen. Until The Wiz, I had only thought of Michael as the kid from The Jacksons and The Jackson 5. Michel always used the look we created for Off the Wall as a logo. The look Michael and I created together at the time was a graphic metaphor of his coming of age, of his stepping out as a man on his own. Those images, the black and white palette, the socks and glove, and all the other trademark elements we came up with, were kept in some form as the symbol of Michael Jackson throughout his career. Below is a transcript of an interview Mike Salisbury did shortly after Michael’s passing, on the eve of the album’s 30th anniversary, in which he reflects on the inspiration for the legendary album cover and the process of bringing it to life. The album was released on Augand the cover art adorning its frontispiece reflected both the youthfulness and maturity of a then-21-year-old Michael Jackson. The two got together for a photo session and the rest was history. In the end, Michael Jackson turned to famed photographer Mike Salisbury for inspiration.
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