AR Rahman recalls declining invitation to meet Michael Jackson after being kept on the hook for a week: ‘I don’t want to meet him…’

AR Rahman recalled when he and Michael Jackson nearly collaborated on a song before the King of Pop's death in 2009.

By: Entertainment Desk
New Delhi | Updated: July 11, 2024 11:41 PM IST

3 min read

AR Rahman recalled his meetings with Michael Jackson.

The Oscar-winning music composer AR Rahman recalled meeting the iconic Michael Jackson in Los Angeles, and their almost-collaboration on a Tamil song of all things. At an event in Kuala Lumpur recently, the musician said that initially turned down an opportunity to meet the King of Pop, but they eventually met at his house for a two-hour interaction. He said that upon his return to India, he contemplated a collaboration with Jackson, and that they even had a conversation about it.

In a video shared by Free Malaysia Today on YouTube, Rahman said, “At the beginning of 2009, I was in LA with my agent. He introduced me to another person, his friend, who managed Michael Jackson. I tested my waters. I said, ‘Can I meet Michael Jackson?’ And he said, ‘Sure, I’ll send out an email’. There was no response in the first week. I was just quiet, and I said, ‘It’s fine’.”

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Rahman continued, “And then the nominations happened, and I got nominated for the Oscars. Then, the email came in, and it said, ‘Michael wants to meet you’. But I said, ‘I don’t want to meet him now’.” As the audience cheered, Rahman added, “I said, ‘I don’t want to meet him. If I win an Oscar, I’ll meet him, otherwise I won’t’. I was sure I was going to win. I won, and the next day, I went to meet him. It was almost 6:30 pm, and the sun was going down. And then, somebody opened the door with gloves on…”

Pop icon Michael Jackson poses for a picture with Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray. (Express archive photo)

The audience cheered again, as Rahman recalled what he spoke about during the meeting. He said that Jackson talked about ‘world peace’, and also his iconic dance moves. Jackson also told Rahman that he loved his music in Slumdog Millionaire, and asked him some technical questions. “He introduced me to his kids, but I was jet-lagged because I’d been working day and night. I was waiting to return to India… It was unforgettable,” he said.

Rahman recalled that upon returning to India, he began working on the Rajinikanth-starrer film Enthiran, and director Shankar asked why he hasn’t collaborated with Jackson on a song. “I said, ‘Wow, will he do a Tamil song?’ And I called him, and we spoke that week. He said, ‘Whatever you say, we will do it together’. We met again, but unfortunately, he passed away in 2009. He was sick at the time.”

Pop star Michael Jackson interacts with children in Mumbai. (Express archive photo)

Jackson died of medical complications in 2009, but remains the highest-earning dead artiste in the world. Rahman continues to be India’s biggest film music composer, but after a short stint in Hollywood following his Oscars success, he returned his focus on Indian films. He last wrote the music for Amar Singh Chamkila.