Milwaukee Community Journal

You are here: Home / Archives for Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey

When the Music Stopped: Michael Jackson’s Former Inner Circle Faces the Estate

By Leave a Comment

Neverland Ranch’s gates. (Wikimedia Commons /Photo by Shazari)

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

There was a time when Neverland was a dream. A place where innocence and fame danced together, and the world believed in magic again. But dreams can rot in daylight, and in the years since Michael Jackson’s death, Neverland’s gates have opened once more — this time, into a courtroom.

Three siblings, once close enough to be called family, are accusing the late superstar’s billion-dollar Estate of manipulation and betrayal. Frank Cascio, Aldo Cascio, and Marie-Nicole Porte have filed sworn declarations claiming the Michael Jackson Estate forced them into a secret 2019 settlement meant to silence them forever. The Estate calls it false, labeling their claims a $213 million shakedown. The Cascio family’s bond with Jackson stretched back to childhood. He was a guest in their New Jersey home, a mentor, a friend, and for years, a source of pride. Frank traveled the world with him, managed his affairs, and called him a brother. Aldo and Marie spent their youth inside the singer’s circle of light.

In those days, the Cascios believed they were part of something beautiful. Frank wrote a 2011 book titled My Friend Michael, calling Jackson gentle and misunderstood. He told Oprah Winfrey and Wendy Williams that Michael was innocent and that every man who accused him of abuse was motivated by greed. “He was being attacked by liars who wanted his money,” Frank said then. But time has a way of turning faith into fracture.

According to court filings, the Cascio siblings now say the Estate preyed on their pain. In December 2019, they allege, a representative came to their father’s Italian restaurant in New Jersey and gathered nine relatives in a private upstairs room. There was one document on the table. It was read once. They were told to sign immediately. No lawyers. No copies. No questions. Aldo said the moment felt suffocating. “We were subjected to intense time pressure,” he wrote. “The pressure was compounded by the Estate’s exploitation of our family’s relationship with Michael’s children. We were told not to inform them about the agreement or the underlying abuse.”

He said he signed while in therapy, struggling to understand his trauma. “I felt stripped of dignity and forced into silence about the most painful truth of my life.” Frank, who noted that he has dyslexia, said he signed alone in Los Angeles at the office of longtime Jackson attorney Howard Weitzman. “They told me it was only a technicality,” he said. “They told me not to bring a lawyer. I trusted them.” The Michael Jackson Estate denies all of it. Co-executor John Branca said the 2019 deal was mutual and necessary to protect Jackson’s children and legacy after HBO’s Leaving Neverland documentary. He called the new claims “blackmail dressed up as trauma.”

“They went on national television for years saying Michael was innocent,” Branca said. “Now they want to profit off his name.” Before his death, Michael Jackson was acquitted of all 13 criminal charges in 2005. He, his family, and the Estate have always vehemently denied all allegations of abuse. Yet this latest battle is not just about innocence or guilt. It is about power — who wields it, who loses it, and what it costs to stand against it. It is about the price of silence, and how loyalty, once broken, can turn love into something that no settlement can contain.

As the case moves through the courts, one thing is certain. The music may have stopped, but the echoes of Neverland still refuse to fade.

The Silence of Black Wealth: When the Billionaires Turned Their Backs on the Black Press

By Leave a Comment

A detailed close-up of tightly rolled bundles of US dollar banknotes, suggesting accumulated wealth or savings. However, in the context of inflation, this image subtly conveys the idea that even significant amounts of money can lose their real value over time. It represents the quiet erosion of purchasing power, making it a compelling visual for discussions on long-term financial planning, investment strategies, the impact of rising prices on accumulated capital, and the challenge of preserving wealth in an inflationary economy.

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

Two months ago, famed civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump stood before a ballroom filled with the echoes of history. He did not whisper. He thundered. “If you’ve been blessed,” he said, “you got to pass the blessing on. You just can’t keep it to yourself.” Then he pledged fifty thousand dollars to the Black Press of America. It was not an act of charity. It was an act of faith. A declaration that the oldest voice of Black truth must live to speak again. Crump said he made his gift public because he wanted others to follow. He said he hoped those who had been lifted by the love and loyalty of Black people would remember who gave them their first breath of recognition. He hoped they would remember that the Black Press was not a charity case but a lifeline. Two months later, the silence has been deafening.

Magic Johnson’s people said “no.” David Steward, founder of World Wide Technology, said “no.” Jay-Z’s team didn’t bother to return calls. Janice Bryant Howroyd of the Act-One Group did not respond. Richelieu Dennis of Sundial Brands did not respond. Daymond John, Thomas Moorehead, and Tristan Walker did not respond. Tyler Perry, Robert Smith, and Oprah Winfrey did not respond. Dr. Dre, Spike Lee, and Michael Jordan each have also ignored multiple attempts to have conversations. Even across the ocean, Africa’s wealthiest men—Aliko Dangote, Mike Adenuga, Patrice Motsepe, Strive Masiyiwa, and Abdulsamad Rabiu—have people working for them who won’t acknowledge the Black Press with a simple response. Let the record show what was asked of them. The Black Press did not beg for charity. The Black Press asked to advertise their companies, their products, and their services. We asked to build relationships that honor the communities they came from. Many of them, like Magic, Oprah, and Jordan, have foundations that could have given grants if their hearts were so moved. The Black Press only asked that they see its worth.

Even the Democratic Party, carried to power by Black faith and Black votes, has turned away. The same party that claims to speak for equality now walks quietly in step with Trump’s anti-diversity crusade. They have shut the Black Press out of advertising dollars while funneling millions into white-owned mainstream media. It is hypocrisy dressed in progress to preach inclusion while starving the very storytellers who gave them the language of struggle.

This abandonment comes at a time when Trump has declared war on the lives and livelihoods of Black people. His administration has terminated more than three hundred thousand Black women from federal jobs that once sustained families. His policies against diversity have closed doors for hundreds of thousands of other Black men and women. Companies, emboldened by his rhetoric, continue to lay off and fire workers, many of them Black. And in the middle of this storm stands the Black Press — the last institution that still employs and uplifts hundreds of Black men and women who have families to support. Each of the more than two hundred newspapers and media companies in the Black Press represents not only truth on paper, but food on a table, tuition paid, rent covered, and the dignity of work preserved. The Black Press has been here before. It has stood when Frederick Douglass told a nation built on lies that truth would not die. It stood when Ida B. Wells printed the names of the lynched. It stood when Mamie Till demanded that the world look at her child. It stood when Dr. King wrote from Birmingham Jail. It stood when Malcolm X spoke the raw truth America refused to face. It stood when the white press would not. And it still stands today, two centuries strong, built by two brave souls – John B. Russwurm and Samuel Cornish during slavery – and, now, carried mostly on the backs of Black women. The Chicago Defender. The New Pittsburgh Courier. EBONY. The Amsterdam News. The Philadelphia Tribune. The Afro American. The St. Louis American. The Los Angeles Sentinel. The Michigan Chronicle. The Washington Informer. These are not relics of a fading past. They are the pulse of a people who refuse to vanish.

Many of these newspapers live in the same cities that raised the icons now silent. Chicago, where Jordan and Oprah became legends. Los Angeles, where Magic Johnson built his empire. Brooklyn, where Spike Lee found his voice. Philadelphia and New York, where Jay-Z and Will Smith found theirs. The irony is sharp. These newspapers gave many of them their first headlines, their first interviews, their first measure of respect. Remember EBONY? JET? How about Right On! Yet now, as the Black Press struggles for air, those it once lifted act as if they never knew its name. So it is that in this moment of trial, a civil rights attorney and a white businessman stand nearly alone. Mark Cuban, through his Cost-Plus Drugs company, reached into his own pocket and gave one hundred thousand dollars to the Black Press without hesitation. He did not wait to be convinced. He saw the need and answered it. Two hundred years of truth are hanging by a thread. The presses still turn. The ink still flows. But for how long? If the Black Press falls, so does the record of our struggle, our triumph, and our faith.

And when that day comes, history will not say the Black Press was destroyed by white supremacy. It will say it was abandoned by its own.

“We are going to save ourselves,” Crump declared. “We are all we need.” His words were not sentimental. They were a warning. Because a people without storytellers are a people without memory.

The Walls Remember: Murals and the Unyielding Story of Black America

By Leave a Comment

American flag with black people raise their hands to protest in the United States for racism and racial inequality.

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

You can try to bury people. You can rewrite their history books, close their schools, and burn their libraries. You can pass laws that punish truth-tellers and silence teachers who dare speak the name of freedom. But you cannot silence color. You cannot silence the wall. Across this country, in cities both proud and scarred, the story of Black America refuses to die. It is written not in the ink of permission, but in the paint of defiance. It rises on concrete, brick, and steel. The murals speak where the history books fall silent.

Philadelphia, the so-called birthplace of America, has become a vast open-air scripture of the Black experience. On its walls, the dead rise again, the forgotten are called by name, and the children of this century inherit the truth their nation keeps trying to erase. Mural Arts Philadelphia has filled the city with living testimony. The Colored Conventions: A Buried History calls back the men and women who, long before Emancipation, gathered to demand that their humanity be recognized. The Legacy of Bishop Richard Allen reminds every passerby that resistance can begin with a single step away from the back of a segregated church.

Across Germantown Avenue, Harriet Tubman & the Underground Railroad stands as both memory and prophecy. Nearby, Octavius Catto returns through Remembering a Forgotten Hero, his face no longer hidden in the shadows of history. And then there is Dr. J, the mural of Julius Erving not as an athlete but as a man—a man of dignity, intellect, and command. These walls do not whisper; they roar. In Baltimore, the paint itself breathes. The city holds a long lineage of African American creativity, from the classrooms of Morgan State University to the heart of the Black Arts District along Pennsylvania Avenue. The murals of Ernest Shaw tower above streets once broken by neglect, affirming that art can be armor and prayer all at once.

Baltimore’s artists work in the spirit of survival. They know that the paintbrush, in the hands of the oppressed, becomes a weapon sharper than any blade. Their colors speak to a people long told to be invisible, declaring instead, We are still here. Out west, Los Angeles wears its resistance across miles of concrete. Its murals were born in the heat of rebellion and the ache of inequality. The artists of SPARC, the Social and Public Art Resource Center, took what was once the language of graffiti and turned it into gospel.

Charles “Boko” Freeman’s Return to the Light reflects a hunger for justice, while Noni Olabisi’s To Protect and Serve lays bare the truth of state violence. City officials tried to silence her, but her work still stares down the same forces she painted against. Alice Patrick’s Women Do Get Weary But They Don’t Give Up honors the women who built the bones of America: Mary McLeod Bethune, Dorothy Height, Josephine Baker, and Oprah Winfrey. Women who carried nations on their backs and never complained of the weight. These murals are not decorations. They are sermons painted in public view, declaring that beauty without justice is a lie.

In Topeka, Kansas, across from the sacred ground of Brown v. Board of Education, a mural calls the people to remember the battle that opened the schoolhouse doors. In Birmingham, Alabama, the colors stretch across old segregation lines, transforming the streets of suffering into streets of pride. In Jacksonville, Florida, the likenesses of A. Philip Randolph, Zora Neale Hurston, and James Weldon Johnson speak to the city’s long lineage of brilliance. These are not mere portraits; they are warnings and promises painted on brick. At St. Louis Lambert International Airport, a mural spans 51 feet of history. Black Americans in Flight tells of men and women who defied both gravity and hatred. Created by Spencer Taylor and Solomon Thurman, it chronicles the Tuskegee Airmen, astronaut Mae Jemison, and Ronald McNair, who perished in the Challenger explosion but are not remembered. Every panel sings of ascent. It is a mural that tells every traveler what America owes to those who lifted her higher than she deserved to go.

Even in the seat of power, where politics tries to silence the soul, the walls still speak. At The Wharf, artist Shawn Perkins painted portraits of Benjamin Banneker, Marvin Gaye, and Reverend Anthony Bowen, each one a local monument to a greater story. Just blocks away, the “Black Lives Matter” mural once stretched across the pavement like a hymn of protest, bright yellow and unyielding. Before Mayor Muriel Bowser was forced to capitulate to Donald Trump and remove the plaza, it pointed straight toward the White House as if to remind those inside: This nation was built by hands it tried to chain. Before any of these murals, there was Aaron Douglas. In 1934, his series Aspects of Negro Life told the story from the shores of Africa through the slave ships and into the modern city. His art carried the weight of memory and the hope of deliverance. Douglas painted the very thing this country still refuses to see: that Black life is America’s most enduring masterpiece.

The murals that cover this nation are not ornaments. They are testaments. They are the faces of ancestors who will not fade. Each brushstroke defies the lie that our story can be rewritten. Each color insists that our memory cannot be outlawed. Black history is not a month. It is not a chapter. It is a mural that stretches across the American conscience, daring anyone to paint over it.

Trust in Mainstream Media at a New Low, But the Black Press Stands as the Trusted Voice

By Leave a Comment

digital data

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

Trust in America’s mainstream media has fallen to its lowest level on record. Gallup reports that only 28 percent of adults say they have a great deal or fair amount of confidence in newspapers, television, and radio to report the news fully, accurately, and fairly. That is down from 31 percent last year and 40 percent five years ago. Seven in ten adults now say they have little or no confidence at all. Republicans show the deepest distrust, with only 8 percent expressing confidence in the media. Independents stand at 27 percent. Democrats, though still higher, have slipped to 51 percent, a figure that matches their previous low in 2016. Generational divides are also clear. Forty-three percent of adults aged 65 and older trust the media, but no younger age group rises above 28 percent.

For Black America, this collapse of trust in mainstream outlets is not a new story. The Black Press has been the institution that carried the truth when no one else would. It published Frederick Douglass when white newspapers tried to silence him. It carried Ida B. Wells’ anti-lynching reports when others dismissed them. It printed the images of Emmett Till when the mainstream turned away. It gave voice to Dr. King and Malcolm X when they were branded agitators. Now, as the mainstream loses credibility, the Black Press faces its own struggle to survive. Two years before its bicentennial, more than 200 family-owned Black newspapers remain, many led by women. They battle economic starvation while carrying the weight of history. Corporate America has cut advertising. Washington has withdrawn support. Even as white billionaires like Mark Cuban have reached into their pockets, many of the wealthiest Black Americans have not stepped forward. Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jordan, Robert F. Smith, Jay-Z, Rihanna, LeBron James, Magic Johnson, Tyler Perry, and others together command nearly $100 billion in wealth. Yet the institution that once defended its very humanity now fights to keep its doors open, as they’ve remained on the sidelines.

“Right now in America, we’re under attack like we’ve never been in our lifetime,” Ben Crump said at the Black Press’ Annual National Leadership Awards in Washington. “So now more than ever, we have to make sure that we have institutions that are disseminating information to our people, being the clarion call for us to be ready to stand up for our children and our communities. And nobody carries the Black narrative and the Black information to Black communities more passionately than the Black Press.” Crump pledged $50,000 to support the Black Press, structured as $10,000 a year over five years. “Everybody got to give a little more when they can. If you’ve been blessed, you got to pass the blessing on. You just can’t keep it to yourself,” Crump stated. “Because right now the Black Press is needed more than ever before.”

The institution he spoke of has never been an abstraction. In Tulsa in 1921, white mobs torched Black-owned newspapers to silence the truth. During Jim Crow, the Black Press guided families through terror and carried the voices of leaders who would shape the nation. Today, in a quieter but no less dangerous way, the Black Press is again under assault. It is being starved of the resources needed to survive, while Black women publishers carry the dual burden of keeping their papers alive under policies that have driven their unemployment to historic highs. The Gallup survey shows how far the nation has fallen. “Confidence in the mass media is historically low,” the authors wrote. “With fewer than three in ten Americans now placing trust in newspapers, television, and radio to report the news fully, fairly, and accurately.”

‘Seen & Heard’ Traces the Struggles of Black Television

By Leave a Comment

Seen and Heard: The History of Black Television

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

Issa Rae is once again betting on Black, this time by turning the lens on the complicated history of African American representation on television. Her new two-part HBO documentary, “Seen and Heard: The History of Black Television,” debuts September 9 on HBO and HBO Max, and it doesn’t shy away from exposing both the breakthroughs and the betrayals that have defined Black TV. The project, which began development in 2019, features powerhouse voices including Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry, Tracee Ellis Ross, Shonda Rhimes, Ava DuVernay, and Norman Lear. Together, they recount the triumphs of Black storytelling and the persistent roadblocks that have too often stripped creators of the rewards their work built.

“We wanted to make a comprehensive history and showcase, with evidence, that this is how they built the success of their networks on our backs, and we almost don’t have anything to show for it as a result. It’s tragic, and history repeats itself,” Rae said during a keynote conversation at South by Southwest. She explained that she was inspired early by sitcoms like Moesha, Girlfriends, and Martin, but grew disillusioned in the 2000s when those shows vanished and reality television, often humiliating and exploitative in its portrayal of Black women, dominated screens. Rae recalled an infamous moment on Flavor of Love where a contestant was denied a restroom break and degraded on camera. “This is humiliating, and this is all Black women have on television right now,” she said, adding that the disappearance of scripted Black shows pushed her to start creating her own work.

“It makes such a difference when you’re thinking about something as small as set design,” Rae told CBS Mornings, stressing how details like a Black character’s bedroom or hairstyle can determine whether a story feels authentic. “Watching it myself and hearing some of these stories for the first time inspires me. The end of that documentary inspires me to do more and get my shit together,” she said. “Seen and Heard” is hailed as both a celebration of resilience and a reckoning with exploitation, reminding audiences that visibility is not enough if ownership and respect remain out of reach. “It makes such a difference when Black creators control their own stories,” Rae stated.

Trump Demands Probe of Celebs Who Backed Harris

By Leave a Comment

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

President Donald Trump’s latest tirade marks a new chapter in what critics call one of modern history’s angriest and most vengeful post-election victory laps. Despite reclaiming the White House, Trump and his inner circle continue to lash out—not at rivals in government, but at celebrities who backed his 2024 opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris. In a series of overnight social media posts filled with capital letters and accusations, Trump called for a federal investigation into pop and cultural icons Beyoncé, Oprah Winfrey, Bruce Springsteen, and Bono. The reason: their support for Harris during the campaign. Trump baselessly accused them of being “illegally compensated” under the guise of performance or production contracts, calling the endorsements “a desperate effort to artificially build up her sparse crowds.” “Candidates aren’t allowed to pay for ENDORSEMENTS,” Trump wrote. “This was a very expensive and desperate effort… IT’S NOT LEGAL!”

Springsteen was already in Trump’s crosshairs after criticizing the administration during a concert in England, calling it “corrupt, incompetent, and treasonous.” Trump fired back by attacking the New Jersey rock legend’s appearance, labeling him a “dried out prune of a rocker” who should “KEEP HIS MOUTH SHUT.” Springsteen didn’t stay silent. During his next performance, he fired back. “Donald Trump is an unfit president who persecutes people for exercising free speech,” the “Born in the U.S.A.” singer insisted.  That response only fueled Trump’s fury. In another outburst, the president accused Springsteen—along with Beyoncé, Winfrey, and Bono—of violating campaign finance laws. The Harris campaign, which raised over $1 billion, has disclosed payments to Beyoncé’s Parkwood Entertainment ($165,000) and Oprah’s Harpo Productions ($1 million). Both companies confirmed the funds covered staff and production costs, not personal payments. Oprah addressed the issue directly. “I did not receive any personal fee,” she wrote online. “However, the people who worked on that production needed to be paid. And were. End of story.” Beyoncé’s mother also publicly defended her daughter, calling the rumors “fake news” and stating unequivocally, “She did not receive a penny.”

Still, Trump appears determined to weaponize the Department of Justice against entertainers who oppose him. “At 1:34 AM, Trump called for DOJ to investigate Kamala Harris, Beyoncé, Springsteen, Oprah, and others for crimes,” said Ron Filipkowski, editor of MeidasTouch.com. “Then he made another deranged post about it at 9:11 AM.” Critics say the president’s obsession with silencing his critics has become more than a personality trait—it’s a strategy. “Trump isn’t threatening Beyoncé, Springsteen, Bono, and Oprah because he expects them to be charged with anything,” said Navy veteran Jared Ryan Sears. “He is threatening them to intimidate others from speaking up or supporting his opposition. That is because Trump fears your voice; he fears the power of the people.” Fox News contributor and host Jessica Tarlov added, “Donald Trump spent the night ranting about investigating Beyoncé so that you would forget that House Republicans just moved a bill forward that would cut Medicaid. Don’t let them get away with it.”

Michael Jackson’s Thriving Estate Makes it a Target for Extortion Attempts

By Leave a Comment

Michael Jackson live “Dangerous Tour” in Monza (Italy) 06/07/1992. Photo: Daniele Dalledonne from Trento, Italy / Wikimedia Commons.

‘Enough Is Enough’ say Representatives to Latest Attempt

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

As we reported earlier this month, Michael Jackson’s legacy continues to dominate the entertainment industry, with his various projects collectively surpassing $2 billion in global ticket sales. The King of Pop’s influence remains unmatched, from groundbreaking concert films to sold-out Broadway shows, making his the most successful celebrity estate ever. Ironically, the greater its success the more it has faced attempts from those seeking to shake down the Estate for money.

The most recent case resulted in the Michael Jackson Estate having to go so far as to contact law enforcement officials while filing an arbitration claim in response to threats from a few longtime friends and former associates of the pop icon.

We have learned that they are now demanding $213 million from the estate threatening to release false damaging information about Jackson if their demands are not met, even though for decades they have stated Michael did nothing to them. Co-Executor of the Estate John Branca has described their actions as a blatant attempt to exploit Jackson’s legacy for financial gain at no risk of defamation because those laws don’t protect the deceased. These threats come amidst the Estate’s enormous financial success, having generated $3 billion for beneficiaries.

For 25 years these associates have steadfastly maintained Michael’s innocence. In his book, one member of the group defended Jackson, writing, “Michael had never acted in any way even approximating inappropriate toward us. Michael was being attacked by liars. There was nothing ambiguous about the whole thing. These people were after Michael’s money. But he was innocent.”

He reiterated this stance in numerous media appearances, including interviews with Oprah Winfrey and Wendy Williams. “I’m gonna tell you what sleepovers were like,” he told Williams. “Everybody in a room, me, and others, we would just sit up talking, us on the floor, talking until four o’clock in the morning; let’s go raid the kitchen.” In a group sit down with Oprah, another member insisted, “Michael couldn’t harm a fly. He’s such a kind and gentle soul. Michael was a target.”

Despite their public support for Jackson, the person is engaging in the very behavior he once condemned. In 2019, following HBO’s release of the controversial documentary “Leaving Neverland,” the Jackson estate, was under significant pressure due to the media frenzy that spawned calls to cancel Michael. Representatives sought the group’s support given they for years vouched for Michael’s character, and that’s when they turned. As fiduciaries, the executors’ mission is to generate income for Michael’s beneficiaries. So, they had two goals: preserve the upcoming projects, while shielding his loved ones from further pain of having to endure another round of salacious, unproven allegations. The estate reached a private settlement with the group including $3 million for each of the five individuals. Both sides mutually agreed to keep the agreement under wraps to where even its existence couldn’t be divulged.

“In 2019, there was ‘Leaving Neverland,’ which was a complete surprise hit job,” Branca said in an exclusive interview with the Black Press of America’s Let It Be Known. “We didn’t know it was coming and weren’t asked for comment. And the media didn’t want to hear Michael’s story. MGM was threatening to cancel the Cirque show. We wouldn’t have been able to mount a Broadway show. There were a lot of things that would have gone south. We have a fiduciary responsibility to maximize the income of the estate, and our counsel insisted we sign the agreement. So, we did it with a mutual nondisclosure. And they didn’t want it disclosed either because Michael’s fans would have gone after these people,” Branca said.

The estate’s mutual nondisclosure agreement with the associates was vital in keeping the matter private and allowing the estate to move forward with projects that that would ensure that future generations could share in Michael’s musical and creative legacy and that could prove lucrative for Michael’s three children, the King of Pop’s heirs. “We and they signed this nondisclosure agreement, and the nondisclosure said you can’t even tell people there’s an agreement,” Branca explained. “It was awkward because we were making a movie with Antoine Fuqua and Graham King. And we couldn’t tell anybody about it, including the filmmakers.”

The recent demand for $213 million and the threat of making salacious claims have pushed the estate to take legal action. Branca commented, “The associate’s lawyer even said to us, if you don’t meet our demands, we’re going to have to share these allegations with a wider group of people. It was a shakedown. Enough is enough.”

The estate has reported the extortion attempt to authorities and is filing an arbitration proceeding against the associates for civil extortion. Branca noted the challenge of protecting Jackson’s legacy after his death, as libel laws that protect the living do not extend to those who have passed away.

When asked, Branca addressed the racial element in the treatment of Jackson, pointing out the media’s bias. “I definitely believe there’s a racist element in the media coverage of Michael Jackson since the 1980s. I was there. Michael got so big many were jealous, especially when he bought the Beatles catalog. I remember James Baldwin having that famous quote: ‘Michael will forever pay the price for his success.’”

Jackson himself was acutely aware of the racial undertones in how he was perceived. Branca recalled Jackson saying, “Sinatra’s the chairman of the board. Elvis is the king. Springsteen is the boss. But what do they call me? They call me the Gloved One. And he says, you know that’s racist. They’re trying to keep me down.” Branca added, “I don’t think they would do this to Bruce Springsteen, John Lennon or Elvis for that matter.”

Branca has played a pivotal role in Jackson’s legacy, including his involvement in the 1985 acquisition of the vaunted ATV catalog that included the Beatles and music from other artists. “The music catalog was something that carried him through good times and bad,” Branca noted. “Michael was somewhat of a visionary because some of his advisers were saying it was too expensive. And Michael said, ‘Branca, get that catalog.’” This move proved to be one of the most strategic decisions in Jackson’s career, solidifying his financial future and expanding his influence in the music industry.

The partnership between Branca and Jackson extended beyond financial dealings. They shared a mutual appreciation for creativity and entertainment. Branca recalled attending a Cirque du Soleil show with Jackson. “He and I attended a Cirque du Soleil show together in Santa Monica. And he said, ‘Branca, we gotta go backstage and meet everybody.’ So, Cirque was an easy one,” Branca remembered. This shared vision later led to successful collaborations, including the Cirque shows centered around Jackson’s music.

Despite vast challenges and unproven allegations, the executors have transformed Jackson’s estate into a financial powerhouse. Following Jackson’s death in 2009, the estate was nearly half a billion dollars in debt. Through strategic deals and projects, they turned it into a multi-billion-dollar enterprise. This included a blockbuster $600 million sale of 50% of Jackson’s music catalog to Sony wherein the Estate maintained control and the success of projects like “Michael Jackson’s This Is It,” the highest-grossing concert film in history. Upcoming endeavors, such as the Antoine Fuqua biopic MICHAEL starring Jackson’s nephew Jaafar Jackson, aim to solidify Jackson’s enduring influence in popular culture.

The estate has also diligently ensured the well-being of Jackson’s family. Branca confirmed that Jackson’s mother, Katherine, is well cared for. Earlier reports suggested that Katherine has received more than $60 million from the estate since her son’s tragic death in 2009. “She’s well taken care of. She’s got two beautiful homes,” Branca stated, “full-time security and a private chef. Mrs. Jackson, as she should be, is well taken care of.”

Branca reflected on the estate’s role in maintaining Jackson’s vision, saying, “We’re not Michael. We would never pretend to be. But we know what he loves. A lot of it is trying to execute Michael’s vision.” Despite the hurdles, he remains steadfast in his commitment to protecting and preserving Jackson’s legacy. “We will continue to manage the estate with the integrity and dedication that Michael deserved,” Branca affirmed. “Attempts like this to tarnish his memory for financial gain will not succeed.”

U.S. Dream Academy Receives One Million Dollar Donation from Oprah Winfrey for 20th Anniversary

By Leave a Comment

The Gala honored Award-Winning Icon Cicely Tyson, MENTOR CEO David Shapiro, and Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy Alumna, Mpumi Nobiva

Hosted by Award-Winning Actor Larenz Tate and
WHUR Radio Personality, Triscina Grey

(Washington, D.C.) – September 28, 2018 – The U.S. Dream Academy hosted an exciting 17th Annual “Power of A Dream” Gala themed “Living the Dream” recently at the Washington, D.C. Marriott Marquis presented by Amway in honor of the organizations 20th Anniversary.

The gala fundraising goal of $1 million for the 450 attending guests was exceeded when global media leader Oprah Winfrey had Mpumi Nobiva, an alumna from the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy who was being honored at the event with the DreamBlazer Award, make a surprise announcement that Winfrey would match all donations made during the gala celebration.

“Oprah Winfrey is a long-time supporter of U.S. Dream Academy, but this donation was an incredible surprise! This generous donation from Oprah and our other critical supporters, such as Amway, make our programs to serve children all over the country through our after school tutoring, mentoring and our dream building possible,” said, Wintley Phipps, Founder & CEO, U.S. Dream Academy.

“It was a perfect moment, having one of Oprah’s mentee’s from her Leadership Academy, make the an-nouncement. Nobiva’s accomplishments demonstrate the power of mentoring combined with hard work and perseverance to make “Dreams” come true. We were thrilled to honor Mpumi as our DreamBlazer Awardee and then to have her surprise us with this announcement, was a great way to end the evening,” said C. Diane Wallace Booker, founding Executive Director for U.S. Dream Academy.

The gala was co-hosted by popular award-winning actor, producer and director Larenz Tate (known for co-starring in Girls Trip – Universal Pictures, Power – Starz Network, Deuces on Netflix) along with WHUR popular radio personality Triscina Grey. This years honorees, Cicely Tyson (President’s Award), David Shapiro, CEO of MENTOR: National Mentoring Partnership (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Ser-vice Award) and Mpumi Nobiva (DreamBlazer Award) are passionate advocates of mentorship, education and philanthropy, working to make a lasting impact in their respective fields, in our communities and around the world.

One of the many highlights of the evening was an inspiring performance and heartfelt personal words from honoree and icon Cicely Tyson who spoke words of inspiration directly to the more than 120 DreamKids and the Takoma Academy Chorale after their choir performance on stage. Tyson then led the group in an impromptu song of “Jesus Loves Me”, as students of the choir joined softly in with Tyson.

Many of the young people were visibly moved to tears by this moment of unity between the students and Tyson singing together. The magic continued with a special performance by the U.S. Dream Acade-my founder and Grammy nominee, Wintley Phipps, the Takoma Academy Chorale and the DreamKids. In addition, the Southwest Mentor of the Year Award was presented to three recipients this year, includ-ing; Darwin Kemp, (Washington, D.C.), Roosevelt Neely (Houston, TX.) and Beverly Smith (Indianapo-lis, IN).

Dream Academy students also participated in a XS Gum Design Contest with Amway during the course of the school year. On stage, Jim Ayres (Managing Director – Amway North America) and David Vanderveen (VP and GM for XS, Amway Global) awarded the 1st place prize to one student, Kaleem Payne a 7th grader from the Baltimore City Dream Academy. He will receive a cash award of $2,500.00 and his design will be on every box of XS Energy GUM packaging that will be produced and distributed around the world, along with the US Dream Academy.

The US Dream Academy 2018 Honorary Congressional Committee, included: The Honorable Pete Agui-lar, The Honorable Anthony Brown, The Honorable Benjamin Cardin, The Honorable Elijah Cummings, The Honorable Val Demings, The Honorable Kamala D. Harris, The Honorable Orrin G. Hatch, The Hon-orable Eleanor Holmes Norton, The Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee, The Honorable John P. Sarbanes and The Honorable Chris Van Hollen.

For ten years, Amway has served as the Presenting Sponsor of the gala. Additional sponsors that have contributed to make this year’s fundraiser successful include: Centera Transport Inc., Southwest Airlines, MarkerMan Productions, QTS, IBOAI, Giant Foods, BWW CHARITIES, CCMG, Richard & Mo Anderson and Sue Ann Wells.

Since 2001, the annual Power of a Dream Gala has raised more than $19 million to assist with the provi-sion of high-quality after-school programs specifically tailored for children living in high-risk communi-ties. Today, there are more than 700 young people in seven (7) cities across this nation who benefit each day from evidence-based comprehensive youth development programming delivered through Dream Academy Learning Center Communities, including in Baltimore, Washington, DC., Philadelphia, Houston, Orlando, Indianapolis and Salt Lake City.

The 2018 U.S. Dream Academy Award recipients:
Cicely Tyson, Iconic Emmy and Tony winning Actress, was honored with the President’s Award for her tireless work ensuring that the next generation has the tools to succeed. Throughout her career, Ms. Ty-son has always been an advocate for children and their need for education. A staunch supporter of the fine arts, Cicely co-founded the Dance Theatre of Harlem. She was honored by having a Performing Arts School named after her, Cicely L. Tyson Community School of Performing and Fine Arts. Her work and achievements have inspired the leaders of tomorrow to live their dreams. Special guest presenter alongside Mr. Phipps to present the award to Ms. Tyson, was inspirational speaker, Wanda Durant, also known as The Real MVP (Mother of Tony and NBA Champion Kevin Durant).

David Shapiro, CEO of MENTOR, who received the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Service Award for his work in the mentoring field and impacting the future success of our children in underserved com-munities. MENTOR’s mission is to fuel the quality and quantity of mentoring relationships and ultimately close that gap, to ensure that every young person must have the supportive relationships they need to grow and develop.

Since Shapiro took leadership, MENTOR launched In Real Life, a national mentoring public awareness campaign, with the support of the NBA and has worked extensively with the Obama Administration on the mentoring component of My Brother’s Keeper. MENTOR was also selected by the U.S Department of Justice Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to lead the National Mentoring Resource Center.

Honoree Mpumi Nobiva, is an International Speaker and Communication Strategist. She has spoken at the White House, congressional fundraisers, corporate functions and nonprofit initiatives in several coun-tries. She excelled in the first class of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls, and serves as the first alumna on the Board of Directors of the Academy. Mpumi is developing the digital infrastructure for Share Your Story Africa – an initiative inspired by her advocacy work uniting youth against HIV/AIDS and domestic violence in South Africa. The U.S. Dream Academy honored her with the First ever Dream-Blazer Award for her innovative work.

# # #
U.S. Dream Academy

The U.S. Dream Academy, founded in 1998, is a national after-school program that aims to break the cycle of intergenerational incarceration. The mission of the U.S. Dream Academy is to inspire and elevate the lives of children of incarcerated parents and vulnerable young people through high performance relation-ships with caring adults. We seek to maximize their potential by building dreams, perseverance, academic skills and character. The program, founded by renowned Grammy Nominated gospel singer Wintley Phipps, is currently operating in 7 cities nationwide including; Baltimore, MD., Houston, TX., Indianapolis, IN., Orlando, FL., Philadelphia, PA., Salt Lake City, UT., and Washington, D.C.