Michael Jackson's video shoot for single 'Hold My Hand' may have been sabotaged with email
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Michael Jackson's posthumous single 'Hold My Hand' got another dose of drama - via email. A spy at Monday's video shoot for "Hold My Hand," the Michael Jackson/Akon single from the highly anticipated "Michael" album, was almost derailed by a seemingly official email telling participants that the production had been postponed.
Shortly before cameras rolled at a former Marine Corps blimp hangar in Tustin, Calif., the source says a seemingly "legitimate" email, purportedly from the "Michael Jackson Estate," was received by participants informing them that due "to recent weather forcasts" (sic), the shoot had been "postponed" until tomorrow.
The spy says the notice was quickly followed by two more emails instructing recipients to disregard the schedule change.
What's not clear is whether the first email was an innocent mixup or, as our spy suspects, a deliberate attempt to hamper the video shoot, which was directed by Mark Pellington of "U2 3D" fame.
"Michael," to be released Dec. 14, was controversial even before it had a name. Members of the late singer's family and even the co-executor of his estate, John McClain, have reportedly challenged the authenticity of the Jackson vocals, prompting Sony to bring in forensic experts, who concluded they're real.
Although a Sony spokeswoman did not respond to questions by deadline, a Jackson camp insider tells us, "We've had a lot of fake documents shooting around."
According to our spy at the shoot, approximately 200 fans "danced freestyle" to "Hold My Hand" for the cameras. They also released white balloons en masse and shouted, "We love you, Michael!"
The spy adds that "a little girl dressed like an angel" was present, which jibes with reports that extras were asked to walk through the darkened hangar toward a bright light — symbolic of Jackson's ascent to heaven.
We hear the "Hold My Hand" video will premiere Dec. 6 on ABC, the same day Oprah Winfrey is to interview Jackson's friend and producer Teddy Riley, who has been outspoken about the controversy behind "Michael."
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