Why Michael Jackson Was Disappointed The Night He Debuted His Iconic Moonwalk

Sign in to your ScreenRant account

 Generate a summary of this story

The night Michael Jackson first moonwalked across the stage was actually quite disappointing for the singer. While everyone knows Jackson for his moonwalk today, he didn’t perform it for the first time until over a decade into his career.

The “Smooth Criminal” singer first danced the moonwalk at Motown 25, a 25th anniversary special for his former record label, where the Jackson 5 were signed from 1969 to 1975. However, Jackson was less impressed with himself for doing the dance move – and even more upset over a small mishap.

Michael Jackson Was Upset He Hadn’t Held His Toe Stand For Longer

Jackson Felt Disappointed In His Iconic Performance

Michael Jackson’s moonwalk is one of the most iconic dance moves in pop culture. However, the night Jackson debuted it, he was upset over what most would consider a minor mistake. Jackson was performing his Thriller track “Billie Jean” when he effortlessly slid across the floor during the song’s instrumental break.

In an old interview clipped by vaughndavis23 on TikTok, the Jackson 5 member admitted that he wished he had held his post-moonwalk toe stand longer. After moonwalking, Jackson spun around a few times and then went up on his toes. Unfortunately, he lost balance and went back down on his feet sooner than he would have liked.

“I wanted to do the five spins, then go on the toes and freeze there. Just hold it and stay there,” Jackson said. He didn’t hold the toe stand as long as he wanted, but it didn’t seem like the audience minded. The TikTok includes footage from Jackson’s Motown 25 performance and another performance later in his career.

Michael Jackson has one of the most successful and iconic discographies of all time. How does his collection of record-breaking studio albums compare?

In the latter performance, Jackson did what he intended to do during the Motown performance. While Jackson may have been disappointed, the footage proves that, with more practice and experience, he was able to accomplish what he had set out to do in 1983.

Jackson Had No Idea How Impactful This Performance Would Become

Jackson’s Moonwalk Changed Pop Culture & His Career

Jackson was something of a workaholic and was always trying to improve himself and impress the world. That’s exactly what he did at the Motown 25 show when he popularized the moonwalk. However, the King of Pop could never have predicted just how impactful the performance would become.

While the dance move has been traced back to the 1930s, almost three decades before Jackson was born, it was the “Thriller” singer who brought it to the forefront of pop culture. Jackson became known for the moonwalk, and to this day, dancers are still mimicking Jackson’s iconic move.

The singer would even go on to title his 1988 memoir Moonwalk, and his 1988 musical film Moonwalker. While Michael Jackson may have been preoccupied with the mistake he made, everyone else remembers Motown 25 as the night he made history.