Michael Joseph Jackson (born August 29, 1958), often referred to as MJ and The King of Pop, is an American musician and entertainer, who debuted at the age of five as a member of the Jackson 5, and went on to become a pop icon as a solo artist. His successful career and frequently controversial, enigmatic personal life have been a part of pop culture for almost four decades.Jackson has dominated pop music since the late 1970s, and becoming the first black entertainer to amass a strong cross-over following on MTV with his revolutionary transformation of music video as an art form and as a promotional tool. The popularity of videos aired on MTV such as "Beat it", "Black or White", "Scream" and "Billie Jean" created a tremendous synergy that helped to put the relatively young channel "on the map".In 2002, at the 19th annual MTV Video Music Awards, Jackson was presented with the Artist of the Milennium Award, in honor of his unique achievements over a career which has spanned two milennia. The performing right organization that represents Jackson and dozens of other artists, BMI, claims that Jackson also popularized physically-complicated dance techniques, such as the robot and the moonwalk, that have redefined mainstream dance and entertainment. His distinctive style, dance moves, and vocals have influenced a whole generation of hip hop, pop, and R&B artists. He has been cited as the "Most Successful Entertainer of All Time" by Guinness World Records, and holds the record for the best-selling album ever, Thriller.Michael Jackson has received thirteen Grammy Awards (eight on a single night in 1984) and two of his solo albums have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Jackson has charted thirteen #1 singles in the United States, more than any other male artist in the Hot 100 era. In November 2006, the World Music Awards announced that Jackson had sold over 750 million units worldwide and given $300 million to charity, making Jackson one of the best-selling music artists and the most charitable celebrity apart from Oprah Winfrey whose efforts on the latter front have been acknowledged with a Nobel Peace Prize nomination. However, Jackson's controversial appearance and actions have damaged his reputation in the eyes of some of the public and album sales have been in decline since the mid 1990s.From 1988 to 2005, Jackson lived on his Neverland Ranch property, where he built an amusement park and private zoo that was frequently attended by disadvantaged and terminally ill children. Rumors of sleepover parties received both negative media coverage and public attention after it was revealed that children frequently slept in his bed or bedroom. This first came to light when he was accused of child sexual abuse in 1993. Michael Jackson's relationship with children was brought into the spotlight again in 2003 when the TV documentary Living with Michael Jackson was broadcast. This resulted in Jackson being tried, and later acquitted, of more child molestation allegations and several other charges in 2005. After this, Jackson went on hiatus, traveling to countries such as Bahrain, before starting work on new material in Ireland. He will be releasing a new album on February 11, 2008 called Thriller 25 which will include new material.