Michael Jackson Composed Sonic The Hedgehog 3 Soundtrack

If you happen to be both an avid gamer and a fan of Michael Jackson‘s, you may have already been suspicious of a connection between the two. Has anyone ever listened to Sonic The Hedgehog 3‘s soundtrack and then the pop star’s song, “Stranger in Moscow?” You will no longer come off as insane for saying the music sounds eerily similar.

Although Michael Jackson fans have been keeping this rumor alive for years since the singer’s involvement with Sega’s “Moonwalker” video game in the 80′s, the rumor has now turned into a confirmation. Michael Jackson has, indeed, been involved with the soundtrack to a game devoted entirely to a blue hedgehog who supposedly runs faster than the speed of sound.

According to MTV, the French magazine called Black and White (aka “le magazine official de Michael Jackson”) recently interviewed one of Jackson’s keyboard players by the name of Brad Buxer. In this interview, Buxer explained how the music came to be but not necessarily why Jackson was never given songwriting credits when the Sega game was released.

When asked about the his involvement with Jackson and Sega, he hesitantly but simply replied with,

“I’ve never played the game so I do not know what tracks on which Michael and I have worked the developers have kept, but we did compose music for the game. Michael called me at the time for help on this project, and that’s what I did.”

However, he did give a bit of confirmation when he went on to explain that “Yes, Michael and I had composed those chords for the game, and it has been used as a base for ‘Stranger in Moscow.’”

As for the reasoning behind the missing songwriting credits? Buxer can’t pinpoint the details but he revealed his hunch when by saying,

“…if he is not credited for composing the music, it’s because he was not happy with the sound coming out of the console. At the time, game consoles did not allow an optimal sound reproduction, and Michael found it frustrating. He did not want to be associated with a product that devalued his music.”

MTV lists three possible reasons as to why they believe Jackson was not given credit: His child-molestation charges, his dissatisfaction with the finished product, or budgetary and scheduling issues, which forced Sega to cut several planned levels from the game.

Michael Jackson was a child at heart. We all know that by now. That is most likely the main reason why he signed on for this project. However, we’re leaning towards MTV’s second possibility due to Buxer’s testimony. When it came to being a businessman, Michael Jackson knew what type of deals and products he would allow his name to be associated with. If he wasn’t satisfied with the sounds of technology back then, nothing was going to make him settle. He was a Jackson.

Why do you think Jackson wasn’t given songwriting credit on Sonic The Hedgehog 3?

Further Reading:

• Michael Jackson Tribute Concert Cancelled
• Michael Jackson To Receive Lifetime Achievement Grammy
• This is It Earns Over 100 Million Dollars
• This Is It: Movie Review Redux
• Michael Jackson’s Glove Sold for $48,000
• Hear Michael Jackson’s Single, This is It
• Michael Jackson’s MTV VMA Tribute
• Michael Jackson Finally Laid To Rest In L.A.
• What If Michael Jackson Is Still Alive?
• Prince Considering A Michael Jackson Tribute Performance
• Videos of Speeches and Songs at Michael Jackson’s Memorial
• Michael Jackson’s Death Boosts Album Sales
• Michael Jackson’s Life in Pictures
• Michael Jackson: Life in Videos
• Michael Jackson Has Died