For Michael Jackson fans, Berlin is a place full of musical legends and historic moments. The international superstar has left a deep mark on the city’s collective memory.
In light of the new Michael Jackson biopic, we revisit the places that hold silent memories of an era when there was no one greater in the world than Michael Jackson!
Berlin and the King of Pop: In the Footsteps of Michael Jackson
1988: Music as a harbinger of the fall of the Berlin Wall
The most significant moment of all took place on June 19, 1988. As part of his “Bad” tour, Michael Jackson performed on Republic Square directly in front of the Reichstag building. The stage faced away from the Berlin Wall.
Just the year before, David Bowie (with a direct greeting to East Berlin that provoked protests and cries of “The Wall Must Go ”) had driven the Stasi to distraction. Then came Pink Floyd in 1988 (with their legendary song “Another Brick in the Wall”), and now Michael Jackson was also coming dangerously close to the border.
The Stasi banned Western TV crews from filming at the Wall, and the Brandenburg Gate was cordoned off over a wide area. They feared that images of East Berlin Michael Jackson fans might circulate in the West! Anyone in the East who tried to listen was beaten down.
But the concert wasn’t just loud enough for the sound to carry all the way to East Berlin… on that day, Stasi agents spent hours tailing a lookalike from the TV station Sat.1, assuming he was the real King of Pop.
The Adlon and the “Balcony Incident”
Another landmark in the collective memory of Michael Jackson is the stately Hotel Adlon Kempinski at the Brandenburg Gate. In 2002, Michael Jackson made headlines worldwide here when he briefly held his youngest son, “Blanket,” over the railing of the fourth-floor balcony to show him to the waiting fans.
The images went around the world and sparked debate. Jackson later apologized. Anyone standing on Pariser Platz and looking up at the Adlon can see the rows of windows that became the scene of that bizarre moment back then.
The private Michael: Shopping and charity
Away from the glare of the cameras, Jackson was granted some peace and quiet at the Dussmann Cultural Department Store in 2002. Once the regular customers had gone home, the doors were opened for him. This allowed him to browse the book and music sections undisturbed.
That same year, he accepted the Bambi Award for Pop Star of the Millennium at the Estrel Convention Center in Berlin-Neukölln. He then attended the “Tribute to Bambi” charity gala at the Adagio Club. There, he auctioned off one of his jackets to benefit “Off-Road-Kids, ” a German aid organization for street children.
Whether you’re standing at the Reichstag and thinking about the sounds of 1988 (preferably with “Bad” playing on your headphones) or looking at the Adlon from the Brandenburg Gate (here, “Bad” would likely have a different context)— Michael Jackson left his mark in Berlin as well. If you want to see the new biopic about him at a slightly lower price, there’s a 20% discount on movie tickets here!
