Spike Lee Remembers Michael Jackson

bestdaddy

In 1996, Spike Lee — director of films from Do the Right Thing to Malcolm X to the recent documentary Kobe Doin' Work — traveled to Brazil with Michael Jackson to produce the music video for his controversial song "They Don't Care About Us." He talked to TIME about his experiences, Michael Jackson's legacy and having the Gloved One as a houseguest.
What's your favorite Michael Jackson song?
I was born in 1957; he was born in 1958. And so I grew up, literally, with Michael Jackson. We both reached adolescence at the same time. And I had a big Afro like he did, and I hoped that the girls would like me the way they liked Michael — but that wasn't happening. And you know, I loved him as a solo artist, but I have a special place in my heart for the stuff he did with the Jackson 5: "I'll Be There."

Do you remember the first time you heard it?
No. My memory's shot. I'm in Cannes, France, for a conference; I left dinner last night, got home, I turned on CNN and there it was — him being rushed to the hospital. I didn't go to bed the whole night. I just kept watching CNN. So it's a big, big, big, big loss for the world. And I'd like to make this comment: I've seen too many people talking about Michael like they knew exactly what he did. Let's celebrate his genius, his musicality, his gift, his talent, and leave the other stuff at least till he gets buried. Let's celebrate his life now. That's the way I feel.

I can hear Michael Jackson in the background right now.
Yeah, my friend is driving me to Monaco for dinner, and I went out to this store and bought Michael Jackson's greatest hits. So, as we got in the car I said, "This is our driving music!" Going from Cannes to Monaco, listening to the greatest hits of Michael.

What was he like when you worked with him on the video for "They Don't Care About Us?"
Michael was great. He had a sense of humor. He worked hard. People talk about how hard Kobe Bryant works; he didn't work harder than Michael Jackson. This is what I've come to learn. You know, I did a documentary on Kobe, I know him; Michael Jordan, I worked with him a little; Michael Jackson — when you love what you do that much, it's not work. So you can go longer and harder and faster and quicker because it's not a burden. You love what you're doing.

And did you talk to him on the set? Was he accessible?
Oh yeah! Michael was a citizen of the world. I said, "Mike, let's go to Brazil to do this." And he said, "Let's go, Spike!" And it's great when you work with people who say stuff like that — it's not a matter of budget. He wanted to do it? We were going!

Had you met him previous to that?
Yeah, I met him at dinners and stuff like that, but that was the most intimate time I had been with him. Can I tell you a quick story? Michael Jackson called me up and said, "Spike, I want meet you, I'm coming to New York." I said, "Well where you want to meet?" He says, "I want to come to your house." I live in Brooklyn! He wants to come to my house! So, Michael Jackson came to my house in Brooklyn, New York — this was when I was living in Fort Greene. And he said, I want you to direct a video for me. My new album's coming out, pick a song. So we listened to all the songs and I picked "Stranger in Moscow." And he said, I don't want you to do that one. And I said, "Michael, just tell me which one you want me to do! Why ask me to pick one?" And he laughed and he said he wanted me to do "They Don't Care About Us." That's how it happened.

How did he like Brooklyn?
Well, I dunno if he'd ever been there before. We spent like two or three hours just talking. I mean, we're the same age. I'm less than a year older than him. To be honest, I dominated the conversation, because I was trying to really tell him how much impact he had on my life. And I could just not believe that Michael Jackson was sitting in my living room in Brooklyn, New York. It was amazing.

I just want to get back quickly to "I'll Be There." What sort of associations did you have with that song? What did it mean to you?
I just remember being young, loving that song, starting to get interested in girls; it was just that period of time. And here's the thing that I remember: growing up, as far as girls, everybody didn't like Michael. They liked Tito, they liked Jackie, they liked Jermaine — it was like the Beatles, the girls had their favorites. It was not always Michael, Michael, Michael.

Was he always your favorite Jackson?
Oh yeah. But I wasn't a girl though.

morie

请大家指正！
--------------
In 1996, Spike Lee — director of films from Do the Right Thing to Malcolm X to the recent documentary Kobe Doin' Work — traveled to Brazil with Michael Jackson to produce the music video for his controversial song "They Don't Care About Us." He talked to TIME about his experiences, Michael Jackson's legacy and having the Gloved One as a houseguest.
1996， Spike Lee - 一名导演过电影“Do the Right Thing to Malcolm X”并做个Kobe Doin的纪录片的电影导演 - 和MJ一起去巴西为MJ一首受争议的歌"They Don't Care About Us."拍摄MV。 他对Times谈到了他的经历，MJ的传奇以及MJ去做客的经历。

What's your favorite Michael Jackson song?
你最喜欢MJ的哪首歌
I was born in 1957; he was born in 1958. And so I grew up, literally, with Michael Jackson. We both reached adolescence at the same time. And I had a big Afro like he did, and I hoped that the girls would like me the way they liked Michael — but that wasn't happening. And you know, I loved him as a solo artist, but I have a special place in my heart for the stuff he did with the Jackson 5: "I'll Be There."
我出生于1957，MJ出生于1958. 所以某中意义上说，我是和MJ一起长大的。我们同一时间到达青春期。我也有一个蓬蓬头。我也希望女孩们能喜爱我就像她们喜欢Michael - 但是这从没发生。 你知道，我把他当做独唱艺术家来爱着，但是我心里有一块特殊的地方留给他在 Jackson5 “I'll Be There”里做的那些事。
Do you remember the first time you heard it?
你还记得第一次你听到（MJ死讯）的时候吗？
No. My memory's shot. I'm in Cannes, France, for a conference; I left dinner last night, got home, I turned on CNN and there it was — him being rushed to the hospital. I didn't go to bed the whole night. I just kept watching CNN. So it's a big, big, big, big loss for the world. And I'd like to make this comment: I've seen too many people talking about Michael like they knew exactly what he did. Let's celebrate his genius, his musicality, his gift, his talent, and leave the other stuff at least till he gets buried. Let's celebrate his life now. That's the way I feel.
不记得了，我记忆力不好。我在法国的Cannes参加一个会议。 昨天晚上我晚饭后回家，打开CNN，然后就看到 - 他被紧急送往医院。我昨晚一晚上都没有睡，一直都在看CNN。 这真是这个世界的巨大巨大巨大巨大的损失。我想说些什么：我见过太多的人谈论Michael，就好像他们真的知道Michael在干嘛。 让我们庆祝他的伟大和天才，他的美妙的音乐，他的天赋与才华，至少在他下葬之前别再讨论其他的那些事情。现在让我们庆祝他的人生。这就是我的感觉。
I can hear Michael Jackson in the background right now.-
现在，我能听到MJ在背景声中（歌唱）。
Yeah, my friend is driving me to Monaco for dinner, and I went out to this store and bought Michael Jackson's greatest hits. So, as we got in the car I said, "This is our driving music!" Going from Cannes to Monaco, listening to the greatest hits of Michael.

- 是的，我的朋友正开车带我去Monaco吃晚饭。当我刚才走出这家商店时，我买了MJ的最伟大的唱片。所以，当我坐上车的时候我说“我们就听这个音乐开车吧。”从Cannes到Monaco，听着Michael最伟大的音乐。
What was he like when you worked with him on the video for "They Don't Care About Us?"
当你和他合作MV“They Don't Care About Us"时，他看起来怎样？
Michael was great. He had a sense of humor. He worked hard. People talk about how hard Kobe Bryant works; he didn't work harder than Michael Jackson. This is what I've come to learn. You know, I did a documentary on Kobe, I know him; Michael Jordan, I worked with him a little; Michael Jackson — when you love what you do that much, it's not work. So you can go longer and harder and faster and quicker because it's not a burden. You love what you're doing.
Michael非常棒。他很幽默而且工作很努力。人们总是谈论Kobe Bryant工作的多么努力，但是MJ比他更甚。 这是我逐渐认识到的。你知道，我做过Kobe的纪录片，我了解他. Michael Jordan, 我和他工作过一小阵。 MJ - 当你极度喜欢你做的事情时，那就不算是在工作。所以你能够做得更多，更努力，更快，因为它不再是一个负担。你爱上了你在做的事。
And did you talk to him on the set? Was he accessible?
你有和他谈论过布景（set)吗，他平易近人吗？
Oh yeah! Michael was a citizen of the world. I said, "Mike, let's go to Brazil to do this." And he said, "Let's go, Spike!" And it's great when you work with people who say stuff like that — it's not a matter of budget. He wanted to do it? We were going!
是的！ Michael是这个世界的公民（不仅仅是美国）。 我曾说“Mike， 我们去巴西做这个吧。”然后他说“走吧，Spike！”当你和这样一个人一起工作的时候，这感觉非常棒！- 预算不是问题。他想做这个？那就去吧！
Had you met him previous to that?
你之前有和他会面过吗？
Yeah, I met him at dinners and stuff like that, but that was the most intimate time I had been with him. Can I tell you a quick story? Michael Jackson called me up and said, "Spike, I want meet you, I'm coming to New York." I said, "Well where you want to meet?" He says, "I want to come to your house." I live in Brooklyn! He wants to come to my house! So, Michael Jackson came to my house in Brooklyn, New York — this was when I was living in Fort Greene. And he said, I want you to direct a video for me. My new album's coming out, pick a song. So we listened to all the songs and I picked "Stranger in Moscow." And he said, I don't want you to do that one. And I said, "Michael, just tell me which one you want me to do! Why ask me to pick one?" And he laughed and he said he wanted me to do "They Don't Care About Us." That's how it happened.
有过。我和他在晚宴或是类似的场合见过面，但是那是我和他在一起最私人的时候。你想听个小故事吗？ MJ给我打电话说：“Spike，我想见你一面，我马上会来New York。”我说：“好啊，你想在哪儿见面？”他说：“我想去你家。“我住在Brooklyn!他想来我家！ 所以，MJ来到了我位于New York, Brroklyn的家中 - 这是我居住在Fort Greene时的事了。 然后他说：“我想让你来导演一段录影，我的新专辑就要出了，你挑首歌吧。”然后我们听了所有的歌，我挑了" Stranger in Moscow"。 接着他说：“我不想你来做这首歌。”于是我说：“Michael，直接告诉我你要我导哪一首！为什么还要我挑一曲？” 他笑到并告诉我他想要我导演“Theny Don't Care About Us." 这就是这个过程。
How did he like Brooklyn?
他喜欢Brooklyn吗？
Well, I dunno if he'd ever been there before. We spent like two or three hours just talking. I mean, we're the same age. I'm less than a year older than him. To be honest, I dominated the conversation, because I was trying to really tell him how much impact he had on my life. And I could just not believe that Michael Jackson was sitting in my living room in Brooklyn, New York. It was amazing.
呃，我不知道他之前是否去过那里。我们谈了两到三个小时。我的意思是，我们同龄，我比他小一岁。说实话，我主导着那次的谈话，因为我试图让他知道他对我的生活有多大的影响。我不敢相信MJ正坐在我在New York， Brroklyn的起居室里。 这太不可思议了！
I just want to get back quickly to "I'll Be There." What sort of associations did you have with that song? What did it mean to you?
让我们回到"I'll Be There”这个话题上。你从这首歌中还得到了什么？它对你意味着什么？
I just remember being young, loving that song, starting to get interested in girls; it was just that period of time. And here's the thing that I remember: growing up, as far as girls, everybody didn't like Michael. They liked Tito, they liked Jackie, they liked Jermaine — it was like the Beatles, the girls had their favorites. It was not always Michael, Michael, Michael.
我只记得当时很年轻，爱这首歌，开始对女孩们感兴趣，那是一段（美好的）时光。 我记得的是: 成长的时候(?)，只要是女孩，每个人都不喜欢Michael。他们喜欢Tito, 喜欢Jackie, 喜欢Jermaine - 就像Beatles一样，女孩们有她们的最爱， 而不是永远是Michael，Michael，Michael。

Was he always your favorite Jackson?
他是你最喜欢的Jackson成员么？
Oh yeah. But I wasn't a girl though.
是的。 虽然我不是一个女孩

布里奇特

谢谢morie同学

bestdaddy

x谢谢翻译了，呵呵~

pinky0914

自愧不如啊~~

athena1101

真幸福啊

lovejackson926

well done·

Selina1995

“我比他小一岁”
不对啊，他应该比MJ大一岁

我是青青

I just remember being young, loving that song, starting to get interested in girls; it was just that period of time. And here's the thing that I remember: growing up, as far as girls, everybody didn't like Michael. They liked Tito, they liked Jackie, they liked Jermaine — it was like the Beatles, the girls had their favorites. It was not always Michael, Michael, Michael.
我只记得当时很年轻，爱这首歌，开始对女孩们感兴趣，那是一段（美好的）时光。 我记得的是: 成长的时候(?)，只要是女孩，每个人都不喜欢Michael。他们喜欢Tito, 喜欢Jackie, 喜欢Jermaine - 就像Beatles一样，女孩们有她们的最爱， 而不是永远是Michael，Michael，Michael。



这个。。。。。。。。。。。。。太扯了吧。。。。女孩子都不喜欢MIKE？！打死我也不信哇。。。

MJ-ILOVEYOU

谢谢翻译~ 真羡慕这位导演~可以和MJ近距离接触

MJ_love

"I'll Be There"我也很喜愛.~

zzxxdd32

女孩都喜欢Michael

great包子

GOOD JOB
慢慢看~

tonijin

有意思，现在也只能从各个人眼里的回忆来想他了

elizabeths

看完了····谢谢翻译