In a recent episode of his Hotboxin’ podcast, Mike Tyson shared a moment of the Michael Jackson and Prince feud, explaining how Jackson tried to take revenge against Prince. While chatting with the rapper Tony Yayo, Tyson revealed a rather different side of Jackson and recalled what urged him to seek revenge:
“He was different; he was a different person. Michael Jackson really believed that Prince tried to run him over in a car.“
He then showed Yayo a video from the 1983 James Brown concert, where Michael Jackson took the stage to perform with his musical hero:
“I’m going to show you how dirty Mike is. I want you all to see how Mike is grimy. James Brown was his hero.”
In the video, Jackson is seen whispering into Brown’s ear. He then makes his iconic dance moves and moonwalks on the stage. As Tyson said, what Jackson whispered was related to his revenge plan:
“Look what Michael said. ‘Call Prince up.‘ I will tell you why he told him to call Prince up. He knows Prince is drunk.”
He then continued, explaining why Jackson wanted Prince on stage:
“He was drunk. That’s why Michael Jackson told him to call him up. Michael killed him.”
Some rediscovered recordings reveal that Jackson felt so embarrassed about Prince after the incident during the James Brown concert:
“He made a fool of himself. He was a joke. People were running and screaming. I was so embarrassed. It was all on video.”
In various interviews, the King of Pop spoke about how he didn’t like Prince comparisons. For instance, as reported by Smooth Radio, MJ called the musician an ‘opponent’ and hoped he would change. He said:
“I don’t like to be compared to Prince at all. I have proven myself since I was real little. He feels like he’s my opponent. I hope he changes because, boy, he’s gonna get hurt.“
Below, you can check out the interview and watch the video where Michael Jackson, James Brown, and Prince were on the same stage. As you watch the footage, you see that Prince had unusual behavior, indicating that he might be drunk.