10 Worst Jackson Family Feuds and Scandals

6. Jermaine vs. Michael: By 1990, many fans had become deeply concerned about Michael’s physical transformation and radical pigmentation changes. Jermaine wrote a song, “Word to the Badd,” to, as he put it, talk some sense into his younger brother. Some dismissed it as a jealous swipe at his much more accomplished brother. Others believed it was beyond time someone publicly spanked Michael. But this song could not have helped bring the two brothers together.

Remember, it was Jermaine who said it was stupid for Michael to produce an album in the early 80s when the industry was mired in a deep depression in terms of album sales. So, in 1983, when Thriller single-handedly rejuvenated the industry and made Michael a worldwide icon, Jermaine must have felt real stupid. Jermaine then came out with his own solo album the following year and asked Michael to do a duet on the album’s highest-charting song, “Tell Me Am I Dreaming.” 

Side note: It was also Jermaine who complained bitterly to his mother, Katherine, for years about Michael wearing those white socks with high-water pants before Thriller came out. I wonder how that fashion statement turned out.