Happy Heavenly Birthday, MJ! Michael Jackson's Top Hip Hop Moments

From beat-boxing to rocking the stage with Jay Z.

Recording Diss Track "D.S." for Tom Sneddon - As Santa Barbara District Attorney Tom Sneddon was investigating MJ for a child molestation charge (which was resolved with a financial settlement), Mike responded to Sneddon with an all too hip hop diss record. The cut, "D.S." referred to a person who's name sounded similar to Sneddon. "Dom Sheldon is a cold man," MJ sings. "He out to shock in every single way. He'll stop at nothing just to get his political say." (Photos from left: Mark Mainz/Getty Images, Doug Benc/Getty Images)
Using Real Gang Members in the "Beat It" Video - Before the Crips and Bloods called their famed truce in 1992, Michael Jackson lent his hand to that cause 10 years earlier with the video for the song "Beat It." To visually shout down the senselessness of gang violence, MJ recruited dancers from both gangs to perform in the video. The move wasn't only to add to the video's authenticity but to foster peace between the two groups, similar to the reasoning hip hop founding father Afrika Bambaataa had when cultivating the culture.(Photo: MJJ Productions)

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Using Real Gang Members in the "Beat It" Video - Before the Crips and Bloods called their famed truce in 1992, Michael Jackson lent his hand to that cause 10 years earlier with the video for the song "Beat It." MJ recruited dancers from both gangs to perform in the video to shout down the senselessness of gang violence visually. The move wasn't only to add to the video's authenticity but to foster peace between the two groups. Happy heavenly birthday, MJ? (Photo: MJJ Productions)

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