Michael Jackson may be one of the biggest pop icons of his time, but despite his massive net worth, he was reportedly millions of dollars in debt at the time of his death.
According to court documents filed on June 21, as obtained by People magazine, the "Thriller" hitmaker had a $500 million debt around the time that he passed away of an apparent cardiac arrest in 2009.
The night before his passing, the legendary singer attended a dress rehearsal at the Staples Center, now the Crypto.com Arena, in Los Angeles, CA, as part of his This Is It extended residency. Since it was his major comeback, Jackson wrote new songs and underwent many rehearsals for the series of concerts.
Michael Jackson Was Over $500 Million in Debt at Time of Death, New Court Documents Reveal pic.twitter.com/8e5LyLbclI
— People (@people) June 27, 2024
He was supposed to go on tour from July 2009 to March 2010.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the singer, who died at the age of 50, was excessively buying things to the point that he was desperate to pay off his $30 million debt.
He reportedly spent money on gifts, art, furniture, travel, charity donations, and even lavish items like jewelry.
"He spent a lot of money on jewelry... He was tapped out," certified public accountant William R. Ackerman said in the wrongful-death trial in August 2013.
READ ALSO: Michael Jackson's Family Commemmorates Singer's 15 Years of Death with Heartfelt Instagram Posts
It appears that Jackson had been struggling to pay off his debt for years, starting in 1993. By 1998, he had already owed $140 million, which later increased to $170 million.
Ackerman later testified that the loan's interest increased in the succeeding years from slightly less than 7% to 16.8%.
Randy Phillips, the former CEO of AEG Live, previously spoke to Rolling Stone, in which he revealed that the pop star was a "very smart marketing person" and wanted people to focus on his work, not on his lifestyle.
"He wanted to clean up his finances. He was ready to stop living like a vagabond and settle down and earn money again," he added.
Following his death, he owed around $40 million to AEG, the promoter of his supposed concert.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, the musician's net worth is -$500 million, but his estate has been estimated to be worth around $111 million, as reported by Afro Tech.
