Spike Lee is bringing back his anticipated Michael Jackson celebration to his home borough. The Academy Award-winning filmmaker and screenwriter is reviving his “Brooklyn Loves MJ” dance party on Aug. 29 at Brooklyn’s Fort Greene Park. Brooklyn’s own DJ Spinna will return to preside over the music for the free daylong event, lasting from noon to 7 p.m.
Lee announced the block party’s return on Sunday, Aug. 16, via his social media platforms. The “Do the Right Thing” director is reinstating the celebration after a three-year live hiatus. Lee last hosted a “Brooklyn Loves MJ and Prince” party at Fort Greene Park in August 2023, while the 2024 edition was done virtually. Lee first teased that he was bringing the Jackson dance party back last Monday when he posted a spray-painted emblem of “Bk Loves MJ” on his Instagram page. He posted another clue three days later in the form of beaded images of Jackson’s and Lee’s faces.
The first party took place in August 2009, mere months after Jackson’s death on June 25, 2009. Lee, a former collaborator with Jackson, actually intended the inaugural party to be at Fort Greene Park, but had to move it to Prospect Park because the Parks Department anticipated such a large turnout. Indeed, in the first two years of the party, tens of thousands of fans came to Prospect Park.
Fans dancing during Spike Lee’s “Brooklyn Loves MJ & Prince” Block Party on August 26, 2023 at Fort Greene Park in Brooklyn, NY. (Matthew Allen photo) 
DJ Spinna presides over the music during Spike Lee’s Brooklyn Loves MJ & Prince” Block Party on August 26, 2023 at Fort Greene Park in Brooklyn, NY. (Matthew Allen photo) Comment end
Over the years, Lee has hosted the party in numerous Brooklyn locations, including Restoration Plaza in Bed-Stuy and on Stuyvesant Avenue, the site of his film “Do the Right Thing.” Lee always scheduled the block parties as close to Jackson’s Aug. 29 birthday as possible.
Lee, a lifelong Jackson fan, has substantial connections to the King of Pop. He directed two short films/music videos for Jackson’s 1996 single, “They Don’t Care About Us.” The Brazil version is one of several Jackson short films to exceed a billion views on YouTube. Lee also directed the posthumous video for “This Is It,” the song that accompanied Jackson’s concert documentary of the same name. The film drew on footage from rehearsals for his 50-night residency at London’s O2 Arena, which was set to open weeks after he died.
Following Jackson’s death, Lee went on to direct two documentaries about Jackson’s solo albums: 2012’s “Bad 25” about Jackson’s 1987 album “Bad,” and 2016’s “Michael Jackson’s Journey From Motown to Off the Wall,” chronicling his transition from lead singer of The Jackson 5 to the making of his 1979 album, “Off the Wall.”
The return of “Brooklyn Loves MJ” comes during what’s been a big resurgence for Jackson and his legacy. In April, Lionsgate and Universal released “Michael,” a biopic about Jackson’s life and career, starring his nephew, Jaafar Jackson. The film has been a resounding commercial success, becoming the highest-grossing biopic of all time both domestically and worldwide and the first to surpass $1 billion in box office earnings. The success of the film fueled a surge in record sales and streaming, sending “Thriller,” the best-selling album of all time, back to No. 1 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart for the first time since the 1980s. The album also sat near the top of the Billboard 200 from April to August.
