Skywriter was the sixth official studio album by The Jackson 5, released in March 1973. Lead singer Michael's vocals were now showing the signs of his maturing tenor voice, while Jermaine's voice had become much deeper in tone. Notably, one of Skywriter's songs, "Touch" (originally recorded by the Supremes in 1971), features Michael and Jermaine singing about satisfying a woman in bed. As such, "Touch" was one of the most controversial singles Michael sung on until his solo career took off again in the 1980s.

Michael, at this point, was frustrated with the direction he and his brothers were going in, and complained to Motown's staff producers and writers about the kind of music they were doing. The brothers were openly discouraged by the style they were receiving from Motown writers. Also, by this point, all five brothers were writing their own material, but Motown prevented them from recording their own compositions. The frustration was showcased most openly by the album cover, where all five brothers solemnly looked at the camera around an early-1900s-era airplane. This is one of the least successful albums the Jackson brothers ever created mainly because of only one top twenty single, and lack of promotion because the boys were on a worldwide tour at this time. The album sold 2.8 million copies worldwide, and would be the last album that followed the bubblegum pop sound, and from this point on would follow a more soulful disco sound.

Arthur Ira "Art" Garfunkel (born November 5, 1941) is a Grammy-award winning American singer-songwriter, a poet, and a Golden Globe winning actor. He was also half of the folk duo Simon & Garfunkel, which split in 1970, at the height of their popularity.

Highlights of his solo music career include a top 10 hit, three top 20 hits, six top 40 hits, 14 Adult Contemporary top 30 singles, five Adult Contemporary number ones, two UK number ones and a People's Choice Award. Through his solo and collaborative work, Garfunkel has earned six Grammys, including the Lifetime Achievement Award. In 1990, he and former musical partner Paul Simon were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Art Garfunkel was born in Forest Hills, Queens, New York City, the son of housewife Rose and traveling salesman Jacob "Jack" Garfunkel on November 5, 1941. Art has two siblings; the older one named Jules and the younger one named Jerome, who was an actor in his earlier years in Dayton, Ohio, before becoming a travelling menswear salesman. He is Jewish. His paternal grandparents emigrated from Iași in Romania. His cousin on his mother's side is founder of 'N Sync and the Backstreet Boys, Lou Pearlman. Garfunkel attended the Forest Hills High School. According to the Across America DVD, Garfunkel's love for singing "came in the first grade. When we were lined up in size order, and after everyone else had left, I'd stay behind and enjoy the echo sound of the stairwell tiles and sing 'Unchained Melody' and 'You'll Never Walk Alone', learning to love this goose-bumps song from the tender age of five." Later, Garfunkel's father bought him a wire recorder and from then on, Garfunkel spent his afternoons singing, recording and playing it back, so he could listen for flaws and learn how to improve.

Shoshana Elise Bean (born September 1, 1977) is an American stage actress, singer and songwriter known for her roles in Broadway musicals. She is best known for playing Elphaba on Broadway in the musical Wicked.

Bean was raised in Portland, Oregon. She is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM), where she received a B.F.A. in Musical Theatre in 1999. At CCM she was roommates with Kristy Cates, a fellow Wicked alum.

Shortly after moving to New York City, she was cast in the 2000 Off-Broadway revival of Godspell. Bean subsequently performed in the national tour of Leader of the Pack. She was also an original cast member in the Tony Award-winning production of Broadway's Hairspray, originating the role of Shelley and understudying the roles of Tracy Turnblad, Velma Von Tussle, and Prudy Pingleton. During this time she was also a member of the Broadway Inspirational Voices Gospel Choir.

In 2001, she sang back-up for Michael Jackson's 30th anniversary concert celebration at Madison Square Garden.

Terron Brooks is an African American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is best known for his portrayal of R&B/pop singer Eddie Kendricks in the 1998 NBC miniseries The Temptations.

Born on October 13, 1974 and raised in Southern California, Brooks has been singing since the age of six.

He has sung with many artists including Stephanie Mills, Smokey Robinson and Michael Jackson, and has performed in the US and Europe. He had been a member of the doo-wop group The Alley Cats. He is also Broadway actor who has been seen as "Simba" in Disney's The Lion King and "Seaweed" in Hairspray. Terron has been featured on numerous film and TV soundtrack albums including Tears from the Sun, the Adventures of Brer Rabbit and ABC's Gepetto.

Not only did Brooks star in the hit romantic comedy All About You with One Life To Live's Renee Goldsberry and Debbie Allen, Brooks co-wrote its theme song as well as contributed his vocals to the movie soundtrack which was produced by American Idol musical director, Rickey Minor.

Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Often referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records. His contribution to music, dance, and fashion, along with a much-publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture for over four decades. The seventh child of the Jackson family, he debuted on the professional music scene along with his brothers as a member of The Jackson 5 in 1964, and began his solo career in 1971.

In the early 1980s, Jackson became a dominant figure in popular music. The music videos for his songs, including those of "Beat It", "Billie Jean", and "Thriller", were credited with transforming the medium into an art form and a promotional tool, and the popularity of these videos helped to bring the relatively new television channel MTV to fame. Videos such as "Black or White" and "Scream" made him a staple on MTV in the 1990s. Through stage performances and music videos, Jackson popularized a number of complicated dance techniques, such as the robot and the moonwalk, to which he gave the name. His distinctive musical sound and vocal style influenced numerous hip hop, post-disco, contemporary R&B, pop and rock artists.