After the success of his biographical film, ‘Michael’, the legend of the considered king of pop seems to be more present than ever. So much so that his children, Prince and Bigi, would like to return the ranch known as ‘Neverland’ to its initial objective: to be a shelter for sick and needy children. A mission that his father already began after acquiring the property in 1987.
As reported by a source close to the family to the media “Page Six”, the Jackson brothers would be planning the return to operation of the ranch, all with the aim of honoring their father’s original vision. Michael Joseph “Prince” Jackson Jr., the artist’s firstborn, would be willing for the estate went back to charitable activities; while Prince Michael “Bigi” Jackson II would have expressed his desire to keep her out of the spotlight.
“Prince greatly appreciates the story of ‘Neverland’ and would love to see it return to a charitable purpose, especially when it comes to helping sick and disadvantaged children,” the source told Page Six. The eldest of the Jackson brothers would have previously shown to have inherited the altruistic character of the king of pop, since, in 2016, co-founded the Heal Los Angeles Foundationwhose objective is to offer support to the most disadvantaged families and children.
Both brothers agree to resume charity events
“Given how involved he himself has been in charity work, it’s something that has special meaning to him,” the outlet reports. The non-profit organization was born with the objective of following in the footsteps of Michael, promoting self-care and education of young people coming from low-income families. To do this, they established a direct collaboration with the Loreto Street Primary School and organize different food and toy collections.
For his part, “Bigi is much more reserved and I would prefer that ‘Neverland’ not become a major tourist attractionbut that does not mean that I would not support finding a way to recover part of that magic for the children who could really benefit from it,” the source explained. The artist’s youngest son has always been characterized by staying away from the media spotlight, making few public appearances with his siblings. Because of this, his presence during the premiere of his father’s biopic drew especially the attention of the media.
This preference for discretion, added to the previous controversies generated around the ‘Neverland’ ranch, may be the reason why the youngest of the Jackson brothers prefers to avoid turning the return of activity on the farm into a major tourist attraction. Although, as the media states, he shares his brother’s desire to resume what his father started to build on the farm.
The property belongs to businessman Ron Burkle
However, ‘Neverland’ is not owned by any of the king of pop’s children, but is part of the estate of businessman Ron Burkle. This one decided buy the ranch in 2020 for an approximate sum of 22 million dollarseven though the initial price was 100 million. A reduction that was achieved, according to real estate agent Ian Reed to “The Guardian”, due to the “creepy past” that stained the land’s reputation.
A statement with which he referred to the allegations of alleged child sexual abuse linked to Michael Jackson and the famous farm. These began in 1993 with the Evan Chandler case, which was almost resolved with an out-of-court agreement, but was resumed in 2005. Despite the jury finding him not guilty and the artist dying on June 25, 2009, these scandals have remained anchored to his figure and were revived with the publication in 2019 of a documentary that collected new testimonies.
According to the media, Burkle has been in favor of the artist’s children and relatives being able to spend time on the property, as well as for the brothers to continue the humanitarian and aid work for the most disadvantaged. “While ‘Neverland’ remains a private residence, Ron remains open to the possibility of organizing charity events there“said the businessman’s spokesperson.