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Michael Jackson · S6 E6
Remember the Time
Ancient Egypt, Eddie Murphy, Iman — and why the video still stuns
February 1992. Michael Jackson materializes out of a column of golden dust on a massive ancient Egyptian set, with Eddie Murphy playing the Pharaoh and Iman as his queen.
Remember the Time, Michael Jackson (1992). Directed by John Singleton, fresh off Boyz n the Hood. The nine-minute video is set in ancient Egypt with Eddie Murphy as the Pharaoh, Iman as the Queen, and Magic Johnson as a courtier. Michael plays a mysterious magician who wins the Queen's attention through dance.
Remember the Time, Michael Jackson (1992)
Produced by Teddy Riley, "Remember the Time" is New Jack Swing smoothed into a love song. The beat swings with a loose, almost jazzy feel that sets it apart from the harder Dangerous tracks. Michael's vocal floats over the production rather than fighting against it, making the song feel intimate despite the massive video accompanying it. It peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100.
Sources
Dangerous album credits, Epic Records, 1991
Billboard Hot 100 chart history, 1992
The Director
John Singleton was 23 years old and fresh off directing Boyz n the Hood when Michael called. Singleton brought a cinematic eye that went beyond anything typical for music video directors of the era. The nine-minute film has actual scenes, dialogue, and character arcs. It plays like a short movie that happens to have a Michael Jackson song in the middle.
Sources
Michael Jackson, Inc., Zack O'Malley Greenburg, 2014
TAP TO REVEAL: How did Michael dissolve into sand at the end?
The Cast
Eddie Murphy plays the Pharaoh with deadpan authority. Iman, the Somali-born supermodel who later married David Bowie, commands the screen as his queen. Magic Johnson appears as a courtier, adding yet another level of star power. The casting alone made the video an event before a single frame of choreography had aired.
Sources
Michael Jackson: The Magic, the Madness, the Whole Story, J. Randy Taraborrelli, 2009
Remember the Time: The Facts
Can't Let Her Get Away, Michael Jackson (1991)
One of the most frenetic productions on Dangerous. Teddy Riley builds a wall of sound from chopped samples, rapid-fire drum programming, and Michael's breathless vocal, which barely pauses between phrases. The track captures the same restless energy as "Remember the Time" but pushes it harder and faster. Never released as a single, it remains one of the album's best-kept secrets.
Can't Let Her Get Away, Michael Jackson (1991)
The lyrics describe an obsessive pursuit, with Michael cataloging every detail of a woman he cannot stop thinking about. Teddy Riley's production matches the obsession: the beat never slows down, the samples never stop layering, and the song ends before it has a chance to breathe. It is Dangerous at its most intense and unrelenting.
Who directed the 'Remember the Time' music video?
Michael has spent the Dangerous era proving he can do anything on screen. But in February 1993, he sits down with Oprah Winfrey at Neverland Ranch, and for the first time in fourteen years, he answers questions about his real life.
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