Michael Jackson's sales, streaming numbers, and radio airplay have all dipped in the wake of the two-part documentary Leaving Neverland.
The four-hour HBO doc—which shares allegations of two men who claim Jackson sexually assaulted them in their childhood—has many people reconsidering the legacy of the King of Pop.
According to Billboard, Jackson's combined album and song sales dropped by 5 percent after the Neverland premiere. His album sales alone dropped by 39 percent. Jackson's on-demand streams fell from 19.7 million to 18.7 million.
His biggest hit came in radio airplay, where some DJs have committed to not playing Jackson's music. In addition to individual programmers making the decision to play less of Jackson's music, at least one broadcast company has committed to pulling Jackson's work. Three stations in Canada owned by Cogeco Media have removed his music from their playlists, according to Billboard. While no major radio groups would go on record with the magazine to say that they are moving away from MJ, his radio airplay fell by 13 percent in the days immediately following Neverland airing.
The airplay drop-off is similar to the reaction that followed the R. Kelly expose Surviving R. Kelly. R. Kelly's radio airplay dropped by 85 percent following the six-part doc that stacked up the years of abuse allegations against the singer. However, his streaming numbers increased dramatically after the documentary, jumping by 100,000 streams per week after Spotify announced that they were removing his music from their curated playlists.
The resurfaced allegations have led to both defenses of and distancing from the late singer. Paris Jackson and T.I. have both defended Jackson while the creators of The Simpsons are removing episodes featuring Jackson from their back catalog. The renewed focus on Jackson's alleged misdeeds has led to some damning old footage being unearthed. An interview with Jackson's sister LaToya from the early '90s found her stating plainly that she thinks Michael is guilty of abusing children.
"Michael is my brother, I love him a great deal but I cannot, and will not, be a silent collaborator of his crimes against small, innocent children," she said. "If I remain silent, then it means I fuel the guilt and humiliation these children are feeling and I think it's very wrong."
"Now you stop and think for one second and you tell me, what 35-year-old man is going to take a little boy and stay with him for 30 days?" she continued. "And take another boy and stay with him for five days in a room and never leave the room?"
Jackson later retracted this statement, saying that she was forced into making it by her then-husband. Michael Jackson's estate has denied any wrongdoing.
