Michael Jackson

Skin. In his youth, it was dark. But in the mid-1980s, it began to noticeably lighten. The singer himself attributed this to illness: in 1986, he was diagnosed with vitiligo (a pigmentation disorder that causes patches of varying tones to appear on his skin) and systemic lupus erythematosus. To even out his skin tone, Michael used makeup. Hairstyle. He abandoned his afro in favor of curly hair, and over time, he straightened it more often. Sometimes, his straightened hair was perceived by others as a wig. Facial features. Surgeons have suggested that Jackson has undergone several plastic surgeries. These changes include rhinoplasty (his nose became noticeably thinner and longer), a forehead lift, cheekbone correction, and lip thinning. In the late 1990s, likely after a facelift, his eyebrows appeared to have risen, giving the singer a persistently surprised look. His jaw also became more squared.

In his early years, Michael had dark skin, a wide nose, and a voluminous Afro. As a teenager, his childish features faded, and a teenage angularity set in, along with acne. The singer himself recalled that peer teasing made his nose seem too large—this was one of the reasons for the initial changes.

Michael Jackson's character was extremely contradictory—it combined childlike spontaneity with debilitating perfectionism, openness to kindness and profound isolation. His personality was deeply shaped by a difficult childhood: the strict control and even violence of his father, Joseph, deprived Michael of a normal upbringing and shaped a fragile, vulnerable psyche.