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Olivia Davis

Professor Hunter

English. 1201.A53

23 January 2020

Smooth Criminal

All over the world, everyone knows the classic lyric, “Annie, are you okay?” and what

song it is from. Michael Jackson’s pop classic “Smooth Criminal” topped the charts in 1988

while Alien Ant Farm rocked the world with their own spin on the song in 2001. Michael

Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” is a pop song, and Alien Ant Farm turned “Smooth Criminal” into

a hard rock song while also paying a tribute to Michael Jackson. The two very different sounds

evoke different reactions in people and speak to different audiences.

Michael Jackson released “Smooth Criminal” on November 14, 1988 and the music

video premiered on MTV on October 13, 1988. The song tells the story of a woman who has

been attacked by a “smooth criminal” in her apartment. The famous verse from the song “Annie,

are you okay?” was inspired by dummy used for CPR training, Resusci Annie. The video for

“Smooth Criminal” is Michael Jackson dressed in 1920’s mobster attire and he goes to a

speakeasy. The video goes on to show Jackson flirting with girls, shooting other mobsters, and of

course, dancing. It features all his signature dance moves and it is also where his famous forward

lean first appeared. The video Jackson made really told a story to go along with the song.

“Smooth Criminal” takes on Jackson’s signature pop style with a few of his other signature

sounds. “Smooth Criminal” became his sixth top single from his album Bad.
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Alien Ant Farm released their hard rock version of the classic Michael Jackson song in

2001. Their version includes all the same lyrics just in a very different sound. By putting a hard

rock sound in their version, it made it very different from the original pop sound. Alien Ant

Farm’s video shows the band members of Alien Ant Farm performing the song in the front yard

of a house and in a boxing ring in the back yard of the house, surrounded by people. It also

shows clips of a kid dancing on the sidewalk. The video also pays tribute to Jackson by including

signature things of his such as pieces of the sidewalk lighting up as they step on them while they

are performing in front of the house, clips of a kid doing classic Michael Jackson dance moves,

and the lead singer of the band sitting in a hand chair in the front yard with a chimpanzee that

looks just like the one Jackson had. Although Alien Ant Farm gave the song a very different

sound, they still made sure it was known that it was originally Jackson’s.

In both videos, pathos is used, making people feel different things. In Jackson’s video, it

shows him going around the speakeasy and, in some scenes, it appears he is about to get shot.

Just when it seems he will be hit, Jackson turns around just in time to take them out before they

can take him out. This created a feeling of suspense and worry. It also makes the viewer want to

keep watching to see what happens next. In Alien Ant Farm’s video, the hard rock sound of the

song and watching the band themselves gets excited makes the viewer feel energized and excited

and want to jump around. The two songs have two very different sounds with two very different

versions of the song, making the viewers feel two different ways.

These songs have two different audiences also. For Jackson’s video, at the time of the

release, the audience would be teenagers and young adults who enjoyed pop music. Now, the

audience for the video is most likely for the people who are in their 40’s to 50’s who were teens

and young adults at the time of the release and are probably watching it today to reminisce. The
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Alien Ant Farm video at the time of the release was watched by young adults who enjoy the hard

rock sound and today it is probably the same type of audience.

Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” is a pop song, and Alien Ant Farm turned

“Smooth Criminal” into a hard rock song while also paying tribute to Michael Jackson. The two

very different sounds evoked different emotions in people and spoke to different audiences. With

two very different versions came two very different videos. The original version of “Smooth

Criminal” will also be a classic while Alien Ant Farm’s version will always be remembered as a

fun version of it. The two very different versions allow the audience to be able to listen to

“Smooth Criminal” no matter what mood they are in.

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Works Cited

Alien Ant Farm- Smooth Criminal. You Tube, 7 October 2009, https://www.youtube.com/

watch?v=CDl9ZMfj6aE. Accessed 23 January 2020.

Michael Jackson- Smooth Criminal. You Tube, 19 November 2010, https://www.youtube.com/

watch?v=h_D3VFfhvs4. Accessed 23 January 2020.

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