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Michael Jackson is an unlikely myth and an Easter egg in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

Description[]

Evident from the name, the myth is based on the iconic "King of Pop", the late Michael Jackson. Vice City, set up in the 1980s, features a handful of Easter eggs relating to Michael Jackson as a tribute to his golden run during the 1980s. The cult single "Billie Jean" featured on Flash FM plays in Ken Rosenberg's Admiral or Faggio during the introduction, In The Beginning..., depicting how the song gained popularity in the 1980s, particularly in the south. Another one of Michael Jackson's songs, "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" is featured on Fever 105. A local drug store on Prawn Island, Elbee Chemists is a reference to a drug store appearing in "Billie Jean", shockingly, the song is also set up in Miami. In addition to this, swapping the words Elbee gets Belee, phonetically similar to Billie.

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GTA Vice City. "Billie Jean".

Astonishingly, the poster of Boy Scout Zombies appears to be at InterGlobal Studios, which is in front of the drug store, a reference to how "Billie Jean" and "Thriller" belong to a 1982 album, Thriller, as "Thriller" features zombies. Moreover, the industrial road in Prawn Island is similar to the road in "Thriller" with a similar background setup. A haunted house located nearby, much identical to the Haunted Mansion. Cementing this reference is the theatre set located inside the studios, which also appears in "Thriller". Therefore, more or less, the entire scenario of the song, "Thriller" fits in Prawn Island.

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The street/road in Prawn Island. The street/road in "Thriller".
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Haunted Mansion on Prawn Island. Haunted Mansion in "Thriller".
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Theatre on Prawn Island. Theatre in "Thriller".

Over the years, mainly due to cult following, players have added Michael Jackson in the game, formulating a myth, stating that Michael Jackson can be sighted wandering around Vice Point and Prawn Island. Because of these claims being mods most of the time, they are merely just false reports. However, WMYPI bears similarity to MJs' outfit from the song "Beat It", excluding the headwear and minor textures. This specific pedestrian says, "Beat it, just beat it" whenever the player walks around him. There's a plausibility that one might mistake this pedestrian for Michael Jackson since this is an oblivious reference to the song.

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Pedestrian, WMYPI. Michael Jackson in "Beat It".

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