MJ birthday bash - a Spike Lee joint

Spike Lee

By Meredith Deliso

The Borough of Kings is doing what it does best— the block party — in honor of the King of Pop.

According to published reports, Spike Lee, the heralded Fort Greene-raised director, puts Brooklyn on the map again as he plans a block party in honor of Michael Jackson’s birthday on August 29.

The event was originally planned for Fort Greene Park, but due to larger-than-expected crowds, will now be held at Prospect Park in the Nethermead, a rolling meadow located near the center.

That Saturday would have been the late singer’s 51st birthday, and in honor of his work and life, Lee is bringing the King of Pop’s music to the street, with DJ Spinna “spinning all things Jackson, from the Jackson 5 to the Jacksons to Michael Jackson,” the director told the Root online magazine.

Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz will also be on hand to declare August 29 “Michael Jackson Day.”

“I am pleased to support Brooklyn’s proud son, Spike Lee, at his birthday celebration for Michael Jackson, a true American icon who brought joy to millions of music lovers everywhere,” said Markowitz, who previously named June 30th “Spike Lee Day.” “I look forward to proclaiming August 29 ‘Michael Jackson Day’ in Brooklyn, USA, in recognition of the King of Pop’s contributions to music around the world.”

Lee, a long-time fan of Jackson’s (“We’re of the same era, he told the Root. “I wanted my Afro to be perfectly round like Michael’s, all that stuff.”), collaborated with the pop star on the music video for “They Don’t Care About Us,” the fourth single from Jackson’s 1996 album “HIStory.”

Lee recently reminisced with Time magazine about his first meeting with Jackson, which occurred here in Brooklyn.“Michael Jackson called me up and said, ‘Spike, I want meet you, I’m coming to New York.’ I said, ‘Well where you want to meet?’ He says, I want to come to your house.’ I live in Brooklyn! He wants to come to my house! So, Michael Jackson came to my house in Brooklyn, New York—this was when I was living in Fort Greene. I dunno if he’d ever been there before. We spent like two or three hours just talking. I mean, we’re the same age. I’m less than a year older than him. To be honest, I dominated the conversation, because I was trying to really tell him how much impact he had on my life. And I could just not believe that Michael Jackson was sitting in my living room in Brooklyn, New York. It was amazing.”

Jackson, who died on June 25, will be buried on the West Coast in Glendale, Calif., the day of the East Coast block party. The block party runs from noon to 5 p.m. The public is allowed to enter starting at 10 a.m.The Nethermead is most accessible from the 16th Street and Prospect Park Southwest entrance, the Bartel-Pritchard entrance, the 9th Street entrance, the 3rd Street entrance or the Willink Entrance at Ocean and Flatbush Avenues.