Brad Buxer discusses Michael Jackson's "Who Is It"

Berlin 1992, MTV Dangerous Diary.

Keyboardist, producer, arranger and touring musical director Brad Buxer discusses his involvement in Michael Jackson's song "Who Is It" off Dangerous (1993).

Thanks to Facebook page "Who Is It" for this video.

transcript:

Q: So Brad, explain all this equipment and what it's doing here.

Brad: Well basically it's an HRS system - HRS is hotel room system - and we're lucky on this tour because we actually can have equipment in our rooms that they bring to us when we get to the hotel.

We can practice or write and it gives us something to do on the off-time because you can get a lot of stuff done if you have your instruments in your room. So this is my controller keyboard and it makes these sounds and it plays this module which is a piano module.

Q: So when you work together, what was it? Was he singing and you sort of just playing along and you improvise like that?

Brad: It was all sorts of things. When we did Who Is It, I came in and there was a drum track up and a bass line, and I figured out some chords with him and we, you know, did the chords, some other lines and musical parts to it. On Will You Be There it was basically the same thing.

He has all the parts in his head basically, and on Will You Be There for instance he sang the melody and he said "Ok now play some chords", and I played the chords and he knew what he wanted to hear. And you know when I played the right thing he goes "that's it!".

He writes all this stuff, but you know just like you're sitting down with me now, it's the same way with Michael. So it's fun.