The Jackson 5

The Jackson 5 were an American family group formed in Gary, Indiana, in the mid-1960s, featuring brothers Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Michael Jackson. After performing on the local talent circuit, they signed with Motown Records in 1968, becoming one of the label's flagship acts and a defining part of its late-1960s and early-1970s sound. Michael, still a child, took the lead vocal spot, and his precocious voice became the group's signature.

Their Motown debut single «I Want You Back» (1969) launched a historic run in which their first four singles all reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, an unprecedented feat for a new act. Hits like «ABC», «The Love You Save», and «I'll Be There» defined a buoyant, string-and-horn-driven strain of soul-pop built for both radio and television, and the group's success made them one of the biggest pop phenomena among young audiences in America, a wave the press dubbed Jacksonmania. Later singles such as «Never Can Say Goodbye» and «Dancing Machine» pushed the group toward funk and disco-inflected sounds as the decade progressed.

Beyond the music, the Jackson 5 helped establish the template for the modern boy band and launched Michael Jackson's career as a solo superstar. Creative and financial disputes with Motown eventually led the group to leave the label in the mid-1970s, continuing afterward under the name The Jacksons.