New Michael Jackson song to debut at iHeartRadio awards

LOS ANGELES: The first single from late singer Michael Jackson's posthumous album will premiere at the iHeartRadio Awards on Thursday, ahead of the record release later this month.

"Love Never Felt So Good," originally written and recorded by Jackson in 1983, is the debut single for "Xscape," released on May 13 by Epic Records in partnership with Jackson's estate. The song will be available for purchase starting at midnight Friday.

The album will feature eight previously unreleased songs from Jackson that were recorded between 1983 and 1999.

Singer Justin Timberlake revealed he is featured on "Love Never Felt So Good" in an Instagram post on Thursday. It is not known if he will perform the song at the awards show.

Jackson, known as the 'King of Pop' and one of the most influential artists in music, having sold 1 billion records worldwide, died in 2009 at age 50 in Los Angeles from an overdose of the anesthetic propofol. The powerful drug was given to him by his personal physician while he was rehearsing for a series of 50 comeback concerts in London.

The inaugural fan-voted iHeartRadio awards, held at the Shrine Auditorium on Thursday and broadcast on NBC, kicked off with energetic performances from rapper Pitbull, country music singer Luke Bryan and British band Bastille.

Five artists – Timberlake, Imagine Dragons, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Maroon 5 and Rihanna – will contend for Artist of the Year, the top award of the night.

Source: Reuters