Sheryl Crow's 'Strange' Time Touring With Michael Jackson: What to Know

Sheryl Crow has opened up about her time with Michael Jackson, when she toured with him from 1987 to 1989, on his Bad Tour, before her own superstar career took off. Crow has been speaking out about her time with the King of Pop, revealing after the release of the Leaving Neverland documentary about Jackson's life that she believed something was amiss, even back then, especially regarding James Safechuck, a 9-year-old boy who spent large amounts of time on the road with Jackson.

"I happened to turn on CNN the morning after the first half [of the documentary] aired, and they showed clips of the young man who was on the Jackson tour with us and it made me … I mean, I still feel really … It's like a death in the family, you know? It's sad," Crow told The Guardian. "[James Safechuck] was a great kid and the whole time he was with us – which was the better half of an 18-month tour – I always wondered, 'What in the world are his parents doing?'"

Crow acknowledged that there are plenty more people than Jackson to blame for the alleged mistreatment of Safechuck.

"I think that there were a lot of exceptions made because of the damage that [Jackson] … I mean, he didn't intentionally project it, but it was part of his aura – this almost being untouchable and almost alien-like [figure]," Crow conceded. "And, yeah, I mean, I'm sad, and I'm mad at a lot of people. I feel like there was just a huge network of people that allowed all that to go on. It's just tragic."

Crow was dismayed by the stories behind Leaving Neverland, even though she admits she never watched it.

"I haven't seen the documentary and I don't want to see it," Crow told The Telegraph. "I was around for some things that I thought were really strange and I had a lot of questions about."

The Jackson family has refuted the claims in Leaving Neverland, saying that the documentary, which alleges that both Safechuck and another boy, Wade Robson, were both sexually abused by Jackson, is false.

"The film takes uncorroborated allegations that supposedly happened 20 years ago and treats them as fact," the family said in a statement. "Michael always turned the other cheek, and we have always turned the other cheek when people have gone after members of our family — that is the Jackson way. But we can't just stand by while this public lynching goes on. … Michael is not here to defend himself, otherwise these allegations would not have been made."

The film is streaming now on HBO Go and HBO Now.

Photo Credit: Pete Still/Redferns