Paris Jackson, Michael Jackson’s daughter, proves her musical edge at BottleRock

Michael Jackson’s daughter Paris performed at BottleRock on Saturday in Napa, showcasing her uniquely captivating grunge aesthetic, indie-rock sound and undeniable stage presence. 

Read more Former ‘SNL’ comedian, ’90s rock band compare ICE to the KKK at BottleRock

Performing with her band on the T-Mobile stage, the 28-year-old singer-songwriter held the attention of early attendees with a soulful set. Wearing the ultra-millennial outfit — an oversized flannel and combat boots — Paris took the stage and immediately began rocking out with her electric guitar. 

Though her musical style is mostly grounded in indie-rock grit, rather than polished pop music like her father, she carried a unique swagger that many would remember of Michael on stage. She danced with loose movements and an instinctive rhythm that subtly echoed her father; while their moves are not identical, there’s something of him in the way that she lets music move her body. 

Paris began her musical career in 2018 when she formed an indie-folk duo with musician Gabriel Glenn, and eventually released her first solo album titled “wilted” in 2020. 

As the crowd anxiously waited to see what Paris would bring to the Napa Valley stage, this reporter experienced a lucky turn of events. A kind man from Texas named Aten gave me his extra pass to go “on stage.” I got to watch Jackson perform from a loft perched directly above the stage, one of the festival’s busiest, where the pulse of her electric guitar vibrated through the floor beneath my feet, pulling me deeper into the music. Only a handful of others stood with me, occasionally catching their balance on the slightly wobbly structure as smoke blew just in front of our faces. 

It wasn’t until several minutes into her set that Paris introduced herself to the eager crowd and her face turned toward us lucky spectators above her. We were so close, we could fully absorb her bohemian-rockstar look, with her piercing blue eyes, high cheekbones and scruffy blonde hair. 

“My name is Paris Jackson and I’m from Los Angeles,” she told the audience humbly, as if we haven’t heard her superstar name since she was born. 

“You sounded great!” one of the festivalgoers standing beside me called out to her. 

I could see the crowd — and their expressions, too — as Jackson grooved back and forth on the stage, going up to each of her bandmates during several tracks. And though not many audience members knew the words (or at least didn’t want to sing), hundreds of people were nodding in unison to the beat of the drums and the hypnotic guitar solos. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by 𝚙𝚔 (@parisjackson)

Throughout her 45-minute set, which included “zombies in love,” “let down,” “Happiest Day of My Life” and “teenage drama,” the star moved through a mix of her brooding alt-rock and intimate ballads, holding the crowd with a steady, understated intensity that built quietly but lingered long after each song ended. 

Read more ’90s hip-hop royalty electrifies BottleRock crowd in Napa

The standout track was definitely “zombies in love,” which felt disorienting — but in a good way, with hazy, reverb-drenched guitars and a steady, memorizing drum pattern that kept everything at a slow pulse. Melodically, Jackson delivered with her soft, slightly husky phrasing that floated perfectly with the instrumentation. 

Before several songs, she called them “so good it’ll make you start your period.” She followed up on the joke later, checking in with the audience, saying “check your panties” to see if they “started their period,” promoting a roar of laughs from the audience.

Jackson appeared to be uniquely herself, especially during the end of her set, when she took a disposable camera and took selfies with the audience. She revealed that the person who gave her the camera was her best friend, who got a shout-out in front of the audience.  

“It really helps to have your best friend be a photographer,” she said. 

Her last track, which Jackson didn’t specifically name, is an unreleased song the artist said she wrote just a week ago. Jackson said she hopes to include it in her new album. 

“Unless you guys hate it, I’ll take it off,” she said. 

Jackson’s BottleRock performance comes just days after a she received an ultrasound on her neck to examine an abnormal-looking bulge revealed in recent Instagram video, prompting concerns from fans: “A bunch of people pointed out that my neck looks f—ing weird,” she wrote, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle. (The Chronicle and SFGATE are both owned by Hearst but have separate newsrooms.)

Tests indicted that everything was OK and the appearance of her neck may have been because of the muscles she uses to sing.

BottleRock will continue until Sunday with several big-ticket headliners, including Zedd, Foo Fighters and Backstreet Boys.