They Rocked it!! Ant Farm "Smooth Criminal" Reaction | Asia and BJ 

Exact same words as original. Just a frigging good rock rendition.

Michael Jackson actually loved this tribute to him.there was no words changed in this either.theres all kinds of shout-outs to all of Micheal's music videos in here from the lights on the floor from beat it,the steam,him jumping on top of that car and screaming to the guy at the end of the video with the eyes like thriller. Plus dozens of other Micheal Jackson nods.

The bass players uncle worked with MJ. He got MJ to listen to their version of Smooth Criminal. He liked it so much that he let them put the song on their album. And gave them carte blanche to do whatever they wanted to do on the video.

mj said this was one of his most favorite covers of one of his songs. they actually performed this for the jackson family after his death by per request from mj. i absolutely love this cover its epic!!!

Nah that wasn’t a parody, it was a tribute. It rocks.

When an artist does a cover like that, it's pure respect for the original artist.

Michael Jackson was actually a big fan of Weird Al's parody songs of his. And those straight up made fun of him. Alien Ant Farm paid massive tribute to him in this. Fantastic cover.

It is the original lyrics and one of the most dedicated tributes while he was still with us. So many Easter Eggs.

Definitely not a parody. A respectful cover. And well done.

Yo, these were the exact same lyrics. This wasn’t mocking Michael, it was a tribute to Michael and a very good song…….Alien Ant Farm just wanted to perform it a little “heavier”….Good stuff!!

The drummer just slays this song

Mj was literally so smart. He loved this homage video, so he gave full permission for it as he knew it would give him another audience to access his songs. And it worked. Loads of new fans discovered MJs music. Man MJ is so missed.

Yeah Michael rarely gave anyone permission to use his music in any way. From what I remember of the story behind this, MICHAEL LOVED THIS! This is how you do a proper tribute when using MJ's stuff!!! P.S. They didn't change any words to this song. 💞🤘

It is a tribute to Micheal!!🎶 The lyrics are exactly the same. They asked Micheal to listen to it, and not only did he love it, he had input on the references to him and his other videos🎶🎸🎶💜

Yeah this is a great cover. The words are the same they just changed it to a rock version

This was a tribute as they used the same words, like a tip of the hat to say "RESPECT" to the King of Pop.

I think this rendition rocks!!! Remember, there will never be another MJ… It’s like the Red Hot Chili Peppers covering Stevie Wonder’s Higher Ground… A must do reaction!!! They pumped it up a little more with their rock sound… Both covers are great… Hope you guys are having a kickass day!!!! Keep those reactions coming!!!! 👍🏻…

LOVE THIS! He is singing the exact words they just upt the tempo! It's freakin' awesome!!

Best MJ homage video I've ever seen. Doesn't matter how many times I see this video, the little man in the yellow tee shirt and face mask dancing! That boy can *MOVE!*

Alien Ant Farm is an awesome band. Their song "Movies" is super amazin'! Brings me back to my high school days, love it!

MJ loved AAF’s version of smooth criminal. FACTS

This is a straight up homage to Michael, they showed just how many different types of people loved him and will have life long memories of him, I'm 50, he's been in my life sound track at every age.

He’s absolutely 💯 singing the exact words from the real song.

you can watch this video several times and find new MJ tributes each time...great video!!

AAF did a superb job with this tribute/cover. The way it bridges both genres and mingles them together is something that will always be special to me. This is how you make a cover your own while putting every bit of respect and love for the original into it.

It’s exactly all the same lyrics and beat but in rock form! This performance is a masterpiece. The only time I’ve ever liked a cover more than the original. MJ loved this cover.

FYI It's the same words. And so many MJ references! The "glove" chair, the light up sidewalk from "Billie Jean," The Elizabeth Taylor tattoo on the guy at the end (who has the "Thriller" eyes) and many more. Such a great video and song!

MJ actually loved this.

Michael gave a lot of permission to weird Al Yankovic he loved that.. Fond of this tribute also

You are not paying attention! It is the same words!

I have always and forever will love MJ...and this song. It doesn't surprise me MJ approved, because they really did him proud. Definitely on the best covers list, because while they made it theirs they still stayed true to the song! That's the mark of a great cover, and it's rare.

He's singing the exact same lyrics as the original. There are dozens of references to MJ throughout the video.

And I love how BJ is more hype than Asia. It's usually flipped. Y'all are my favorite. 🤘🏻❤️🔥🔥❤️❤️

They properly killed it. They love MJ.

Those are Michael Jackson’s lyrics guys. Same exact song just covered by a rock band. Also Michael always had rock elements in his music anyway. Eddie Van Halen did the guitar solo on BillieJean

They threw so many things from all of his videos. The smooth criminal bend, as I call it. where they paid homage to Michael. One thing I missed for so long was the drummer was wearing a white gloves. Even the hand movement near the end that was out of one of his videos. The girl jumping in the pool with the wolf mask, and jacket was from thriller. The Asian girls with the sign jumping up and down, Michael was big in the Asians countries. AS you saw with the crate and smoke. The light up squares from Billie jean, the editing of the squares also from another video, I think Billie Jean. The old men had to do with I think Family guy but they all got up and grabbed their crotches. The guy at the end had Elizabeth Taylor on his back, Michael and Elizabeth were best friends. And his eyes were Michael's eyes from Thriller at the ENd. right down to the crooked left eye. Besides the monkey he was sitting on a white glove chair. The kid with the mask.. I guess that Michael didn't want the kid in the mask when they showed it to him, then he saw the video, and said no to leave it in. Michale did have last say on it. And he loved it. I think there were a few other minor things but forgot ..

They had fun with it, and didn't take themselves serious, which is what makes this video and song so much fun.

They were not mocking or doing a parody, this is a straight tribute and ive always loved it!. The video is FULL of references to many of Michaels early 80s videos and micheal in general. My subtle favorite is when the lead singer is steping on the sidewalk lights (Billie Jean) and starts holding his pants up higher like Michael's highwater pants. Also love when they split the screens from Billie Jean and the Thriller mohawk guy at the end with Liz Taylor on his back. This video is jam packed with MJ easter eggs and can only be fully appreciated by those kids and young adults of the 80s that watched MJs videos on repeat on MTV, which is who im sure these guys are.

Everything in this video represents a different MJ song. This is a cover, too.

The rock version of this song just works.. RIP the king of pop!

This band is Great they did the parody a serious thing back in the early 2000 they sound Great even today this was the way of them to honor their hero Michel jackson

Great song, great cover, big hit back then...

Not a parody. Not a mockery. It is a loving tribute to Michael’s contribution to pop culture. Well done AAF.

another great rock version of a famous MJ song is Billie Jean by Chris Cornell of Soundgarden. Great cover song!

MJ gave permission and his seal approval of their cover and he LOVED the video. They sent to him before releasing it.

The best cover of any MJ song ever!

I’ve heard that song so many times never noticed how many tributes they made to his music in this one video. IE at the end with the werewolf eyes from Thriller, Billy Jean, Smooth Criminal

Yes they did get permission for Michael Jackson and he actually loved it but he also passed away in the same year. Everybody loves their rendition there's a few things that are there that no one noticed like King of the Hill when they're all sitting at the chairs I do with the mohawk and it's a great rendition that's why everyone loves it. They also did this past doing covid they did a song from George Michael which I know that you love him. They were really great at their peak and they had a very very nasty bus crash which left one of them paralyzed but they came back there's a whole story on them. Thanks for doing maybe the George Michael one down the road it's cool to you keep rocking it.

I met them when they first hit the scene at Warped Tour. I talked to them for a while. I asked the lead singer why he had a reverse mohawk. He just replied "Split personalities." The bassist told me he made all of his own instruments. I still have my ticket that they autographed lol.

This cover came out my senior year in college when we go out and get wild, but the MJ OG version was bomb when I was little b4 that on the MTV

The drummer wearing the white glove 😆

Nu metal version here. I used to play this song on my guitar many moons ago lol Homage to Michael Jackson! Same lyrics BTW. MJ's version was R&B/pop rock. Also, MJ was a fan of this as well. lol

Я одного не могу понять, в последнее время вижу уже не первую реакцию на этот кавер! Но лично я кайфовал от него ещё 20 лет назад. Респект из России!

Definitely not mockery, they actually became really good friends with MJ . MJ loved it so much, and they really loved him. My second favorite song is by Alien Ant Farm and it’s called movies. They are so underrated

No words changed in their version...

SO many MJ shoutouts in here: leaning like in Smooth Criminal, Girl in bikini with werewolf mask (Thriller), Jumping on car and windows exploding (Black or White video), He's sitting in a chair that looks like MJ's sequin glove (with Bubbles), ground lighting up and freeze frame bits from Billie Jean video, and the guy at the end with the werewolf eyes is Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers.

This cover was actually my introduction to Smooth Criminal. I knew Michael's music, but apparently completely missed SC. So, when this first dropped, I thought it was an original song. Didn't learn about the actual original until around 2 years later.

I think homage was the word you were looking for, for there was no mockery. And yes, they indeed had promission from MJ both for cover and for video. The drummers of AAF and MJ's band were friends.

The little boy dancing is the coolest

He is absolutely singing the exact same words. How do you not know MJ by heart?

This is one of the best covers of all time! All of the MJ Easter eggs are awesome.

This was essentially a homage to MJ....by AAF There are references through out to MJ's videos

I'm 38 now and I tell you what this was the best I've heard ever commemorate Michael and I believe they did this before they even got permission but didn't release yet, on another note I'm always humming your intro at work❤

I saw these guys perform this live at Warped Tour in Atlanta in 2001. They autographed my CD!

THANK GOD THAT YOU SAID BUBBLES! I have seen several reactions to this vid, and you two were the first ones to get it. Love you two!

That "Ohh noooooo" is very accurate. Props to that guy he bailed it.

Same exact lyrics. It's a fantastic cover song, especially with the video and them paying homage to Michael like they do.

A little fact about something in this video: there is a kid wearing a mask, in the 90s, kids would put vapor rub inside a facemask, wear it and it would get them high(kinda like the effects of speed).

Alíen Ant Farm was one of the best 90’s bands to grace us with their talents! I still listen to this song when I’m driving 🚗 or cleaning 🧹💃🏽✌🏽

He puts the emPHASis on different sylLABles. I saw an interview where the band discussed the genesis. They said the song 'wants to rock.'

So much MJ symbolism in this video awesome cover and rendition

Couldn’t ask for a better job on this cover 👍🏻

Absolutely a awesome Tribute to a legend!

Since the song is going viral for some reason... budding drummers this one is super fun to learn! To OP: Really liked your reactions. You guys seem fun.

Awesome reaction. Y’all gotta check out MJ’s original *OG!* drummer Jonathan “Sugarfoot” Moffett playing live in the DrummeO studio. Absolutely killer musician & performer. 🤘🏼🎧🤟🏼

この曲はほんと素晴らしい‼️ 扱ってくれた事に感謝🎉

I mean... the whole video is obviously a tribute to MJ (masks, glowing sidewalks, a chimp, leaning into gravity, bashing up a car, the Thriller dance, etc) It's great! But if you are curious about AAF, then I recommend "Movies", by them.

The little boy doin mjs dance moves was killer!

Yes, same exact words. It’s crazy how different it sounds from the original.

i was just telling someone about this video. all of the MJ references in the video you can tell they are true fans. it was so well done.

In the UK , West Ham Utd are an English Premier League football(soccer) team who's theme song is ' I'm forever blowing bubbles'.....takes on a slightly different meaning when considering Michael Jackson :)

Alien ant farm loved Michael ,And he was blown away by the cover .It is the prerfect rock cover ,I just wish they would of performed it together .

I love that video. Did you notice the drummer was wearing a white glove? All the Michael Jackson styles they put into their video was so fun.

MJ was a huge rock fan and he loved this cover. I mean, have you heard Dirty Diana? He was just as much rock as much as he was pop in my opinion!

Such a good cover. It’s just a whole new life to the song.

The drummer and the bass player used this song to warm up then the others joined in. Mike the drummer loved MJ's music when he was young and had to have the red jacket like MJ had.

Every time I watch that video I see something new...saw it a couple of times before I noticed the drummer was wearing just one glove!!!!!!!

This brings me back to high school. This is a real look at northern California, had a friend that had a real wrestling ring in his back yard... We had our own league lol

MJ's Smooth Criminal IS basically a ROCK SONG - people just don't think of it as such because it's MJ.

This song is to everyone! Doesn't matter who sings it. Love all!

Jacksons moves and poses, rockified

As a kid in the 90s That listen to both aaf and MJ I didn’t even know it was MJs song until I was like 15 lol

We just had the bassist Tye on our podcast called the Rock Oath yesterday. Episode coming out soon. Good stuff he talked about with us.

That boy dancing steals the show. Boy got skills.

Listen, people thought this was a parody and it’s not. They love Michael Jackson and they were honoring MJ. And they did an amazing job.

Exact same lyrics!

Love that yall loved it, outside of polo gs cover, they're the only ones to get the "yes" from him or his estate. He signed off on it so you know it's legit

You guys are just awesome. I love watching you react to the songs I love and grew up with. Keep up the good work guys. I can tell that you are good people...my kind of people.

I remember reading that Michael loved this version. It's a tribute to him. Same lyrics and everything

There is an interview where MJ is asked about this video and said he loved it so much he gave 100% approval.