An Explainer To The Rumors Surrounding Michael Jackson's 'Secret Son'

Updated March 7, 2014 at 10:36 PM

Rumors have been swirling these past couple of days about Michael Jackson and his supposed "secret" son, Brandon Howard, who goes by B. Howard. If the news shocks and/or confuses you, here's how to make sense of it:

On Thursday, March 6, TMZ reported that Howard, a 31-year-old singer, took a DNA test which allegedly found there to be a 99.9 percent chance that his father is the late King of Pop. TMZ cited FilmOn.com, an Internet-based television provider, and its owner, Alki David, as the ones behind the DNA test.

FilmOn held a press conference earlier that day during which Dr. Joseph Goodman, a Beverly Hills dental surgeon, claimed to have extracted viable DNA from Jackson's old dental records. The sample "proved" Howard to be Jackson's son, FilmOn unveiled.

Following the story, Howard posted a video on his Facebook page claiming he had nothing to do with the test and would like to distance himself from it.

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On Friday, TMZ claimed it found the DNA test to be bogus and its source fictitious. At the same time, the New York Daily News got word that the test actually links Howard to Jackson's father, Joe Jackson.

But this isn't the first time Howard has been asked about his connection to Jackson.

In 2011, Howard was interviewed by documentary filmmaker Pearl Jr., after his song "Dance Floor" was released. In the interview, Pearl Jr. asked him about the possibility that he is Jackson's son (forward to 4:15), and the young pop star was very evasive. The interview also shows a clip of Joe Jackson saying he knew Michael had another son -- but it lacks context.

Conspiracy theorists love this "secret son" story because Howard's mother, Miki Howard, knew Jackson. According to TMZ, she went by "Billy" in 1982 -- the same year Michael released the song "Billie Jean," which contains the lyrics "Billie Jean is not my lover" and "The kid is not my son."

And now you know.