Growing up in Illinois, I spent many summer days in Chicago. But, honestly, it wasn't until I'd visited all 50 states that I understood just how magical the city becomes in the warmer months.

Each summer, Millennium Park hosts a packed calendar of free outdoor concerts and festivals, and the Riverwalk comes alive with outdoor dining and kayakers.

Plus, the lakefront beaches are among my favorites in the country.

In my opinion, Maine feels like a fairytale in the summer months. With lush forests, rocky coastlines, and quaint fishing villages — you really can't go wrong.

However, the place I find myself recommending most (and dreaming about visiting again) is Lubec. Home to the easternmost point in the contiguous US, this town feels like a Hallmark movie.

I love hiking at West Quoddy Head State Park, staying at The Inn on the Wharf, eating lobster at Fisherman's Wharf Restaurant, and hiking or biking on the Cobscook Shores Trail.

The temperatures in Taos, New Mexico, stay surprisingly mild in the summer months, with highs in the mid-80s and lows ranging from the high-40s to low-50s. This makes it a great destination if you're looking to escape those hot summer nights.

Plus, there's so much to do. I like to visit Taos Pueblo, one of the oldest continuously inhabited communities in North America. Here, visitors can take guided or unguided tours of the Native American village.

When I want to spend some time outside, I hike the Williams Lake Trail, a beautiful 3.8-mile round-trip trek to the lake at the base of Wheeler Peak.

Summer is absolutely high season in Jackson, Wyoming, but to me, it's still worth battling some traffic to experience.

The town sits right outside Grand Teton National Park, and the outdoor recreation options in the area are almost overwhelming — hiking, fly fishing, rafting the Snake River, and kayaking across beautiful lakes.

Jackson's Town Square is worth an evening of its own for exploring the shops, grabbing dinner or a drink, or attending one of the summer festivals or markets.

Another perk? Jackson Hole Airport is the only commercial airport in the country located entirely within a national park — so you can fly straight into one of the most stunning places in America.

I think everyone should experience the magic of Alaska in the summer. The days are incredibly long, the weather is mild, and everything feels more accessible.

Although there are lots of cities I love visiting in the state, Anchorage is my top pick because there's so much to do. I love visiting the Anchorage Museum, hiking the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail, eating at Moose's Tooth Pub and Pizzeria, or grabbing brunch at Biscuitclub.

The town is also a good basecamp for day trips to Seward, the Kenai Peninsula, and Girdwood.

I think Western North Carolina is one of the most beautiful parts of the country. However, my favorite town to visit is Brevard.

Located in Transylvania County — known as the "Land of Waterfalls" for its more than 250 cascades — Brevard is the perfect home base for exploring the area.

Within the town itself, I love attending the concerts put on by the Brevard Music Center, a summer training institute for young musicians.

Even though I've lost count of how many times I've visited Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, I'm still not tired of it.

The downtown area genuinely feels like stepping inside a storybook, with whimsical cottages built in the 1920s, and 41 hidden courtyards and passageways filled with shops and restaurants.

I love staying downtown and just walking between the 17 wine-tasting rooms — it's one of my favorite ways to spend an afternoon.

Jaafar's father, Jermaine, was one of the original members of the Jackson 5, along with his brothers, Jackie, Tito, Marlon, and Michael.

Jermaine was the group's second lead vocalist (Michael was first) until he left to pursue solo stardom in 1975. He was replaced by his youngest brother, Randy, and the group rebranded to The Jacksons.

Jaafar's mother, Alejandra Genevieve Oaziaza, was born in Colombia. She graduated from UCLA with a degree in fashion design and marketing, per her LinkedIn, and more recently launched Alejandra Jackson Designs.

Before Jermaine and Alejandra began dating, she was in a relationship with Jermaine's brother, Randy. Although they never married, Alejandra and Randy had two children together: a daughter, Genevieve, who was born in 1989, and a son, Randy Jr., born in 1992.

"Randy didn't treat me like I was the one," Alejandra told the New York Post's Stacy Brown. "I just thought that Jermaine was different, that he was more family-oriented."

Jermaine and Alejandra married on March 18, 1995, per People. They welcomed Jaafar on July 25, 1996, followed by his brother, Jermajesty, in 2000.

Jermaine filed for divorce from Alejandra in 2004. It was finalized in 2008 with Alejandra winning physical custody of Jaafar and Jermajesty, TMZ reported at the time.

"Michael" producer Graham King and casting director Kimberly Hardin conducted a worldwide search before offering the role to Jaafar, per NME.

One major snag? Jaafar had no formal dance training or acting credits before "Michael," save for one episode of "The Jacksons: Next Generation," a 2015 reality show that followed the lives of his cousins, Taj, Taryll, and TJ (then known as the R&B-pop trio 3T).

Jaafar has said he rehearsed for three years — two of which were part of the audition process — and worked with Michael's former choreographers, Rich and Tone Talauega, to learn his uncle's signature dance moves.

"We had to take that syllabus and then infuse it into Jaafar," Rich said on the KTLA 5 Morning News. "But let me tell you, man, he's a Jackson, you know, he has this talent deep down inside his DNA. It just took us some time, but we pulled it out of him, and the work that he put into it was exceptional."

Jaafar already shared his uncle's musical ambitions; he began playing the piano at age 12 and released his debut single, "Got Me Singing," in 2019. His website cites Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Nat King Cole, Johnny Mathis, and "his own family's rich musical heritage" as key influences.

Bucking the recent biopic trend of actors singing live on set — like Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan and Jeremy Allen White as Bruce Springsteen — Jaafar did not rely on his own voice to carry the musical scenes in "Michael."

Instead, the hit songs featured in the movie are "gloriously remastered and superbly lip-synched," according to Deadline's chief film critic Pete Hammond.

When it came to dancing and choreography, Jaafar said his goal was not to impersonate his uncle, but rather to embody his performance style.

"That was a challenge," Jaafar told Entertainment Tonight. "Hitting every moment, every beat, but also having the energy and the showmanship behind the moves, too."

Jaafar named "Billie Jean" — specifically Michael's 1983 performance of the song on the TV special "Motown 25" — as the hardest sequence to nail while filming.

When Jaafar landed the lead role in "Michael," he received a vote of confidence from a core member of his family: Michael's mother, Katherine Jackson.

"Jaafar embodies my son," Katherine said in a press release. "It's so wonderful to see him carry on the Jackson legacy of entertainers and performers."

The movie's executive producers include Michael's eldest son, Prince Jackson, and three of his brothers: Jermaine, Jackie, and Marlon.

All four men attended the Los Angeles premiere of "Michael" at the Dolby Theatre, alongside Michael's middle sister, LaToya Jackson — a strong show of support from the Jackson family.

"It was a process that I really had to earn, and it really proved to the filmmakers and myself and my family that I can get to that point where I can pull it off," Jaafar told Today. "I honestly wouldn't be able to pull this off if I didn't have the support."

Michael's other three siblings — his eldest sister, Rebbie Jackson, his youngest sister, Janet Jackson, and his youngest brother, Randy — were not in attendance and will not be portrayed in the biopic. (Michael's father, Joe Jackson, played by Colman Domingo, died in 2018. Michael's brother Tito, played by Rhyan Hill, died in 2024.)

"I wish everybody was in the movie," LaToya told Variety on the red carpet. On Janet's absence specifically, LaToya added, "She was asked, and she kindly declined, so you have to respect her wishes."

Meanwhile, Michael's daughter, Paris Jackson, has criticized the biopic as "sugar-coated" and clarified that she had "zero percent involvement" in the production.

Paris said she was asked to read one of the first drafts of the "Michael" script and gave notes about details that she felt were "dishonest," but she was told that her notes wouldn't be addressed.

"I just butted out and left it alone because it's not my project," Paris wrote on Instagram. "They're going to make whatever they're going to make. A big reason why I haven't said anything up until this point is because I know a lot of you guys are gonna be happy with it."

"A big section of the film panders to a very specific section of my dad's fandom that still lives in the fantasy," she added.

Neither Paris nor her younger brother, Bigi Jackson, joined Prince at the film's star-studded Los Angeles premiere — although Bigi did make a rare appearance to attend the "Michael" premiere in Berlin earlier in the month.

Paris is now involved in a complicated legal battle with the Jackson estate over the movie's financials. The estate has fired back that Paris has "a complete lack of understanding about how the motion picture industry works and the role of producers in it."