Michael Jackson has returned to the studio and plans to release a new album next year, a Bahrain-based record label said.
Two Seas Records, which is owned by Sheikh Abdulla bin Hamad al-Khalifa, son of Bahrain's king, said yesterday that it had signed an exclusive recording agreement with Jackson.
The singer moved to the Gulf state soon after being acquitted of child abuse in California last year.
"I am incredibly excited about my new venture and I am enjoying being back in the studio making music," he said in a statement released in London.
Jackson has had financial problems since his trial.
