Despite denying for years that he used to beat his famous son Michael Jackson and his brothers, Joe Jackson has admitted that he used a strap to discipline his children.

In 1993, Oprah spoke to Michael Jackson who claimed that his father used to beat him and his siblings if he was unhappy with their performance. He claimed that the mere sight of his father would make him feel ill and that father Joe used to clutch the belt as he watched his kids rehearse.

However, despite the physical and mental harm the beatings did, Michael said that it helped him and his siblings to succeed in the music business.

Yesterday (November 8) Joe and Katherine Jackson spoke to Oprah about their late son and when the topic of physical discipline arose, Joe, again, initially denied the allegations.

“I never beat him,” he said. “That never happened.”

But then Katherine interjected: “You might as well admit it, that’s the way black people raise their children,” she explained before turning to Oprah. “He used a strap.”

When Oprah asked Joe if he regretted the punishment he inflicted on the kids he said: "I don't. It kept them out of jail and kept them right."

Also during the series of emotional interviews, Katherine Jackson revealed that Conrad Murray – the man accused of involuntary manslaughter in Michael’s death – was the one to inform her that her son had died.

"They didn't tell me he was dead. They wanted me to come to the hospital. They made the doctor tell me," she said, referring to Murray. "I said, 'How is he? How is he, did he make it?' And he said 'No, he's gone.' "

Watch Michael Jackson talking about his childhood with Oprah in 1993 below: