I don't usually care about celebrities. Michael Jackson is different. The kids on my bus played the Thriller album on a boom box that they had gotten special permission to use after most of the other kids had been let go for the afternoon. The coolest kid on the bus had a red leather quilted jacket just like Michael's. My life marked pace to the rhythm of his hits. Mimi's and Pop-pop's house was Thriller, the Anguilla Avenue house was Man in the Mirror, etc. I remember watching the videos for Thriller, Billie Jean, and Dirty Diana on VH-1. I was crushed when I found out that Michael Jackson, as well as Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton (this shows where my musical repertoire gathered from) didn't write many of their own songs. Michael was my first introduction to the stark reality that showbusiness is business.
Of course, Michael fell out of vogue - at least for me. I was way beyond pop music. How could a highschooler who dressed in only shades of black, brown, and army green be caught dead enjoying the King of Pop?
In college, a friend adored Michael and this let me realize I did, too (I also first believed in God as a "thinking" "adult" because someone I admired did, so it made it okay for me. So shallow.). By then, he was way down plastic surgery lane and no longer looking very human. It was in college that I began to respect his profound talent. It's unmistakable in his little kid songs like ABC 123. But then to be able to move like he did - he's a phenomenon of pop talent. Amazing.
Anyway, I was struck by these comments about Michael, particularly the last one by Usher. The sadness is that Michael was ultimately a tragic figure. I feel badly for him. Who knows what cocktail of exposure, vanity, plastic surgery, and pop genius got him where he ended up. He just peeled out in slo mo over the last couple of decades. As sad as his untimely death is, the sadder part was the demise leading up to it. I can't help thinking that Showbiz did it to him.
My kids want to watch the video for ABC 123, which I am inclined to let them do.
