Michael Jackson Remembered

So glad you posted this MJ

If anyone is ever confused about what “IT” is, they only need to watch this video. It is every bit as evident more than 40 years later that that kid was extraordinary from the second the camera hit him. And whereas many acts seem dated and “What were we thinking?” in retrospect, Michael would be just as hypnotic if he stepped onto a stage just like that today.

I was joking a few months back about the family groups popular in the 70s (a viral DeFranco Family video was going around) and I thought, “What is it with these performing families that have to have five kids before they produce the REALLY talented one?” But it’s true! Especially in the Jackson 5, Osmond Brothers, DeFranco Family vein.

I am so sorry that Michael Jackson is dead. It’s an awful tragedy. I think that he was an musical genius and icon and was a great influence on music. He will definitely be missed.

I love a lot of his music especially his “Off the Wall” album and his “Thriller” Album. And I love songs off of his “Bad” and “Dangerous” album.

Also, I was just watching the movie about his family “The Jacksons: An American Dream” last week. I love that movie and the story that it told about his family. I’m sorry that he ended up having an unhappy ending.

My mother remembers the Jackson 5 very well but I wasn’t born until the mid 70′s. I was about 6 or 7-years-old when the Thriller album was released. I just can remember that and what a huge star Michael was at that time. That was almost 26 or 27 years ago now I think. It’s so hard to believe it was that long ago. That is the biggest thing that stands out in my mind.

I just had to watch his “Thriller” video. It’s been years since I’ve seen it last, and it still gives me chills. Whatever you think about his personal life, you must admit that artistically, he was a genius.

The first ever Michael Jackson song I heard was Billie Jean. I must have been 9 or 10 years old. Then thriller came out, and it was my first school-dance performance. I don’t know how to think of those years without thinking of Michael.
The moonwalk was an obsession of mine.. I still can’t do it.

Oh lord I’m finally crying.

Rest in peace, Michael. I remember I was 7 when “Ben” came out, I loved that song and sang it all the time before my brother told me it was about a rat. I was 14 when “Off the Wall” was released and I thought it was the coolest album EVAH. Had all of us dancing and singing and having great times. Thriller was an amazing time, the videos for that album were off the hook spectacles and I remember when the MTV world premiere of the videos would have everyone watching.

He was a one of a kind talent and a very troubled man. I hope he rests in peace.

This was a beautiful post, MJ. Thank you.

I can’t really narrow down one of my favorite moment for me, personally. I have a lot of memories from having the bedroom next to my sisters for years and having Michael shoved down my throat so much that I loathed him initially, until I grew to love him. I remember moments with my Mom, sister, and I dancing to his videos, learning the thriller dance, being AMAZED at the thriller video…these things stick out to me most. I remember my best friend in Germany having traveled all teh way to Paris to see him and passing out because she was so excited.. I’m thinking of her sadness today because she was a FANATICAL fan that made my sister look tame.

I remember his music encompassing a period of my life that is just a happiness.

I remember a brilliant man who consistently pushed the envelope and was brilliant every time. I remember premieres of his videos on MTV.

This day breaks my heart and it always will.

The King of Pop he truly was.

Thanks for posting this, MJ. This is the Michael Jackson that I knew and loved up until after his “Off the Wall” album. Things started going terribly wrong from there. I feel for his family. I can’t imagine losing a brother.

ETA: Losing Farrah and Michael in the same day is like seeing my childhood pass before my eyes. What icons!

Even being in high school 98-02, people were still danceing to his music. Tonight SYTYCD will be emotional for everyone, Debbie Allen already broke down talking to Ryan

My favorite memory is my first time seeing the Beat It video on MTV. Eddie Van Halen making a cameo in the video, wailing on his guitar, and then Michael Jackson dancing and singing his way through the video (which, to look at it now seems pretty cheesy) made me fans of both MJ and Van Halen. I still have the 45 which has Beat It and Billie Jean, though I have no idea which was supposed to be the A side and which the B side.

Oh and like many others I would go into my kitchen in socks and try to perfect the moonwalk. I got pretty good after awhile but could never do it in shoes like he could. I also owned a jacket that, while not exactly like his red leather jacket with all the zippers, was certainly close enough for me and I loved wearing it while moonwalking around my mom in the kitchen.

I can honestly say Michael Jackson was THE turning point in my life as a music listener and music lover. Before the fifth grade, I never listened to anything but country music. I’m from Texas after all. Someone brought the cassette tape for Thriller to school and played Billie Jean. I was never the same again. LOL. I bought the tape as soon as I could and never looked back. That moment opened my world to every genre of music you can think of.

It pained me that his life had become such an awful circus. And god knows what his life was really like. I honestly think he will be remembered mostly for his music. But I also think he’ll become the ultimate symbol for how fame can destroy a person. I hope he’s at peace now.

And thank god we have all that music. Too much great stuff.

Oh and like many others I would go into my kitchen in socks and try to perfect the moonwalk. I got pretty good after awhile but could never do it in shoes like he could.

Oh how I tried. Just in my hallway not the kitchen, but I tried. Impossible feat. Only MJ could moonwalk

I’ve listened to Michael almost my entire life. The first song i ever heard was “Billie Jean” and he has been an Idol of mine since. I have every album and song he ever released.
I remember when i bought his Thriller album, it is the most played album on my Ipod to this day and IMO, the greatest album of all time.

RIP, Michael Jackson. You will be missed.

The days I spent doing the thriller dance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtyJbIOZjS8

I remember watching Michael Jackson perform Billie Jean at the Grammys in ’84 on tv. When he did the moonwalk, the girls in the audience lost their MINDS! So did I. The glove, the sparkly white socks. I had never seen anybody dance like that. It was an iconic moment. I will never forget it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VASYhabHkM

Here is VERY rare video of Michael Jackson sharing the stage with James Brown AND Prince.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CoxNzOOoQU

MJ, you’re showing your age. Don’t worry about it. I just turned 11 when that came out.

Michael Jackson…too many memories…his campy Saturday morning cartoon series in the early 70s, his masterpiece, Thriller, seeing him live in concert in 1984. All good memories. But there’s also the bad memories…the pedophile accusations, his financial problems…his untimely death.

I think the good memories will far offset the bad. The two most recent memories are actually not Michael memories per se…they were of Michael Jackson songs.

A Michael Jackson song catapulted a future American Idol into legitimate consideration (David Cook’s “Billie Jean”), and another Michael Jackson song literally introduced us to another American Idol (“Kris Allen’s “Man in the Mirror”).

I am so happy American Idol was able to have a Michael Jackson week, and I hope he was able to watch it. I know some of the contestants grew up idolizing him as I did. Of course, I’ve followed him much longer than they have. I’ve loved his music, his dancing, his genious. It is a sad, sad day for everyone. I am still in shock — total shock. Another icon gone before his time. MJ will be celebrated and revered as foreever the pop icon of the world. I will miss him so much.

Mj and Britney
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgfvrcpOOyE

Awesome post, MJ. I agree completely.

I watched this on Ed Sullivan. Like you I was blown away – I gasped. How can a little kid like ME do THAT? I remember being at my parent’s house for dinner, or something, in 1983 – visiting from college – and watched Billy Jean…. and witnessed the moonwalk. Live. I gasped. How can anyone do THAT???

And today I read the headline that Michael Jackson was dead at 50. Again, I gasped.

Watching these videos is somehow incredibly sad. This man transcended racial, musical, gender and continental boundaries. He was a beacon of hope and love for many around the world. Part of me watches these old videos and mourns his loss of innocence. And another part of me mourns knowing that we’ll never have another like him. We simply don’t have world icons any more, and we need them. Unifying forces are always needed. The “Man in the Mirror” video is epic.

Thank you for posting MJ. Thank you. I remember…. and the loss is tremendous. He was true genius.

ETA: I know I’m still in shock having just learned this news, but watching that video, I’m losing it. I can’t believe the emotion. I do, but I don’t, ya know? Anyway, way to soon to say good-bye, Michael. Only the good die young… RIP MJ.

He was honestly one of the first African Americans singers to attract so many white fans (I don’t mean to offend anyone)

Jackson 5 and ‘NSYNC
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEPNroGk7S8

Honestly, people, take what he showed us, the amazing and the icky (yup icky) and learn from it. Don’t look at him as truly an icon but strive to learn from him. He had a fairly ugly live. I don’t fault him for it, but please learn from his pain, because to die at age 50 is so much pain. That’s the thing that brings me tears. Nobody should die at such a young age, not from heart disease which is what it seems to be from him. It’s truly tragic that it wasn’t cared about. I guess that I see that nobody truly cared about his heart disease. I understand that when Steve Goodman died of Leukema that he totally embraced it…the disease and his being consumed by it. I just don’t see Michael Jackson having anything to do with his affliction. I guess his dying is a horrible thing that gives nobody hope…he could have done so much better by helping to give others hope…at least a bit.

I was born in 1980 so Thriller was my first “taste” of Michael. That video used to scare me!! haha, but I’d watch it over and over and over again.

His influence on pop music is extroadinary. He was a icon in life, but he will be a legend in death. Wow.. this is just so shocking and unexpected.

I remember being 6 years old and seeing the “Black and White” video (with the morphing faces) and not being able to take my eyes off of the TV. I had an older teenage cousin who adored him so I grew up (in Venezuela) associating Michael Jackson, his music, his moonwalk, and his glove with the epitome of American cool. He was an international idol. Even now you can see and hear his influence in the current pop music scene. Part of me feels sheepish for crying today, but the King of Pop was just one of those people you never thought of as mortal, no matter how much crap and controversy surrounded him in his latter years.

He was honestly one of the first African Americans singers to attract so many white fans (I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t mean to offend anyone)

So true, and that in itself was revolutionary.

I’m only 15 so I wasn’t around during the time when Michael was so popular, but I “discovered” his music for myself awhile ago and he imediately one of my favorites. He just commanded the stage like no one I had ever seen. It’s really incredible how many people he’s influenced, and it’s hard to believe he’s gone.

Annie, a DA fan from Germany, posted this on the Snarky Archies website.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0mcxmCGetI&feature=channel_page

Wahhhh! I’d never seen it before.

I used to watch the Jackson Five (I was born in the mid 60s) on Saturday mornings. I used to watch Land of the Lost and The Jackson Five. It is one of my earliest memories. Later on, when I was in college, mtv was just starting and I watched Thriller, etc.–he WAS mtv and he WAS music videos.

I wish his later years weren’t tainted by his eccentricity, but a friend of mine, who is only 24, had just bought one of his greatest hits cds and texted me about how sad she was.

How nice that the Idols got an MJ week to discover (or just get to celebrate) his music. How tough for them all.

And Nigel just paid his respect to Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, and MJ on SYTYCD. Very classy.

What a loss. RIP and condolences to his family.

He was honestly one of the first African Americans singers to attract so many white fans (I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t mean to offend anyone)

terps, I know what you mean. He appealed to everyone, it was extraordinary. I have no doubt that there were many homes in which he opened the door to people appreciating popular music by an African American artist. America has changed since then, and he was part of making that happen.

I was born in March and he was born the following August, MJ you must be right in there too. I feel as if I grew up with him, I guess because I did. I had hoped that he would find peace in this life and that’s not to be. I’m sad for that, but he is at peace now.

If anyone is ever confused about what à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“ITà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  is, they only need to watch this video. It is every bit as evident more than 40 years later that that kid was extraordinary from the second the camera hit him. And whereas many acts seem dated and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“What were we thinking?à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  in retrospect, Michael would be just as hypnotic if he stepped onto a stage just like that today.

I so agree with you!!

I’m sad he seemed to be lost in his personal life. He was such a genius and icon. He brought a lot of people joy with his music and he seemed so happy while he was performing. His music will last forever.

How can I love and hate the man with so much emotion. I watched him grow up, I experienced all the highs and lows. I watched a beautiful man transform himself physically into something I couldn’t bear to look at. I watched him command a stage and then virtually have to be carried into a courtroom. I listened to Ben for hours never caring that he was singing about a rat. I screamed horrendous vulgarities at him as he dangled his son from 5 stories above the street. I watched in utter rapture as he embellished the new mediam of videos and turned songs into mini movies. I shuddered when I read the papers and listened to the news during his very public trial.

I ridiculed him when he spoke about his non-cosmetic surgeries but loved listening to all the newbies singing his amazing songs. I grew tired of asking the stratosphere why? why? why? would someone with so much talent let it all go to waste. And now I sit crying about a life that was but could and should have been so much more. I sincerely hope we can pack up the insanity that was Michael the person he became and embrace the memory of someone who left us with so many good memories, and songs and videos and dance moves that will stand the test of time.

Good night, sweet Prince. May you now have the peace you so richly deserve, and may you truly experience a childhood someday, somewhere that you never had in this life and spent your entire life looking for.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VASYhabHkM

Yeah, the Moonwalk at the ’84 Grammys. Classic. Quite possibly one of the greatest live performances ever. The whole world seemed to bow at his feet that night.

So true that he transcended racial barriers. What an inspiration both musically and spiritually. Just thinking about the worldwide outpouring of love and respect as we mourn his passing is already giving me chills.

I’m one of those who’s too young to remember the old Michael. Unfortunately my memories of him involve more the stories than the music. I think I only started listening to Michael when I was 17…
I don’t know much about Michael, but those songs I own I love and he was not only an extraordinary singer but a brilliant artist.
Thank you all for sharing the stories and the videos, I’m learning more about him.

He had a lot of talents, both musically and in dance. He made a definite impact on music and I feel badly for his family, friends and fans.

Good night, sweet Prince. May you now have the peace you so richly deserve, and may you truly experience a childhood someday, somewhere that you never had in this life and spent your entire life looking for.

That’s sweet. I wish him peace as well.

Like many, Thriller was one of the first albums I ever owned. I got it for Christmas when I was ten years old, and literally wore the grooves off of it in that first year and was then forced to ask for a replacement copy the following Christmas. Maybe that’s why it’s the best-selling album of all time. I remember working hard to memorize Vincent Price’s interlude in the title track, and can recite it to this day with his exact phrasing and intonation. I remember doing dance routines to ‘Beat It’ at slumber parties. That music seriously shaped my childhood, and I am feeling very nostalgic tonight.

As for American Idol, Michael Jackson’s music has been performed 20 times in competition over the course of 8 seasons, and has given the show some of its most electrifying moments (Cook’s ‘Billie Jean’) and some of its most infamous (Justin Guarini’s ‘P.Y.T.’). Here’s the list, courtesy of the marvelous obsessives at WNTS:

Ben – Nikki McKibbin

P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing) – Justin Guarini

Rock With You – Chip Days

You Can’t Win, You Can’t Break Even – Charles Grigsby

Butterflies – Ace Young

Rock With You – Brandon Rogers

Billie Jean – David Cook

Rock With You – Stephen Fowler

Man In The Mirror – Kris Allen

The Way You Make Me Feel – Lil Rounds

Keep The Faith – Scott Macintyre

P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing) – Danny Gokey

You Are Not Alone – Michael Sarver

Remember The Time – Kris Allen

Give In To Me – Allison Iraheta

Beat It – Anoop Desai

Rockin’ Robin – Megan Joy

Black Or White – Adam Lambert

Human Nature – Matt Giraud

Dirty Diana – Alexis Grace

The moment I became a fan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-blEgMyJwU
I was 9 years old when I first watch that moon walk for the first time and I was a goner. There will never be another like him.

I posted in the other thread about the Thriller video. Oh my gosh – that was an event! It was a big premiere on MTV. My mom let me have a big sleepover with my friends to watch! I’ve rewatched that vid 3 or 4 times tonight… Even now all these years later, nothing has topped that vid, imo.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVJscGa5vbc

I also posted that link in the other thread… That really got the waterworks going for me… Bye Michael and thanks for all the great music and the memories I have. RIP

That’s a great memory MJ. I remember the Jackson 5 cartoon as well and watching the cute kid and then later being awed by Michael seeming to float around on stage doing the moonwalk. I’m one of those who believe he suffered from some form of mental illness, and this was part of his tragic story. I was a big fan, like everyone else, in high school.

I think that those of us who are a certain age (I’m in my early 40′s and have a sister who just turned 50) are especially struck by the death of one of our biggest popular culture icons. He’s been a part of the fabric of pop culture for so long, and he’s so young, around our age, or so I’m thinking that’s still young. I’m more shocked and saddened than I ever would have expected.

There are too many moments to post here but I remember getting excited every time another video was released by him. I mean I remember there were world premieres of his music videos. Thriller was one that as a kid I remember watching over and over and over.

I know that the passing of Michael is all over the tv and internet but I am so glad that the local radio station is playing nothing but MJ music. I’m loving it and trying hard not to cry. Its nice to just sit here and listen to this magical man rather than keep hearing about him dying.

With the extreme music choices available today, MJ’S music is still everywhere. You can be in almost any nightclub and hear him, High school kids have rediscovered it and my daughters dance company just danced the thriller routine. Many time the word “icon” is used very loosley. However, not in this case. ICON & MJ, they just go together.

I posted in the other thread about the Thriller video. Oh my gosh – that was an event! It was a big premiere on MTV. My mom let me have a big sleepover with my friends to watch!

ME TOO! I can remember that premiere down to the chair I was sitting in and the jammies I was wearing. We squealed like it was the scariest thing we’d ever seen. I was just telling my kids that very story.

Oh and like many others I would go into my kitchen in socks and try to perfect the moonwalk. I got pretty good after awhile but could never do it in shoes like he could.

Yeah, me too Niall – socks, kitchen, the whole thing. I thought I was pretty good at it. I tried to do it for my kids a few months ago and wiped out on the kitchen floor. And the red zipper jacket? There was this senior at my high school who had one, and we all thought he was the coolest guy on the planet (I think he thought he was too). I wonder if he still has it.

“Thriller” is, for me, the iconic album of my childhood and early teen years. But “Off the Wall” is the one that gets the biggest play on my iPod now. I never get tired of Rock With You.

ETA: I just watched the video that you posted, MJ, and it really is amazing to see a kid that young with such phenomenal performing skills. It breaks my heart to watch that sweet-faced, happy kid and think about the troubled man that he grew up to be.

I’ve heard on Twitter from others that on Monday, Fox is re-airing the Michael Jackson week show in honor of him…

ETA: It is official now I see. I hope they air new footage, i.e. tributes from the Idols!

I’m 48 and my sister is 50 so we really grew up with MJ’s music. However, Michael Jackson was never my favorite recording artist, although I did like a lot of his music. So I found it kind of odd that today when I heard the news, the first thing I did was text my sister at work–then she called me back and we talked about MJ for the next 10 minutes or so. I think this is indicative of how influential he has been in all our lives.

When Thriller came out; I graduated from college, fell in love for the first time, and was in my sister’s wedding. It was a busy year, but I still remember the Thriller video and the music playing all the time on the radio. You couldn’t help but move to it. Watching the evolution of MJ from child to adult was amazing and his talent was always blazing.

I remember watching the movie “13 Going on 30″ and like many folks in the theater started laughing when Jennifer Garner’s character started doing the thriller dance at her boring party. Most of us adults knew immediately what was happening on screen (and a lot of us remembered the moves–as I saw more than one person dance in their seat). It’s moments like this when you realize how much of an impact someone (and/or their work) has made on culture.

Like so many incredibly talented and smart people, MJ was very complex. Because of his dysfunctional family life and lack of any real childhood and normal relationships, he was also a really troubled and tragic figure as well. I hope that we will all have the grace in the coming days and weeks to remember his remarkable talent and legacy and leave the rest to historians (although I’m sure that won’t be so). I feel especially bad for his children (and for his family and friends). I hope they will be treated respectfully during this difficult time.

I read a thought from someone that I completely agree with right now, and that is:
May he find in death the peace he never found in life.

Michael Jackson (wrote?) and sang my favorite song to dance to: Billie Jean.

We would go out clubbing (although they didn’t call it clubbing back then) and when Billie Jean was played, the tables would empty and the dance floor would literally fill up with couples. There would barely be room to move, but I LOVED dancing to that song.

RIP Michael. You were amazing!!

My memories are of my cousin’s wall plastered with Jackson 5 posters when I was ten and living with her for a summer. Then Off the Wall when I was in college. Totally blown away by a new, Michael Jackson and loving him as a solo artist in a way I never did when he was part of the Jackson 5. It has taken me several hours to decide if it was right to separate the eccentric man from the musician. I had defended him thru so many rough PR cycles(elephant man bones etc) but stopped by the second pedophile charge. Now I would like to acknowledge his painful life, rejoice in the the music he left us, and wish him whatever he was searching for on his new journey. RIP Michael.

I’m only a couple of years younger than Michael Jackson, so I grew up with him. I saw him become this major pop figure. Nothing the Idols could “tweet” can match my own personal memories, including attending one of his “Thriller” concerts. Also, I grew up in the inner city and went to schools with a large African American, if not majority African American, contingent. Jackson’s music was always a big part of my life. His later years were not very endearing, but his music is memorable and timeless.

I heard it announced, after “So You Think You Can Dance,” that this coming Monday FOX will be rerunning the episode of American Idol, from last season, that celebrated Jackson’s music. That’s great, but it’s interesting that the most celebrated Idol rendition of a Jackson song happened during Season 7, with David Cooks’ performance of “Billie Jean.” I would hope they could show that, but I don’t think they will.

Maybe David can perform the song in an upcoming concert, paying homage to Michael Jackson’s musical influence.

ETA: It is official now I see. I hope they air new footage, i.e. tributes from the Idols!

Awww, i hope they have new footage too, i was just telling my husband this would be cool.

OMG. I am so shocked and saddened by this news. I remember loving the Jackson 5 when I was young and Michael Jackson’s Thriller album was a masterpiece. I am so sorry that he was the target of such cruel media coverage over the last decade of his life. His music legacy will certainly live on. Kris Allen said in an interview that Michael Jackson was one of his influences and Paula Abdul said during the competition that Kris was able to help out the other contestants because he knew Michael’s body of work better than anyone. It would be neat if the idols were able to do a Michael Jackson salute of some kind on their tour.

There is a very nice show on E hosted by Ryan Seacrest on Michael Jackson. Such sad news.

All the Michael Jackson tributes tonight are making me cry! he was a very strange man, but when he was on that stage or in a music video, man, he was legendary! His songs, his dance moves, his outfits….

Although I’m sad that Jackson’s talent and music have died, to be honest, I felt much sadder and emotionally heavier after John Lennon was killed. I just think he had a lot to say about the world. I have often wondered what Lennon would think of and do about today’s world events. Haven’t really felt that way about Jackson.

Michael had things to say about the state of the world but he did it primarily thru his music. And he hasn’t made any new music in a long time. Also as his life got stranger I think people stopped listening to him and maybe twisted his views into ugliness. He then had to spend his time and artistry trying to defend himself. But think back to Black or White, Man in the Mirror, Feed the World. I am sure there are others.

today i come home from work and i turn on the radio and they were playing a Michael Jackson song… i had just read in the news just about an hour ago that he had a heart attack.. when i heard that Michael Jackson song on the radio, i thought uh oh.. then i saw the news,, all they had to show me was Michael Jackson 1958 – 2009 and then i knew it. It was sad watching the news about him today and I cant believe he is no longer with us.

Oh, wow, feeling my mortality today. I am a year older than Michael was, so was right there loving the Jackson 5 from the get go. As he got older and started trying to change himself into someone else (that’s always the feeling I got), I was so sad that his self esteem was so low that he couldn’t recognize himself for the good looking, talented young man he was.

I hope he has found the peace that seemed to escape him in this life. We have lost one of the great artists.

He was honestly one of the first African Americans singers to attract so many white fans (I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t mean to offend anyone)

Chubby Checker
Little Richard
Ray Charles
James Brown
The Supremes
The Tempations
Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
Aretha Franklin
Little Stevie Wonder
Marvin Gaye
Otis Reading
Wilson Pickett

I don’t know about other regions of the country, but in the South in the 1960s, this was what the kids listened to.

And, then, of course, there was Jimi Hendrix who was headlining concerts with 400,000 people before the Jackson 5 ever made a record.

Give Michael Jackson the credit he deserves, but trailblazing the color barrier in music was not one of those things.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVJscGa5vbc

Here are the lyrics to the song… wow…I promise to stop talking about it after this post but it just makes me sad. RIP Michael… I wish you could’ve been happier.

Have you seen my Childhood?
I’m searching for the world that I come from
‘Cause I’ve been looking around
In the lost and found of my heart…
No one understands me
They view it as such strange eccentricities…
‘Cause I keep kidding around
Like a child, but pardon me…

People say I’m not okay
‘Cause I love such elementary things…
It’s been my fate to compensate,
for the Childhood
I’ve never known…

Have you seen my Childhood?
I’m searching for that wonder in my youth
Like pirates in adventurous dreams,
Of conquest and kings on the throne…

Before you judge me, try hard to love me,
Look within your heart then ask,
Have you seen my Childhood?

People say I’m strange that way
‘Cause I love such elementary things,
It’s been my fate to compensate,
for the Childhood (Childhood) I’ve never known…

Have you seen my Childhood?
I’m searching for that wonder in my youth
Like fantastical stories to share
But the dreams I would dare, watch me fly…

Before you judge me, try hard to love me.
The painful youth I’ve had

Have you seen my Childhood….

hwc, I agree but disagree. No black artist before Michael Jackson reached the level of international stardom that he did. Michael was the first black artist played on MTV. And MTV pretty much changed the landscape of music in the 80s. Before him, people defined most of the musicians you listed as R&B or Motown acts and white singers as pop or rock. Part of what made Thriller so groundbreaking was it fused those two sensibilities and suddenly those categories didn’t seem to matter with him. The artists you mention were no less trailblazers, don’t get me wrong. But within the context of the 80s as music moved into a digital/television/performance age, Michael was very much the African American who transcended race. I just don’t know that I buy that kids and teens all around the world of all races went bananas over the singers you mentioned like they did for MJ in the 80s. The singers you mentioned certainly attracted white listeners. At least I hope they did–they’re amazing. But the scale of Michael’s following and the imagery associated with that conquest paved the way, I’d argue, for a larger black presence in the entertainment business as a whole.

I don’t really remember the Jackson 5 too much, but I LOVED “Off the Wall’ and “Thriller.” I actually prefer to listen to OTW, although I understand that Thriller is the more seminal of the two.

We had a guy in school that looked a lot like MJ (of the Thriller years), and he actually won our school talent show lip synching and doing the Thriller dance with a bunch of zombie’s dancing behind him. He also got lots of chicks that way. Ah, the 80s. A lip syncher wins the talent show.

I guess I’m a cold-hearted bitch because I’m not really sad that he’s gone. For me, he was gone a long time ago. I do feel for his children. I hope they have someone in their lives that they can truly depend on…

ETA: I have to agree with HWC re: the color barrier issue. If you are discounting Motown and soul and disco (which is a lot to discount, btw), like he said: Jimi Hendrix.

I’m really uncomfortable lauding a guy who hated his skin so much he bleached it white as a racial trailblazer or as transcending race. Aside from that, I think people like Tina Turner also became worldwide stars with TV as the medium in the 1980s.

I don’t see Jackson as a racial trendsetter at all. In fact, his grim determination to turn himself white is one of his least appealing qualities.

The true racial trailblazers were the first cross-over “race” acts like Ray Charles and, especially, the Motown stable during the 1960s.

I love his music and thought he was an incredible performer. No doubt, he was a troubled person but that makes the whole story even sadder to me. Plus, I have so many fun memories of rockin out to his music with my friends… We’ve been reminiscing a little tonight. Sad day. Huge talent gone way too young.

Well, I’m not really an either or type person. I think the artists you mention were racial trailblazers during their time and within their genres and MJ was as well for his time and his context.

And I don’t think the changes he made to his appearance discounted any of his actual musical or cultural impact in the 70s and 80s.

Lu, I agree that he was brilliant and a had a very tragic life. I guess I just feel like we really lost him long ago. I don’t know if that makes sense.

You know what is disturbing? When people said that they would remember where they were when he died, I thought. Hmm. I remember where I was when I heard that Bear Bryant died. Sixth period. Freshman year. Algebra. We had a moment of silence over the intercom. I guess you can take the girl out of Alabama, but you can’t take the Alabama out of the girl.

I guess you can take the girl out of Alabama, but you canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t take the Alabama out of the girl.

hahaha…. As it should be!

I never liked enough of Michael’s music to consider myself a fan, but when my friend texted me about his death tonight I was really shocked. Now I’m sitting here listening to “Will You Be There” and I’m profoundly sad. Although he was an extremely controversial man, I hope he’s finally free of the demons that seemed to plague him throughout most of his life.

Im old enough to have been fortunate to live thru the Elvis and Michael Jackson glory days. I remember having to sneak and watch Elvis on the Ed Sullivan show and how sad it was that his personal issues took over his life in his later years but mostly now we talk about Elvis music and great entertaining skills. I hope the same for Michael. I absolutely loved to watch Michael perform. I have the original Thriller album in my closet and I bought his cd during his last trial at a time when people frowned on it. My thinking was and still is to separate personal lives from their work. I thought perhaps no more of his music would be put out and I wanted that cd so I bought it. It is so sad that his childhood was so bad. I wonder what a difference it wouldve made had his childhood been “normal”. I too hope he now has found some peace.

LOL, Lu.

Tyler, I so agree about separating the personal life from the music. I just wasn’t excited about any MJ music after BAD, and that didn’t break new ground for me, either. I guess I will just listen to Off The Wall in tribute, because to me that was his best album evah.

ETA: I’m still kinda mad at MJ for screwing over Sir Paul.

And this is the MJ I would like to remember:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrPTDU40hO4

I’m heartbroken. Michael Jackson made me love music. When I was 8 I would save up my allowance, go to the store and buy their latest 45′s (Jackson 5). Then when Thriller came out it was the biggest thing ever. My husband was a die hard rocker (I am too but with a pop background), and he laughed at me for buying it, then when he found out Eddie VanHalen was doing guitar on Beat It he took the time to listen and I believe that was the only “pop” album he ever liked. Michael crossed bridges musically and culturally. I will always love him

MJ, thank you for the opportunity to share my love for Michael. I am just a couple of years younger than he was. So almost as long as I can remember he has been a part of my life. I remember this Michael ^^ a precocious but shy child, who could sing and dance his ass off. My first crush/kiss looked alot like him, the young Mike. Afro and all.

By my teens Michael was a part of my life, like a family member. His Off the Wall album solidified my love. I remember dancing to Rock With You at a party, with a very cute guy, feeling like the world was mine at about age 17 or so. It was a heady time in my life.

The Thriller hit and it was like the world had opened up and his young black man was the biggest thing on the planet. So many accolades and so much talent.

Since then so many have emulated him. I know alot of the sordid stuff will and must be discussed, but for me, it was always about the music. I shared my love of Michael with my children, and we were all together tonight as we celebrated a special family occasion. As we listened to his legacy, I realized that although he is gone, his music is immortal. I expect that 50 years from now, when I am either extremely old, or departed this earth, that my kids and grand kids will be dancing to his music, and marveling at his videos, he did it like none other. I miss him so much already.

It’s the solo artist I was a fan of – not the Michael Jackson of the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Jackson 5à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. When Thriller was released I was living in Japan. The entire country went Michael Jackson crazy. That video was everywhere. As an actor/director myself – I appreciated the artistry involved (getting Landis to direct was pure genius!). I danced right along with everyone else.

Then came the crazies – and he completely lost me. I doubt we’ll ever know the truth of those allegations – which does Michael a great disservice. Oh I know – he was found ‘not guilty’ on the one that went to trial….but considering Michael hosted the entire jury at Neverland Ranch? It renders that verdict suspect in my eyes.

Still and all – there’s the music. That will remain his real legacy – and it’s a formidable one. Michael Jackson was a genius in truth à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ not just hype. His death is a sad waste of a major talent. I am reminded of the death of Elvis or Howard Hughes. Both remains disclosed shocking physical secrets. I fear it will be the same with Michael. Elvis was loaded with drugs, while Hughes has wasted away to a shadow of his former self. Release of Michaelà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s autopsy report will prove very sad Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m thinking.

And PJ? Keith Olbermann is reporting that Michael has returned ownership of the Beatles catalog to Paul McCartney in his will. Only fitting, I think. Nice to know that Michael did the right thing. What a pity it had to be as part of his estate.

Have not posted in a really, really, long time. I had to come out of lurkdom for my Michael Story. Some of us late night chatters from way, way, way back in the day were talking about the first album we ever bought. Well mine was Michael Jackson’s Thriller, I was a proud first grader back then. I went to a catholic school, and on free dress day, I proudly wore my bright red parachute pants, t-shirt with MJ on the front doing the moon walk no less, that said “Beat It” across it, black loafers with white socks, white sunglasses, and of course I rocked the 1 white glittered glove. I was extra cool that day! lol. Vegas10 even grooves to MJ as well as the Vegas Grandparents. He truly crossed generations, race, and was a world wide phenomenon. I almost feel like an era is over! May he rest in peace! Thanks MJ for the wonderful memory of me being a totally fabulous first grader.

Micheal Jackson remember in my youth in the 80′s waiting in anticipation to watch a video of “Thriller” ..which to my surprise had Vincen Price voice in it. He sold over 20 million records of “Thriller” and it was amazing how huge Micheal was .Maybe it is better to remember that then the last part of his personal life when things started to slide..Hard to comprehend a guy being thurst into the spotlight at ten and living in the glare for 40 years ..I did no like some of the things he has done later years it is better to remember his contribution to music .I will always remember him in his red jacket and white glove , me waiting eyes glued to the tv for his next video..

Here’s a link to MTV’s Michael Jackson tribute. All of the MTV videos.

http://www.mtvmusic.com/playlists/mtvm/?contentId=1614737

The stage and the people will miss the angel

BBC News on NPR this morning interviewed people from India and Africa speaking about Michael, his music and performance. He was much beloved the world over.

At one of the political blogs I read a tweet from a protester in Iran who despite the bloodshed in his country took the time to leave a message of condolence for Michael Jackson and said his music was loved in Iran despite the theocracy’s attempt to censor western music. Imagine that – even in times of crisis, people can take a moment to remember Michael’s gift to the world.

ETA: Here’s the tweet I referred to – found at Andrew Sullivan’s blog:

“R.I.P Micheal Jackson, many in Iran loved you and grew up with your songs, despite all the Regime’s confinements and propaganda”

RIP MJ.

So very sad to hear about Michael’s death as well. I was hoping Michael’s return to the stage would signal a return to the studio and tour of the states.

Even before yesterday, when asked what is my most memorable musical performance on TV I would go with Michael. Moonwalk debut and Thriller long version debut. I find it so very fitting that Thriller is the #1 download music video on Itunes, and in fact Michael has 8 of the top 10 music videos on Itunes.

I think it has finally sunk in for me that he’s truly gone. I just feel kinda bummed out today. And watching these vids isn’t helping.

I was only a couple of years old when “Thriller” came out, but I remember being a huge fan of Michael when I was 5-7 years old. I even had one of those Michael Jackson dolls. I used to play with that thing all the time along with my other Barbies. XD

His music is incredible and will make it impossible for him to ever be forgotten.

I’ll miss you, Michael!

For all of Michael’s fans, there will be a candlelight vigil at the Motown Museum in Detroit on Sunday at 8:00 PM. Be prepared for a huge crowd.

I hated that he led such a strange personal life but I try not to judge too harshly. How much do you have to hate yourself to try to obliterate everything that represents your heritage? I have never had such demons dancing in my head. I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t knowà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦ maybe that is why he was such an extraordinary artist; he couldnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t live in reality. Maybe he understood angst in a way most of us never have to. I only hope he now finds peace, wherever he is, that he could not on this Earth. His music is likely to live on long past after all of us have left this planet.

I also agree with hwc about the color barrier issue. Barry Gordy and the Motown music and artists of the 60s broke down those barriers. However, MTV helped put Michael’s music out to those who may not have heard the sound before.

Chubby Checker was really popular with all races because of his dance music.

It was good to see Michael doing the Moonwalk in all the discussions on television today.

Afaik, Michael did not bleach his skin because he hated his skin color. He had vitiligo and lupus and he used treatments that lightened his skintone.