Farewell to the King of Pop

I was saddened to hear of the death of Michael Jackson last week. Jackson, self-knighted and acknowledged by many as the "King of Pop" had spent much of the last decade and half out of the spotlight amidst allegations of inappropriate relations with a minor and awkward brushes with the public around his rather eccentric life. For the most part, he slipped out of the public spotlight as well as my own.

I think people tend to have a special place in their heart with their first music star, and Michael Jackson was probably the guy for me. As a seven year-old, Michael Jackson was the man, and everyone in my 2nd grade class loved his music (until it was uncool to do so a few years later, in which people would lie about ever owning Thriller, which still today is the best-selling record of all time). I remember my older brother and I getting pumped up about finally getting our vinyl copy of Thriller and listening to those tracks over and over. That record was stacked, with Billie Jean, Beat It, Wanna Be Starting Something, The Girl Is Mine and the title track all getting significant airplay in the house of our childhood.

I actually really liked a lot of his post-Thriller music - Smooth Criminal is a timeless groove with the barely decipherable "Annie, are you okay?" interspersed throughout the song. And I had a special appreciation for his public-service-announcement songs such as "Man in the Mirror" and "Heal the World" which appealed to people to make the world a better place through enacting change. It might come off as preachy and lame if not for the fact that Michael Jackson was such a generous benefactor to charities himself. Plus, the songs were pretty catchy.

Of course, I never knew the guy personally, but what saddens me as I look upon his death is that I think the public never fully appreciated Michael Jackson for his brilliance and (I sense) good-heartedness while he was alive. In an age of self-destructive artists who revel in homemade sex tapes, drug binges and lyrics which glorify misogyny, promiscuity or the gangster culture, the artist that the public largely turned its back on was largely an eccentric who did a lot good - whether it be through charities to help the sick, poor and hungry. One wonders if such immense success and fortune combined with such harsh treatment led to cynicism, distrust and isolation.

So I don't care if it's uncool or not - Michael Jackson's music definitely rocks. I felt that way as a seven year-old and I feel that way now. And he's still the undisputed "King of Pop" in my book.