by Indigo Blu

Created on: June 28, 2009

This is a heck of a question to respond to because I honestly don't know where to begin. Frankly, I still can't believe Michael Jackson has passed. I used to laugh at those crazy Elvis Presley fans that believed he was still alive. Now, here I am, STILL believing that this is all a publicity stunt. Jermaine was in on it when he released the family statement to the press, and so what if his voice was quivering and his eyes were swollen. It is allergy season, you know. MJ was larger than life to me. He almost didn't even seem human! Perhaps that's why I can't believe he's gone. He will be so greatly missed by this entire world.

Michael was my first crush (as with a lot of girls I had to share him with), and he and I broke up once Bad hit the scene. He wasn't the same Michael to me! It just couldn't work anymore. Besides, I was musically cheating with Prince by this time, so I was learning about other music besides Michael. However, my heart never met him. How could it? He was my first.

Let me start off by stating that this legend was BRILLIANT. No one could compose music like him. No one could sing like him and NO ONE can perform like him. This man's presence alone makes people stop in their tracks. Even his demise has blown this entire world away. The impact that he has made to pop culture is...well, he IS pop culture. Plain and simple.

I think that to just limit him to entertainment or pop culture is insulting to his legacy and his biography. Michael was a trailblazer, an activist, and a motivator. He made MTV play his video. It is no secret that MTV had absolutely NO black artists' videos played on their network, nor did they intend to. Michael basically let them know that he was going to create the greatest video ever, daring MTV to deny him and his art. Needless to say, Michael won, paving the way for black entertainers today. And let us not forget how he came at Tommy Mottola at Sony and expressed his feelings of being victimized by racism. He paved the way for this entire entertainment industry.

So, what should we remember about Michael Jackson, you ask? Remember that this entertainment empire started at the tender age of 10 or 11 and was in this business for over 40 years, longer than my lifetime. Remember that Thriller is the biggest selling album EVER. Don't think about Usher or Chris Brown or Beyonce or Mariah Carey. They cannot TOUCH this man's greatness. Remember that this man has sold out arenas all over the world for thirty some-odd years. Remember that because of this man's celebrity, reality was fantasy to him, and that was not his fault. Remember that he was weird. Remember that he was an artist, which was why he was weird. All artists (including myself) are. Remember that while this man was revered and loved, he was also misjudged and betrayed. Remember as successful as he was, he was also hurting, in more ways than just physically. Remember this man's iconic brilliance. Remember that this man was not a pop star. He was not a celebrity. He was not even an icon. Michael Jackson was a LEGEND. King of Pop? No. Michael Jackson was the King of Entertainment. Rest In Peace, Michael. Much love.

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