Well, if you haven’t heard by now, you must be living under a rock: The King of Pop is dead. Naturally, everyone in the media world–from Twitter to CNN and the NYTimes–is talking about and remembering the legend. I wasn’t born until 1988–a few years after Michael’s flaming-hair, fan-crazed Thriller days. However, bceause Michael did heavily influence my parents (especially my father, who graduated from high schol in 1984), Michael’s music influenced me from babyhood and it’s still with many of my friends and me. So, rather than write a straight post, I thought I’d just give a list of childhood memories I have that relate to Michael–some good, some bad:
1. My parents would blare the music regularly when I was growing up. And I mean BLARE. They especially loved blaring it during long car trips when I was a stupid 13-year-old who hated MJ at the time simply because my parents loved him. I especially remember them blaring “Dangerous”, although my mom did frequently listen to “Thriller” and “Beat It”.
2. My brother and I received a keyboard for a present one year; it came with a Michael Jackson “Bad” soundtrack piano music book.
3. My Dad’s stories about the girls who went nuts at his high school when Michael’s hair caught on fire in that Pepsi commercial. My dad also said he used to have a Michael Jackson outfit with that red sparkly suit. Too bad he lost it.
4. My brother used to love playing “Black or White”, mostly because of the part in the very beginning where the father tells the kid to turn the music down, but the kid doesn’t want to. So he says “Eat this”, slams the tape in the player and jams those distinctive beginning chords to one of my favorite MJ songs–the lyrics are just so great and wholesome.
5. Watching the Thriller video with my dad and brother at the hotel in Norfolk, Va. Yes, in it’s entirity (like 15 minutes!) on VH1.
6. The Free Willy Song!!! I believe it’s called “Will You Be There”. Very inspirational tune that instantly brings that great movie to mind.
7. A couple of my long-lost friends, Calvin and Bear, used to jam out to Billy Jean constantly back in high school. Complete with high-pitched voice. I think one of them was even “Jacko” for Halloween one year.
8. My friend Eddie has a stellar Thriller dance he can do after a few drinks. It’s really pretty sweet.
9. Again, me with the teenage angst against Michael because my parents and brother liked him. When my aunt bought my brother “Thriller” at some point in that angsty middle school phase, I made fun of him because it was “old” music. Once I listened (and, of course, got over that phase) I really loved his music.
… and if I sat here and thought long enough, I know I could think of plenty more.
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I’m sure my memories are kind of lame and pathetic compared to a lot of other people’s. But they’re mine. And the whole point of this is the joy his music brought (even if my teenage self wouldn’t admit it right away).
His music had everything–some great beats for dancing, some great messages when you need it. Just great musc overall.
Often people forget someone’s bad side once that person dies, but Michael’s contributions to the entertainment and music industry are just too great. Without him, there would probably be no Usher, no Chris Brown.
In all honesty, anyone who only looks at the most recent, troubled years of his life obviously didn’t pay enough attention to the years of his life that truly mattered–the years in which he not only created his own fame, but also made it possible for future singers and dancers to do what they do today.
No matter your opinion on MJ, no one can deny his affects on music, race relations and the world. Despite his death, he lives on forever in the music and in the millions of hearts he touched from the first time he took the stage as a boy until his death. RIP MJ.
