Michael Jackson taught me how to dance - I would pop in my Thriller cassette into the tape player in my little Datsun and bop all the way to my night job at the supermarket. I force fed rhythm into this short Chinese body by way of Billie Jean.
"So tonight gotta leave that nine to five upon the shelf
And just enjoy yourself"
- Off the Wall by Michael Jackson
"She was more like a beauty
queen from a movie scene
I said don't mind, but what do you mean I am the one"
- Billie Jean by Michael Jackson
I sat glued to the tv screen watching his first music videos on MTV. A non-white face sang to me, and I loved it - I loved the way he danced, my butt would shift from one side to another, I melted when his voice hit a high pitch to pops of sugar coated notes. He was the anti-thesis of the spandex big hair bands that crowded the space around him. He stood out like a beacon of hope that I didn't have to listen to White Snake wail nonsense while a model writhed on the hood of a sports car.
His life moved along with mine, we both aged, although his was less natural than mine. In his world he drew inside of himself and into a world where he felt protected; the Boy in the Bubble. I moved out to a world where I had no control and I flailed until I found my footing. How ironic that he had less control than I did. I could never imagine what it was like to live in a fish bowl of non-ending speculation and having one's bones picked bare by the public in the name of "need to know".
He needed to perform to stay solvent and to stay relevant. Both of which killed him. His genius rose above us all, and our hands grabbed at him, trying to pull him down to our level, where he would be just like us, we threw stones, we threw roses, all of which drew blood.
Rest in peace Michael, heaven is the eternal theme park for the good souls and you have an unlimited pass.
I'm Gonna Make A Change,
For Once In My Life
It's Gonna Feel Real Good,
Gonna Make A Difference
Gonna Make It Right . . .
- The Man in the Mirror by Michael Jackson
Image: Ophelia Chong / Nightmen
queen from a movie scene
I said don't mind, but what do you mean I am the one"
- Billie Jean by Michael Jackson
I sat glued to the tv screen watching his first music videos on MTV. A non-white face sang to me, and I loved it - I loved the way he danced, my butt would shift from one side to another, I melted when his voice hit a high pitch to pops of sugar coated notes. He was the anti-thesis of the spandex big hair bands that crowded the space around him. He stood out like a beacon of hope that I didn't have to listen to White Snake wail nonsense while a model writhed on the hood of a sports car.
His life moved along with mine, we both aged, although his was less natural than mine. In his world he drew inside of himself and into a world where he felt protected; the Boy in the Bubble. I moved out to a world where I had no control and I flailed until I found my footing. How ironic that he had less control than I did. I could never imagine what it was like to live in a fish bowl of non-ending speculation and having one's bones picked bare by the public in the name of "need to know".
He needed to perform to stay solvent and to stay relevant. Both of which killed him. His genius rose above us all, and our hands grabbed at him, trying to pull him down to our level, where he would be just like us, we threw stones, we threw roses, all of which drew blood.
Rest in peace Michael, heaven is the eternal theme park for the good souls and you have an unlimited pass.
I'm Gonna Make A Change,
For Once In My Life
It's Gonna Feel Real Good,
Gonna Make A Difference
Gonna Make It Right . . .
- The Man in the Mirror by Michael Jackson
Image: Ophelia Chong / Nightmen
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another shining star taken far too soon from us. he was indeed a true musical genius...
The only thing I knew about Michael Jackson was that he did the moonwalk, but I can attest to the fact that he influenced our culture.
Hey Yoli,
every generation has their icon, Buddy Holly, Elvis, Janis Joplin, John Lennon, Kurt Cobain, and now Michael Jackson. Who is the icon of this generation? We pass from one decade to another, sometimes seamlessly, but when we have milestones to mark the passing of time, we slow down and think about our own mortality and what our mark will be.
Thanks for visiting and commenting. :O) ophelia
I think the mistake a too many people make is to either lionize or demonize him.
The fact that he was a genius is indisputable: he wrote the theme music to many of our lives.
While the most prurient charges leveled at him were never proven, that does not give us the license to ignore the wider concerns about his behavior. This isn't an issue of "need to know": it is the legitimate concern of a society protecting the most vulnerable among us. He paid some hefty out of court settlements, and while this fails to prove anything, it suggests that he was not a saint.
I believe he was more a victim of his environment than anything else: I feel sad for him, but I can't bring myself to join the hagiography being created by some.
This is to say I am conflicted. Let us celebrate the life of a truly great artist. Let us mourn the loss of a man who proved to be all to human. And let us learn the danger of the absence of boundaries or depriving any child his childhood.
dear stephen,
You are right. His life is not like ours, whatever happened to him in his early years scarred him for life, his views of right and wrong were warped by the people surrounding him and enabling him. Genius is a double edged sword, one side creates while the other destroys. Thank you for visiting and commenting, it's greatly appreciated. :O) ophelia
Thank you, wonderful post my dear.
Ophelia you have put into words what most people feel for and about Michael Jackson and his sudden and shocking death -here was a brilliant man, talented beyond anyone alive, tormented and mocked -and all the while NO ONE WAS REALLY LISTENING, he was sending a message of love and hope but he was living in fear and pain. So much for wealth and fame, he was surrounded by leeches and abusers, and now they will start picking his carcass apart for whatever they can get. RIP Michael Jackson, you rocked the world.
Dear Andshespeaks,
Thank you for visiting. I appreciate your every click and the time you spend here. :O) ophelia
Dear Calvin,
You are right, MJ rocked the world and in his world he lived it without boundaries, some crossed what we call normal and he paid for it (I cannot judge what he did because of all the layers of truths and half truths that have obscured the original event, only his Maker can do that). Amazing how one man can perform in front of millions, yet never be able to have a one to one relationship with an adult. Maybe it is lucky that his type of genius only strikes rarely, because it it was more prevalent we would be in trouble. Thanks Calvin for visiting and commenting, I appreciate your time and effort here. :O) Ophelia
He's called the King of Pop for a reason. I grew up listening to all of his fantastic music. He left here with a legacy that will be hard to match in the music industry.
Dear Danh,
So true, and he left a legacy of eccentricity that will be unmatched for decades. Thanks for visiting and commenting, :O) ophelia
I agree with Stephen. Our society's tendency to either heroify or demonize our celebrities is best presented in our simplified debate over whether Jackson ultimately did more good than evil. This obviously tortured man was so sick that he should have not been left to his own devices for so long, yet we regrettably continued to search for definitive answers to questions no one could answer.
As a third grader in San Diego in 1980 I remember a group of us would be like carolers and hold songbooks printed by the local pop station 13K with the lyrics to the hot songs of the day: Heart of Glass, Rapper's Delight, and lyrics from Off the Wall.
Nice piece Ophelia. Many people in the public eye influence our society in some way (positive or negative--it's subjective). We seem to believe that those in the public eye (not just entertainers, but politicians, athletes, etc...) are somehow supposed to be better than the rest of us. We hold them to a higher standard than we do ourselves. What is the truth for these people behind closed doors is usually obscured from public view. When the public becomes aware of something true/not true, but sensationalist in nature....then our icons have failed us we think....and that is where we fail in our humanity. No one is above human nature; there is no such thing as perfection. A public role model is not a real person, it is what meaning we give to that person, allowing them to "play it" in our lives.
Maybe at some point we can live in a much more honest culture. Not that everything about someone needs to be disclosed, but maybe if there is less stringent rules and people instead not judging a person in how they live their lives....but instead what they actually can contribute to society by the "job" they have chosen to do.