capitalisthippie.net

Last week we lost the indisputable King of Pop.  If you felt like I did, you were shocked, saddened and felt a sense of having lost something from your childhood.  I remember sitting on my best friend’s couch and counting down the moments to the World Premier of the Thriller video.  Just months ago, while trying to learn a few things about performing and stage presence, I looked up videos of the most impressive entertainer and performer the world has ever known.  I found footage of an arena concert – at least 20,000 people in attendance.  MJ walks out in the dark, puts his gloved hand into a spotlight, and the entire crowd goes ballistic in a way I’ve never seen, and the world may never see again.

Michael Jackson was probably THE most famous person in the world.  With 13 Grammies, the same number of #1 hits, and approximately 750 million albums sold, the man was nothing short of a musical genius and the biggest rockstar on the planet.  And, when he died, the magnitude of the news and the resulting assault by people just trying to confirm whether this unimaginable moment was true was enough to shut down major internet websites around the world.

You would be hard pressed to find someone who doesn’t know who Michael Jackson was.  So, why is it that, over the past several days, the lame American media feels it necessary to provide ridiculous elevator pitch recaps of Jackson’s life, as if the vast majority of people DON’T know who he is.  To hear a newscaster say something like, “Jackson was a member of the Jackson 5 who later went on to pursue a solo career,” makes this media person seem like a complete moron and completely demeans what Michael Jackson accomplished in his life.  The guy did not go on to pursue A solo career; he went on to pursue THE most successful solo career of any musician EVER, and everybody with a TV or radio knows this already.

More importantly, it seems the media cannot get through one newscast about the death of Michael Jackson without bringing up the controversial events of his most recent life.  Might we take note that Michael Jackson, as strange as he might be to people who will never understand the problems that the most famous person on the planet might have, has never been found guilty of any of the charges brought against him?

Simply put, I find myself outraged that our media finds it necessary to clutter the news of Michael Jackson’s death with unnecessary comments aimed at creating controversy.  Michael Jackson accomplished what nobody may ever accomplish again.  He made art that impacted an entire world and several generations.  He was arguably the most talented musician of all times and last week he died at age 50.  Can we, just for a moment, put aside our petty need for drama and controversy and honor the legacy of perhaps the most successful person in the history of music?

R.I.P. Michael.  Thanks for everything.