A great majority of us grew up watching Michael Jackson blossom into the great success that he is (even posthumously). We watched as his melanin faded, his hair went from nappy to bone strait, nose went from broad to slender… But what did not change and only got better with time was his musical talent. Some would argue that his father Joseph Jackson is the driving force to his success, while others would say that he is the one that “ruined” him. However, either way it goes there is not one person who has not been affected by Michaels’ existence unless they’ve been living under ground. Even if you never picked up any of the numerous CDs that he has been involved in throughout his career spanning 40yrs+, he has inspired a generation of artists (singers, songwriters, producers, and artist of all mediums) and been the butt of many comedians’ jokes. Michael broke barriers and opened doors to opportunities that did not exist for entertainers of “color”.
Unfortunately Michaels’ accomplishments have been overshadowed by his seemingly drastic physical transformations and ill-proved accusations of child molestation. The media came up with the epithet “Wacko Jacko” that has haunted him for at least half of his career and only aided many smear campaigns against him. Michael has successfully reached many goals, some which he may not have even intended to. Despite this fact he could not change his heritage which more than likely proved to be his greatest obstacle throughout his career, being a black man.
Michael grew up in an era when white male dominance strongly existed. Racism wasn’t just a distant memory (and still isn’t). He was thrust into the music industry when he was a child all but leaving behind his education unbeknownst to anyone that he was actually beginning his career. Yes, he had his family to lean on but there is evidence that the ties that bind weren’t as strong as he needed them to be. Michael took the lead in a singing group with his brothers (The Jackson 5). Of the youngest there really was no one for him to relate to and then as they got older “creative control” of the product that they were marketing became an issue as well as group management. By the time he was 18 he was involved in making decisions that controlled the financial future of not just himself as an individual, but also affected his entire family.
Eventually Michael chose to move forward into a solo career that led to him becoming an international superstar. He probably invented “the cross-over” plateau that so many artist hope to reach in their career, defining the genre “Pop” and owning it! Radio and music television could not deny the mass appeal that Michael had to the universe and gradually through his talent he broke racial barriers for future artist to come. Michael didn’t just impact the world on a musical level but on a financial level as well. What we did for him, he did for us ten-fold. Made evident through the “Guinness Book of World Records” when Michael was documented as being the most charitable artist in the universe (so I take this time to THANK all those who purchased Michael Jackson paraphernalia during this time, THANK YOU!)
Going into his adult years Michael became a media spectacle that would not be respected. Those he shared his life with on a very genuine level would betray his trust and damage his spirit. Everyone from family, friends, fans, nay-sayers, media personalities, paparazzi, and the like have all speculated on what would have been the “right” way for him to live his life yet have had none of his experiences nor have any of his expertise. Most of us can’t even live our own lives properly yet we feel that we have the expertise to manage someone else’s life; We really need to get a grip. We can’t even manage the thousands that go through our checkbooks how could we ever manage the millions that went through his. Hindsight is always 20/20; Please have the foresight to allow this man to R.I.P. Spend your time speculating on how you can make your life better and not on what he did wrong or where he went wrong. We must all have our individual experiences that allow us to blossom into the imperfect human beings that we are!!!!!!! –> A SILENT MOMENT PLEASE…….
EB N' FLOW 