The King Will Live On Forever

Everyone knows the only thing guaranteed in life is death. Yet in some instances, you feel certain people or icons are above it, immortal even.

That's the case with Michael Joseph Jackson. More than an artist, more than an icon, he was a LEGEND whose success EVERY artist wants to attain. His career spanned for almost half a century, and sold more than 750 million albums (Nowadays, artists can't last more than 2 summers, go foil in record sales, and go gold in ringtones.) No matter what went on in his personal life, no artist in ANY genre has achieved as much as he has.

Honestly, I didn't think his death would hit me this way. Everyone had their Michael Jackson jokes at one point in time, most not so nice. But the day he passed away, everyone was in shock. No one could fathom that the King of Pop was no more. Then all his songs start playing on the radio, so many hits you can go for days without a repeat. We started reminiscing, couldn't decide which song was our favorite, which of his fashions we wore to school. The same people who mocked him knows the choreography to Thriller, Bad, Beat It, Remember The Time, the list literally goes on and on. Then we realized how much he's done for music, for our culture, for us. Suddenly, those jokes weren't as funny, they just didn't matter.

That night I went to bed with my favorite Jackson 5 song, "I Wanna Be Where You Are", and the first lines seemed like he was still talking to us: "Could it be, I stayed away too long. Did I leave your mind when I was gone. It's not my thing trying to get back, but this time let me tell you where I'm at. You don't have to worry cuz I'm coming, back to where I should have always stayed..." So true, he did stay away from us too long, and was less than two months away from his comeback tour. On the stage, where he should have never left. He will be sorely missed. He is arguably the most recognized person worldwide.

I'm not going to recap on his entire life, because let's face it; there isn't enough time or typing in the world that can list ALL he has done for us musically. Someone wrote on Twitter, that he's our (generation's) Elvis. I don't agree because I don't feel Elvis was ever OURS (culturally or musically). Mike Jack was our Mike Jack and while most have the potential to be next in line (Shoutout to Chris Brown), no one will ever be on the level, plane or echelon, that Michael was on. My last picture is of him waving to his loyal fans. Goodbye Michael Joseph Jackson, and we couldn't thank you enough