Long live the King

Michael Jackson meant so much to me and Dan. Each time I hear one of his songs, I get that happy little jump of excitement, and I am always amazed that his music is just as relevant today as it was 27 or more years ago when he pushed the record button.

We were eagerly anticipating attending his concert in London on August 28th. Back in January, we set the alarm for 3am NYC time so that we could buy pre-sale tickets, and both of us actually CRIED a bit when we succeeded in getting not only 2 tickets to his show, but 2 FRONT SECTION tickets. We were beyond ecstatic, and since that day, we've been counting down the days until we'd get to see the KING perform live in London.

Dan has a wonderful story of his first memory of Michael Jackson. He was about 8 years old when Billie Jean came out and the video premiered on MTV. He was at a family member's house because he didn't have tv in his home. When the video started, and he saw Michael start to dance, he says a feeling came over him and he can remember just really not knowing what to do. He was so excited, he ran up to the tv, and immediately started trying to copy his moves- moves that people had never seen before, and dance to the beats that no one had HEARD before. He describes a feeling that he thought he was going to DIE- he was just so overwhelmed and couldn't contain his excitement and this rush of feelings that came over him when he watched the King of Pop for the first time.

I was too young to remember it happening live, but I LOVE watching the video of when Michael Jackson does the moonwalk for the first time. Wow, it makes me cry every time. No one had ever seen anything like that in history. He created it, and it became the basis for a whole exploration of dance and moving the human body in ways we'd never even considered before.

I insist that you watch the entire performance HERE. Think about it in the context of the time: this is 1983. This is his FIRST solo performance- before this, he was performing in the Jackson 5. Think about this costume, the hat, the GLOVE, standing up on his toes like that. This audience couldn't even PROCESS what they were seeing and hearing! That's art. That's inspired art and a sincere desire to manifest genuine music and performances.

Michael Jackson had many failures as a man, but as an ARTIST, he was the KING. He has repeatedly denied plastic surgery, although it's always been evident that his appearance has drastically changed over the years. I really believe that he had body dysmorphic disorders and dealt with these issues through surgery instead of getting help to heal himself on the inside. He was abused as a child, and he was made his large family's meal ticket from a very young age- events which I think led him to have a distorted view of himself permanently as a little child instead of a man. His massive world wide fame was so agressive that I feel it brutally altered who he really is, and because of this fame, he started to break down.

Aside from his personal issues, we must focus on his impact on global culture and music as we know it today. He is SO important in the history of music, and there will never be anyone, EVER that will do the things for music that he has done. His videos were the first to explore issues like poverty, erasing racial divides, embracing diversity, and developed a love for music in all of us. I'm still kind of in a numb state about the whole thing. I really can't wrap my mind around the fact that he's gone. GONE, but certainly not forgotten.

It will be really painful when August 28th comes and goes because I know that all day we will be considering that at that time, we SHOULD be watching Michael walk out on stage, screaming for him and I'm certain I would be crying at the intensity of the whole experience. The one thing that really means a lot to me is that he really MUST have had a meaningful impact on both Dan and my life because just purchasing the tickets moved us both to tears.

My heart breaks for his family, his 3 young children who are about to have their lives turned upside down, and I share in the grief of all of his fans around the world. May you finally have peace, Michael.