In case you haven’t got the new yet, legendary king of pop Michael Jackson passed away at the age of 50, his life robbed by the unpredictable, menacing killer, the cardiac arrest (better known as heart attack). I briefly logged in to Twitter today morning before leaving for Penang for a one-week homestay with my cousin, and saw Demi Moore’s update on Michael’s passing. Thinking that it’s a hoax – perhaps a hacked twitter account? I tried checking Wikipedia but they’ve locked the page for six hours to prevent any unauthorized editing until his death is confirmed. A quick Google search brought some relief with links to many news sites but the bummer came when many of them were flooded with traffic and were throwing up “Server Too Busy” errors.
RIP, Michael Jackson.
Michael was found collapsed at his rental home in Los Angeles on the morning of June 25, 2009. 911 emergency services personnel found no pulse on Michael. They rushed him to the UCLA Medical Center, and Michael slipped into coma shortly after that then pronounced dead at 2.26pm.
In a few hours, his death spread like wildfire. Fans of the legendary pop icon flocked to UCLA, crowds overflowing the sidewalks and spilling onto crosswalks and streets alike. Many paid their tribute by dressing in his style fo costimes, complete with white cotton gloves on their hands. Late into the evening and night, people held up candles, blasted the songs that rocketed and solidly positioned him as the king of pop. People danced to the beat, hoping the very best to keep his legend alive.
M.J and I
What Michael Jackson meant to me – I only remember that his face, songs and dance moves. His famous Black and White MTV played over and over again over the television – the words “It don’t matter if you’re black or white” etched a deep impression in me. I still remembered gawking at the amazing visual effects in the MTV, ranging from transitioning from a dance stage to a real stage set in the middle of wilderness with natives riding horses storming the scene. I remembered him dancing along with an Indian dancer in the middle of the street. I can recollect the ground-breaking face-morphing sequence, featuring esctatic Tyra Banks whose career was just about to take off. Of course, not to forget him showing off his sleek dance moves on a deserted street, screaming and shouting, smashing glasses (the studio had slurs digitally superimposed on them to justify his act of vandalism).
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In my childhood years, everybody with a name Michael will be called Michael Jackson. There’s this boy who lives behind my grandma’s shophouse, and you bet, his name was Michael and we’ve always been teasing him to replicate MJ’s dance moves. Of course he can’t – the only thing he did was to grab his crotch and shake it. Haha!
Rest in peace, Michael. Even as the organic part of you dissolves and fades away, your legend, your music, your personality, will remain as part of us, our culture, our history and our lives.
Fonty Friday
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Fonty Friday - Miso
Have a great weekend!
When my grandmother told me the news yesterday afternoon, I had trouble believing it was true. Especially since the first to announce it was silly tabloid people.. I think I’m still having trouble believing it. :| It’s all just a shock to me.. Right before his large world tour, too. Wow, it really leaves you speechless.
It’s so terribly sad. :| He is such a legend! I never liked all the negative talk/gossip about him. What we do know is that he was a powerful & inspiring man with so much raw talent. He will always be a role model for so many people and will certainly be missed. WOW. I really just can’t believe it.
As for the video you posted — OMG. It was one of my favorite songs/videos when growing up. It STILL, to this day, leaves me with goosebumps every time I hear it. I just love it. A very, very powerful song.. and video!
I.. I just don’t know what else to say. I think I’m still in denial about it all. I just wish his family and friends the best. I will certainly be praying for them all.
I was reeling from shock after reading about his death at around 7am in the morning. I initially thought that it was a prank, or some kind of hoax. I knew that Michael Jackson will be having a concert very soon in the O2 arena and I couldn’t believe that he’s dead.
The courtcases and lawsuits he was served with after being accused to be a paedophile (all counts dismissed) did negatively influence my view of Michael, but I have to say that besides that, he is still a legendary pop icon. His dance moves, his music videos… were the real ancestors of what we’re seeing on TVs and the Internet nowadays.
What really disgusts me is how Michael’s dad was busy cashing on the news of his son’s death – besides making weird faces outside Michael’s home the other day, he even had the balls to introduce everyone to his new record company/label during an interview after Michael’s death. How despicable.
My favourite song of his will be Black & White, Thirller, You’re Not Alone and Heal the World :)
RIP, Michael.
I was extremely surprised at his death, but had no problems accepting it, myself. Mainly because what with David Carradine’s recent passing, I kind of steeled myself against any possible death. Dave, now Farah and Michael. I’m not all that surprised at all.
I find it sad, though, that he died, what with the tour and upcoming CD release… I guess we’ll never know what he was cooking up with those. Too bad, really.
Too many people have died in the past week – we have Ed MacMahon two days before, Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett on the same day, and then Billy Mays on Sunday/Monday. It’s a tragic week indeed :(
While Michael Jackson slowly slips away from my mind (I got tired of the lawsuits and news on how his face is slowly caving in to the after effects of countless plastic surgery), I still kept in mind that he’ll be holding a grand 50-session concert in London’s O2 arena. I can’t wait to see him rebound, and rise to fame again. Sadly, we’ll never see the moment come.
Looks like A&E will be releasing the recording of the final rehearsal for his concert. The proceeds of the recording will help to make up the losses raked up by the company for signing Michael on.
Michael also had a secret collection of a hundred plus unreleased, unpublished works. People are speculating that although they’re reserved for his kids (and to be released a month after his death), his works will have to be sold to pay the $400million debt he has accumulated over the years.
Sad, really.
sad and shocked by the news…totally unexpected and i am a fan myself…his are a few of my collection of ‘original’ albums which are worth every cent…its a real pity and i hope he can rest in peace
Michael Jackson was my idol. I still can’t believe he has passes away. It truly hasn’t sunk in completly and I’m just shocked and confused :/ God I loved Michael Jackson so much, may he rest in peace
Beautiful post, Teddy. Michael Jackson’s death was definitely a surprise. He’ll always be remembered for generations to come, and will always be an idol. There will never be another Michael Jackson.
It’s so sad that he’s dead, not that I’m soooo not over his death or anything. In my view, he’s still and forever will be the king of pop.
But it’s strange though, how the world’s perspective changed drastically because of his death. For one, everyone used to talk about the cases of paedophilia when he was alive, and once he was dead, they only talked about what a great legend he is. I guess it’s human nature anyways, but yeah. =\
I remember that he once came to Brunei in 1996 for a concert. He’s one of the few international celebrities to come here too. Bruneians love MJ a lot and most of them mourned for his death.
Same here. I’m still couldn’t believe that he’s dead. The local TV stations has been allocating time slots to mourn over his death – they have interviews as well as past MTV screenings lined up. The local paper is nothing but happy to commercialize on his death, giving us daily updates on his passing. So much so that many of them are in risk of turning their papers into tabloids.
I stumbled upon this YouTube video, sarcastically calling people who mourn after the king of pop’s dead as two-faced, blinded, dumb and etc. Thinking of it, what is mentioned in the video is quite true – in the 2000s everyone is obsessed with his lawsuits, his children and the after effects of his plastic surgeries (note on the plural). Even Bruno made fun of MJ’s unusually high-pitched voice, and during an interview with LaToya, tried to obtain personal contact information of MJ by snatching her phone. And now they’re cutting out the footages.
It’s human nature – we’ll only learn how to cherish things when they’re gone.
Goodbye Michael.
May the Lord bless you.
My heartfelt condolences goes out to his children and family for his sudden passing.
You will forever be the King of pop, yesterday, today and forever.
@med: Wow, you even have his original albums! One of my childhood memories of MJ is my parents renting his songs from a laser disc rental store. My dad would play “You Are Not Alone” over and over again.
@Catherine: Yea, his passing is a huge shock to everyone, especially that his concert is less than a couple of weeks away. Rest in peace.
@Brandy: Well said, Brandy! There will never be another Michael Jackson. I don’t expect anyone to surpass him, when it comes to dancing, his awesome music videos and his songs. It’s sad that we’ve lost a legendary music icon that crafted a part of our childhood.
@Rachel: My heart goes out to his family members too. But I’m particularly disgruntled at how his dad attempts to cash in on his death. How shameful. There’ll never be another MJ :(