Michael Jackson: A Tribute

Contributed by Ced J Cooper

THE LEGEND’S ENDING

On June 25, 2009, the last page of one of the most fascinating books ever written was scribbled on paper. As with any good piece of literature with an exceptional storyline, the ending is highly anticipated, yet rarely predictable. Well, the exceptional story of Michael Joseph Jackson rang true to form as his sudden and unexpected death shook the world of his life’s followers, and altered news headlines for almost two weeks straight. Nationally, CNN, MSNBC, and ABC News all led their morning, noon, 6pm, and 10pm programs with Michael Jackson’s death during this period, and educated the masses on the phenomenal legacy of the greatest entertainer of all time. Fox Comedy Channel (aka Fox News), chose a different route, and their ratings suffered for it, proving that MJ’s effect crossed all types of boarders of ethnicity, nationality, and political persuasions. He was privileged to travel all around the planet and delight millions who spoke all types of languages. But his dance moves always seemed to play the role of translator of the universal language of raw talent, extraordinary passion, and nuclear active-type energy. The man just kept moving, continuing to perform at never before seen levels. So much so, that each time he released a new music video, we all created memories of congregating in front of a television set to witness his next magical moment. Everyone knew that we probably wouldn’t see anything like it again until the next MJ video. The “Billy Jean” video introduced the Penny loafers on the toes move and the famous moonwalk. The “Beat It” video proved that his dance moves can stop a gang fight. And the “Thriller” video…created the LEGEND. The longest music video ever made (at the time) displayed the awesome diversity of talent of MJ; from acting, singing, and dancing, and at times, scaring the hell out of his beautiful co-star.

But that was my era of the Michael Jackson legacy. Mike was already a four-year veteran on the music scene by the time I was born…and he was only 15. Joe Jackson had his sons performing when MJ was just 11 years old, throwing out hits that depicted love as easy as ABC; and tough ballads about a mouse named Ben. They performed on the Ed Sullivan Show, the Sonny & Cher Show, and every other variety program that originally limited the number of African American acts during the 60’s and 70’s. What was interesting about the media’s infatuation with his death was how people of the last three generations were able to give detailed accounts of their experiences with Mike and his music. Michael Jackson did something most artists fail to do: remain relevant from beginning to end.

THE OTHER SIDE OF MICHAEL

There is something else that came out of the MJ coverage. It once again shined a spotlight on the eccentric behavior of the supreme performer of all time. But that part about his life was nothing new. Mike’s biggest fans knew he was a little weird at times. However, he was given a pass as many people empathized with the reclusiveness his lifestyle commanded caused by his astonishing fame. After a while, he was almost expected to be bizarre. Although I wonder how his life would have been if he were able to visit Disney Land without having to kick everyone else out. How would his life had turned out if he could show up at a professional sporting event without disrupting the game? Wouldn’t it have been great to see Mike walking through the mall with his kids and no one trying to break their neck to get his autograph, or touch him? And wouldn’t it have been cool to see him in a football jersey, jeans, and some Timberlands? Instead, fans slept outside the Never-Land ranch, mobbed his security detail beyond imagination wherever he went, and drove him into a life where everything he wanted to do to entertain himself became rooted on his private property. Michael couldn’t do shit without getting chased down the street by people intent on walking on the same crack in the sidewalk he stepped on. For his own safety, he had no choice but to seclude himself.

However, for every action there is a reaction. And, hell, none of us lived in that mansion with him, so the most we can do is speculate. But I think it’s fair to say that our ‘not-so-subtle’ reactions to his music not only made him one of the wealthiest men in America during the 80s; but could have possibly driven him to what many characterize as ‘just another rich guy with nothing else to do with all that money’. Or maybe it’s just plain lunacy. The monkey named Bubbles, the llamas, the Elephant Man remains, the hyperbaric chamber (although many professional athletes use them today), Emmanuel Lewis, McCauley Caulkin, the Jheri-curl, the Snoop Dogg pimp perm, the chameleon-like skin, the clothes, the test-tube babies, the amusement park rides in the front yard, the “odd” moments with other people’s kids. I think you see where I’m going with this. We were American enough to deal with crazy in our celebrities, especially one like Jacko.

But when he has passed away, once again, we had to determine how much we could tolerate from the exotic lifestyle of Michael. As the investigation commenced, along with the Larry King interviews, we were learning more than we anticipated. Mike was a drug addict. We have to accept that. But as strange as he looked, it could be easy to conclude that he must have been smoking something. Prescription medicine and operating room anesthetics appeared to be his drug of choice. But Michael’s demons are assisting in other ways. They have brought awareness to a growing problem in this country…prescription drug abuse, especially among kids. Millions of Americans, at the behest of their physicians, are hooked on the drugs that are prescribed to heal them. Unfortunately, that’s not difficult to achieve with the constant barrage of advertisements all over billboards, television and radio. Drug companies are profiting billions of dollars from their crack head-like users. Many are dependent on these drugs, dying from them, and spending entire Social Security checks on them. The only difference between Nino Brown and pharmaceutical companies is that one of them is paying taxes…maybe. Nino needed drugs to keep the users coming back more. Pfizer, Bristol-Myer, Johnson & Johnson, Proctor & Gamble, and Glaxo Smith Kline want the same thing. If they healed us, they’ll go out of business.

HOW TO REMEMBER MJ

Among his many professional accolades, Michael Jackson accomplished things very few have done. He helped in making it okay to be black, to be white, to be Latino, to be Asian, to be Native American…to be you. He wasn’t one of those artists who put pressure on his listeners to be proud of their heritage. He left that to your parents. MJ put pressure on you to live up to being a respectable human being who equally respected other human beings. He didn’t care if you were Black or White. Mike just wanted you to feel good about being alive and get Off the Wall and Get on the Floor. He wanted to Rock with You! When you think about it, Michael wasn’t much different from the rest of us. We all want to be loved, we want success; but in order for that to occur, we Wanna be Startin Something to build off of. It’s in our Human Nature to do this. It’s one way men attract that P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Things). Just watch out for those Billie Jeans. I’m sure Mike had his share…inspiration for the song came from somewhere. But he learned his lesson after it came out that the child wasn’t his and he Beat It, narrowly missing a Thriller of an experience from a paternity suit.

And like Mike, we all grow and mature. Our bodies change, our lifestyles adjust over time. As men we meet and deal with different types of women before we settle on one. We remember the Liberian Girl in our young lives or those Dirty Dianas from our college days. But along that lengthy train ride and carousel of female partners, we sometimes forget who we are and have to take a second look at that Man in the Mirror and realize that we have been living Bad. I can recall that time I met myself in the bathroom mirror. I didn’t recognize me, and I thought about how blessed I was to get away with things like an unwanted pregnancy and preventable diseases. I felt like a Smooth Criminal. Some good came out of it though. I finally knew what I wanted out of life and out of a woman. I forgot about what society thought I should have, and focused on The Way You Make Me Feel instead. Mike was no different with his obvious love for children, so he decided to have some of his own. Say what you will about Mike’s history with kids, but I haven’t’ heard anyone claim that he was a bad father. Rather, the contrary. But just like Michael, I want to raise my kids to be productive, loving people. I want to grow old with my wife and watch my grandchildren grow up. I want to live in peace. And in 30 years from now, when I’m listening to the Oldies station and I hear a Michael Jackson song, I want to lean over to my wife and say, “Remember the Time Mike walked the Earth? It was magnanimous!”