my research on a Pop Icon

people around the world are mourning about him, expressing their sorrows shortly after his death. however, all the reports and all the "tribute" blog entries i've read about Michael Jackson lately didn't impress me very much. i know he was not just an ordinary man. there must be something extraordinary he has done to be given the title 'King of Pop' or the newly crowned "Best Entertainer of all time" at his memorial service earlier on.

i will not claim that i am a huge MJ fan. i am very guilty as an individual. i used to judge him due to the bad press circulating around him these few years. his physical transformation, his "inappropriate" affection for kids, his "weird" behaviour and the list can go on.. i only know MJ as a "very famous person" who can do moonwalk and the guy who gave us "Heal The World".

on the morning on 25th june, my mum "suddenly" shouted at the top of her lungs and woke me up. i really hate my mum for doing this to me earrrrlllyyyy in the morning. i really fear i will get cadiac arrest someday due to the screaming. (ok the pun is not on purpose, but i really fear this!)

she told me Michael Jackson is dead.

i mean, my mother is telling me this entertainment news!!!! at 10am??!!! even my sister, who is in KL on a business trip, sent me an SMS exclaiming "Omg! Michael Jackson has died!!!!!!!!!!!!"

these are just 2 examples of how famous/impactful Michael Jackson actually is. if you didn't know, facebook and twitter crashed due to excessive traffic.

everything around me, be it newspapers, magazines, websites, television, radio, MSN nicks, twitter, facebook... EVERYTHING IS LINKED TO MICHAEL JACKSON. even 933 is playing MJ's songs so frequently (at least 2 songs per hour)? the last time i noticed something like this was the time anita mui died.. 987 played her famous chinese track ONCE.

it is quite bizarre to me actually. just 2 nights before his death, i was watching Princess Diana's much-elaborated and worldwide telecast of her funeral on youtube. i was reading intensively about her life and her charity contribution. both shared many similarities. ok i know you must be wondering why was i researching about her so randomly. actually, i always love her and... i was on people.com and they were talking about the Prince William and Prince Harry HAHAHAHA oops! ok this is not relevant.

my curiosity grew and like everyone else on the planet, i began to do massive research about him. i wiki-ed, googled, youtubed, bought Time, Newsweek, I-weekly and 8 days (haha the latter is my weekly dosage so not counted). now, i would like to share several facts about him which i think some of you won't have known.

ps: if you are choosing between Time and Newsweek, please get Time!! The WHOLE BOOK is about him, unlike Newsweek! He deserves the whole book!!!!!!

1. the 'storyline' concept behind MVs was created by Michael Jackson. The first MV which incorporated a storyline is his (and the record-breaking) famous track "Thriller". he also introduced special effects and all the 'wow' factors. please, THANK him for his brilliant moves if not all of us will still be trapped and be forced to watch the boring "running in the park" videos... like those you have to tolerate from the english songs in kbox.

2. as mentioned earlier, he currently hold the record with the highest-selling albums of all time, Thriller. nowadays, when jay chou sells more than 3 million albums, we considered it to be multi-platinum or something damn impressive. the album "thriller", sold 100 MILLION.

1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0!

3. many of his tracks reflected on how he loved the world, and hope the world to be a better place. "Heal the World", "Earth Song" (voted the Number 1 Song on Michael Jackson's Top 40 by MTV), "Black or White", "We are the World".. these are the only 4 i know currently but i'm sure there are more.

4. he was in showbiz since he was 5 years old and did not attend school before. he was the leading boy in "Jackson 5", which comprises of his 4 brothers and him. the attention on him was immerse, and he was often pressured by his father to perform even better than his siblings. as a result, he was often beaten and did not have a happy childhood. maybe he didn't want his children, and all other children, to go through whatever he had to, and that is why he gave everything he can to his kids, and to all the children out there. he built "Neverland Ranch",often invite underprivileged or ill children, and allocated time to spend time with them despite his hectic schedule. perhaps he could have shown too much affection and concern for them, maybe it was too much. maybe he was trying to make up for lost times. but why people don't see it as a silver lining that there are still genuine kind people out there but instead, ruin their reputation? why do people always judge? =(

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i watched the 'live' telecast of his memorial service just now and i was particularly emotionally affected by the speech of 3 people.

Rev. Al Sharpton (i have no idea who he is. just googled, and he is a famous host in america)

moving factor: ********

The Rev told the congregation that "Michael brought blacks, whites, Asians and Latinos together ”and that “it was Michael Jackson who said ‘we are the world’ to feed the hungry long before Live Aid

He then turned his attention to the three children, seated in the front row surrounding Jackson's mother Katherine saying:

"I want his children to know there was nothing strange about your daddy, it was strange what your daddy had to deal with’.


Brooke Shields (dated MJ in teenage years.. hollywood actress)
sadness factor: *******************************



my personal favourites:

The actress shared personal memories of the pair’s past, saying he tried in vain to teach her the Moonwalk, and that when he started wearing his famous sequin glove she teased him.

“When he started wearing the glove I was like ‘What’s up with the glove?’ if you’re going to hold my hand, it better be with the non-gloved one because sequins hurt me, they dig in.”

"Michael's favourite song was not one of the countless masterpieces he gave us, but it was a song that Charlie Chaplin wrote for the movie 'Modern Times' its called 'Smile'. There is a line in the song that says 'Smile, though your heart is aching.'

Today, although our hearts are aching, we need to look up where he is undoubtedly perched in a crescent moon, and we need to smile."

Paris Katherine Jackson (MJ's daughter, 11)
Moving and sadness factor: Infinity

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it is almost impossible for me to pick up my favourite song, because he had too many. but i will not forget the first song i know since a child. i did not know the name of the track until 3 days ago. but the tune, i will always remember it.



i always recalled it as 'the pepsi song' than a michael jackson hit.

thank you for bringing us so many wonderful breakthrough, like moonwalk, 45degree lean, the mtv-storyline, educational songs teaching us to love each other, your selfless love for the less fortunate and the songs which will last for generations and generations..

your life might be short. the world is grieving the departure of a great icon and the greatest entertain of all time, and many would feel that you are taken away too soon.

but personally, i think it would be better for you this way. despite not being able to perform infront of your 50 sold-out concerts in london later this week, i know it is just a matter of time that the DVDs will be all over HMVs and we will still be able to witness your genius. i really hope that the world can concentrate and appreciate your 4.5 decade worth of achievements, instead of placing heavy focus on the wealth and inheritence..

Tribute to Michael Jackson from Pepsi, in Time magazine. i love this :)

i really hope pepsi will come up with something like that to commemorate him. but again, will it transform into a profit-luring motive? ummm.. i have no idea and i don't think pepsi will donate all the proceeds to charity under his name.

once again, thank you. i hope everyone will always remember your great work, appreciate them and remembering you as a giver. =)