It still has not hit me. It feels so strange. Michael Jackson is dead. He was only 50 years old, a milestone age. He just celebrated the 25th anniversary of "Thriller," the best-selling album of all time, and re-released it in February.
He was scheduled to start his show run in London in a few weeks. Maybe Michael's career had reached its peak, but I was not convinced that he was done with music. When he turned 50 last August, I did a series of interviews with radio stations. All of the DJs asked me if I thought Michael Jackson could make a comeback. They wanted to know if he could get past the controversies that dominated his news coverage over the last 10-plus years. My answer was a matter-of-fact "yes."
People often underestimate the power of music, and the effect that it has on us. We sometimes forget how a great song with a feel-good message lifts us up, and makes us smile and remember the place we had the most fun dancing to it and with whom.
Michael Jackson is one of the few artists in the history of the art form to be able to take one song, like "Billie Jean," and reach people of all age groups, races, and nationalities.
Michael has done this time and time again for decades, as both a solo artist and member of The Jackson 5.
This type of legacy cannot be erased by even the most horrible of charges and allegations. His music and performances are historic and forever engrained in our hearts.
Rick Sanchez, a floor manager at the popular Amoeba Music in Hollywood, says that his staff was "equally shocked" when they heard the news of Jackson's passing. "A lot of people are buying his music which usually happens in these situations," Sanchez says, referring to the breaking news of a musician's death.
Sanchez adds that all of Jackson's music always sells well at his location.
Good Bye My Jacko!!!!
