TheLoop21.com

By: Cindy Barnes-Thomas (Add to your loop)
Sun, 06/27/2010 - 09:49

Michael Jackson's star is unveiled at the Brenden Theatres at the Palms Casino Resort on August 29, 2009.

I was at a happy hour with some co-workers and we were laughing and chatting in the crowded restaurant when the news that Michael Jackson had been rushed to the hospital came across one of the television screens. All conversation immediately switched to Michael and trying to decipher what was happening from the CNN crawler since the sound was muted. The longer the story ran with the same footage of an ambulance leaving Jackson’s residence I got a sinking feeling. 

It was obvious to me that Michael was dead, even though it had not been confirmed. Half of me expected it to be a hoax and the other half dreaded the truth. I guess the news just didn’t register for me because I was a bit surprised when someone at the table started to cry when it was reported that Michael had indeed passed away.

READ MORE:

• Timeline: Michael Jackson's soundtrack of our lives
• Michael Jackson Videos
• Photo gallery: Birthday tribute to Michael Jackson
• The MJ Memorial Program Booklet 

It was simply surreal and shocking at the same time but our spirits were buoyed when the band immediately started playing every Michael Jackson song they knew off the cuff. We sang along during the 30-minute set and talked about how Michael Jackson was the be all to end all.

Has it been a year already?

Whether or not you consider yourself a fan, inevitably there is something in his body of work that appealed to you. By expanding the concept of the music video to an art form he singlehandedly put MTV on the map—this at a time when Black artists were few and far between on the fledgling network and videos by most artists were largely unimaginative. He used film directors for his videos, which were events, not only for the concepts and storylines but the dancing. He brought the large scale production of musicals from film to the small screen and helped to create an industry of video directors, choreographers and dancers.
Even after all that he has accomplished, he continued to raise the bar and elevate his game, as evidenced in the filmed rehearsals comprising the blockbuster film This Is It.

Funny, it doesn’t seem like a year has passed since the death of the King of Pop. Of course there will be tributes (most of which are lame) and a rehash of all things Michael. For me it is all a bit much. Not that I don’t share the same sentiment— he was a great loss to the world of entertainment— and there hasn’t been an entertainer yet that can touch him. They can't do a tribute big enough or bad enough to cover all the bases where Michael Jackson is concerned.

It’s no coincidence that every “boy band” or singing family that has embarked upon a career in entertainment has been chasing the legacy of The Jackson 5.