The news about Michael didn't really sink in until the ride home from work on Thursday afternoon. I was listening to the local hip-hop station's inevitable afternoon drive time tribute, and to be perfectly honest tears were welling up in my eyes during the set. When they played 'Human Nature,' a beautiful ballad on the best selling album of all time, Thriller, I damn near lost it.
Why did Michael Jackson's death affect me in a way that no other celebrity death has? Maybe it's the tragic human element to his story, a tremendous, once in a generation talent that happens to belong to a very sick person, who had to grapple with an ugly three headed monster of celebrity, severe depression and HUGE debt. Or maybe it's just that it's, as my friend Matt put it, the worst celebrity death of our generation. Either way, I realized that whether or not I knew it, I am - like millions of others around the word - a huge Michael Jackson fan. I should qualify that, since we are strictly old school here. A huge fan of Michael Jackson pre-1984.
If you're of a similar mind, then I would definitely check out J. Period's 'Man or the Music' (great title) Michael Jackson tribute mix. I heard it on the freeway yesterday while en route to Santa Monica. Great stuff, focusing primarily on Michael Jackson's earlier career, with some fun mixes and demo versions.
Long live the music.
