Hail to "The King"

I know Gomar is hating right now, but it had to be done.

Today (and beyond) we remember the greatest ENTERTAINER of all time. Mike wasn't the best singer, and who knows if he could even play any instruments. But he entertained us. Whether it was performing, constantly changing his face, or prime time "press conferences" to give us his view unfiltered by the media and tabloids, he was entertaining. Many will remember him for his music and many more will remember him because of his eccentricity. But it is undeniable that Michael Jackson, the man that created his own nick-name, the man that dropped albums in the fall that went platinum by Christmas, the man that did EVERYTHING big was by far the best we will ever see.

In order to put this in perspective, recognize that Mike only had 6 solo albums (not including movie soundtracks and "Blood On The Dance Floor" which was more of a prequel to "HIStory"). What does that have to do with anything? How many artists with such a small catalog (coupled with such a long career) are even remotely remembered like Mike? Mike didn't believe in releasing garbage. It literally took him years to drop a record. And when it finally dropped, it was accompanied by a movie length video and mad hype. I recall watching BET (yes, I used to watch BET) when "Dangerous" came out, most specifically the video for "Remember The Time." There was pub just for the VIDEO. And it was aired in prime time. He dropped "Off the Wall" in August--it was certified platinum by December. Thriller sold almost 30 million copies. Television stations shut down what they were doing to air Mike in prime time, whether it was for a video or an "exclusive" interview. CBS had an entire 2 hour long special of just Mike. Read that again. That's not a cable station. They made a movie about his life--and he was still alive. The man hasn't dropped an album since 2001, but his concert tickets for next month in London were selling at over 2000 British Pounds a piece. ($1 U.S. = .6 pounds).

Now we can hate on the fact that he started life as a little black boy and ended it looking like a white woman. But part of me thinks you can't blame him. Have you seen Jermaine? Joe? That's what Mike would have looked like. It's almost just as bad. We can hate on his eccentric behavior--how he hung with Emmanuel Lewis or how he'd show up to award shows with models when people questioned his sexuality--but he didn't half ass anything. Even his missteps were big.

Mike hated haters yet he couldn't help but incite them. He married Elvis' daughter for goodness sakes. When he was accused of child molestation, the evidence gathered included pictures of his dick. Most people give DNA samples--Mike had to show off the goods. He changed his face more times than Beyonce changes costumes at a concert. He bought and licensed out the entire Beetles catalog. He suddenly went Muslim on us. He suddenly was BLACK again (listen to "HIStory" to see what I mean). We must take blame/credit for most of this. This was a man who literally lived in the limelight since he was a kid. Even his attempts to hide (wearing masks or stay private) were big news. He couldn't escape us. At least 80% of the shit we hate on Mike for would be brushed off it it were anyone else.

Mike was an artistic perfectionist but we wanted his life to be like his music. Doesn't work that way. Most great artists are tragically flawed. Mike was no exception. You can hate on the man all you want, but his greatness as an entertainer is undeniable. Shame on those of you that didn't buy or at least listen to "Invincible." Shame on those that forgot about "Dangerous." Shame on those that didn't recognize that Mike's music changed with the times and the product remained good. NONE of his albums sounded alike.

Like most artists, perhaps his greatness will be more appreciated now that he's gone.

R.I.P.

K.O.P.