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By Doshon Farad
Dr. Michael Eric Dyson once said, “Michael Jackson gave us out of the depth of his suffering a transcending possibility of looking at black identity through the prism of black art.” Jackson followed the path that so many African-American icons have traveled.
By this I mean, like Robeson, King and Malcolm before him, whose talents and work reached beyond their community and impacted the World, he caught hell during the course of virtually his entire career for challenging an unjust political foundation that has oppressed blacks and others who were deemed undesirables.
Unlike Elvis Presley who has been deemed so many times as the “King of Rock”, Jackson had to overcome being a part of an oppressed group of people while at the same time excelling in his arena.
I think Michael Jackson can be best described as a “cultural muse”. In Greek mythology a muse was a being that inspired a person to take action in a particular area, often talent and the arts. He inspired us in ways that are almost legendary.
Michael Jackson’s miraculous rise from childhood prodigy to World leader and philanthropist has captivated writers and historians for nearly thirty years. This is because not only did he strongly impact every musical genre, but also virtually every aspect of human society.
He was loved and honored by presidents, kings, queens and other dignitaries the World over. His electrifying performances, that he held in capacity filled venues, left eternal marks on the souls of the audiences he entertained. His charismatic energy raised the bar for performers, present and future ones to come.
Michael Jackson planted musical seeds wherever he performed. Whenever we see the likes of Usher, Chris Brown, Mario, Ne-Yo, Miguel and others of this particular “singer-dancer” genre performing, we are watching Michael Jackson’s musical children. He not only influenced African-American performers but also the likes of Justin Timberlake and Justin Beiber.
Another thing to keep in mind, Mr. Jackson revolutionized the music video industry. Beginning in 1983 with his iconic “Thriller” album, he introduced the first “mini-movie” in the form of a music video. This was the first time in musical history that an artist had ever done this. This eventually would become Jackson’s trademark as well as a watermark for the industry.
I’m sure that I’m not wrong in asserting that whenever we heard of Michael getting ready to drop a new album, on the night of its debut, he had millions of us glued to our TVs in anticipation of what was about to be displayed. Every Michael Jackson video debut was powerful and everlasting, always leaving you hungering for more. And let us not forget his full movie, “Moon Walker”.
While we honor Pres. Barack Obama for being the first person of African descent to ascend to his office, he did not inspire or galvanize nearly the amount of people who Jackson did. Nor did he put in the work that Jackson put in. The King of Pop was holding record breaking concerts and being honored by kings, queens, and World leaders for over twenty years before most people even heard of a Barack Obama.
Most people have either forgotten or didn’t know that it was Michael who co- wrote, with Quincy Jones, the eternal classic, “We Are the World”. This song demonstrated Jackson’s humanitarianism.
He didn’t allow his wealth to make him indifferent to the plight of those who were plagued by suffering. Instead, it only increased his compassion for the downtrodden. He used his wealth to bring smiles to the faces of millions, specifically the youth.
Not one time did he ever appear to allow the pain of nasty rumors or the possibility of jail time to cause him to shy away from assisting or easing the hardships of others while inspiring them to reach for greatness.
While he was still alive and even now, many people have alleged that perhaps Michael’s continuous growing influence is what caused individuals in high places of power to target him. This is really something to think about especially in examining how America and the World has dealt with controversial and influential black men i.e. Robeson, Medgar Evers, Malcolm and King.
Most people didn’t know that the King of Pop was also a lecturer. He lectured on college campuses across the World, including Oxford. And he spoke on subjects related to humanism, politics, and current events. What better place to influence human minds than on a college campus?
I think it’s fair to say that Michael Jackson was correct in asking us in 1987, “WHO’S BAD?”
