Michael’s magic
Michael Jackson memorial begins
Unlike American media that’s obsessing about Michael Jackson’s lifestyle and alleged misuse of drugs that supposedly led to his sudden death, I am just happy to wallow in his spectacular music and dance, courtesy of videos on cable TV and YouTube on the internet.
I can watch him over and over again, and he dazzles me every time, as he dazzled me over time, even when his face and color were changing — from black man-child to white androgyne, neither man nor woman, which became to me a part of the show — and even after the child-abuse stories that I thought were not necessarily true.
What always mattered to me was how fantastic fantabulous far-out he was as an artist and as a performer, better than Elvis who was to me the sexiest man alive in his time, and from whom Michael took some cues, as he did from James Brown, but only to improve and improvise on to come up with the most stunning and brilliant performances this planet has ever seen, will ever see.
From TIME’s Special Commemorative Edition out on newstands:
Put Thriller on right now and you’ll be amazed at how easily the troubling last years of Jackson’s life melt away. For Generation X the magic is partly nostalgic; everyone between the ages of 35 and 45 remembers exactly where they were when they heard “Beat It” for the first time. But as a piece of music, it remains the greates pop album of all time. . . .Jackson never got much credit for being a pioneer, but “Beat It,”his melding of rockand R&B, preceded the collision of Run D.M.C. and Aerosmith by four years. . . . it’s the best example of Jackson’s ability to bridge moods and genres. It’s tense and spooky. It rocks you while you dance to it. Like all of Thriller, it’s a sophisticated joy.
“Billie Jean,” the first video off Thriller, snapped the neck of everyone who saw it. Based on an absurd real life incident in which a woman accused Jackson of fathering one of her twins (“She says I am the one / But the kid is not my son”), the song is a denial of paternity — a celebrity’s cry of victimhood. But the video is a straight-on display of Jackson’s star quality. Any pavement flagstone his feet land on glows a magical green. His moves are no less radiant. The spins, the strutting and hunching, show what Broadway missed out on when Michael decided to make pop music instead.
… even another two decades of steady hits would have been a decline from the fever pitch of Thriller. The album marked a moment in American history that few singers dream of, let alone achieve: the convergence of talent, material and production that finds universal acclaim. That’s part of what makes Jackson’s death so historic: he was one of the last singers — Paul McCartney is another — whose songs are literally known everywhere by everyone.
Thriller and “We Are the World” and his introduction of his signature step, the moonwalk, on the Motown 25th aniversary show took Jackson to an unfathomable level of fame. Jackson was more than a crossover artist, but cross over he did. He was revered by kids black and white — authentic enough to please urban audiences and unthreatening enough to set suburban ones at ease. . . . Michael was neither black nor white; he was sui generis, a brother from another planet.
Photo Credits: Grand Prix
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angela is a freelance writer who has written for all media -- print, television, documentary film, stage, and now the internet. A sometime astrologer for family and friends, she has an abiding interest in psychology which she studied at the U.P. She has authored two books on the EDSA revolution -- Chronology of a Revolution 1986 published in 1996 and Himagsikan sa EDSA--Walang Himala! in 2000 by the Foundation for Worldwide People Power. She blogs @ www.stuartsantiago.com
Lumake ako sa music ni Michael Jackson. Certified 80s child ako. Kalungkot nga lang. Hays.
RIP Michael.
Nasa work ako, I can’t watch the memorial.
Pero baka i replay to mamaya. 
can you imagine? 12:53am na dito sa N.O. at nanonood pa rin ako?! hahaha! ano baa! iyak ako nang iyak! hahaha
Right now i’m watching the memorial ceremony for Michael jackson in Live…medyo natibag ang puso kong bato sa pag-awit ni Lionel ritchie, likewise with stevie wonder..
medyo napatawa lang sa speech ni Magic Johnson…
Pero mas tumindig ang balahibo ko nung umawit si Jermaine Jackso ng “Smile”.. dahil lahos hindi na nya maabot yung tono sa pagsabay ng ptak ng kanyang luha.
ako rin, kinilabutan sa “smile,” perfect segue from brooke shield’s sharing of her friendship with michael, and that michael’s favorite song was not anything he himself wrote or sang but charlie chaplin’s “smile, though your heart is breaking…”
Nice craft Angela! I love this post! MJ will always be remembered. Good or bad, he will be remembered.
I Billie Jean was one of the most expensive videos and it was really a neck snapper. I will never forget the man in the mirror, the smooth criminal, who can moonwalk and beat it! Long live MJ!
thanks rob
and let’s thank american technology for making it true that mj lives forever in videos and youtube, not just in our hearts and minds!
i didn’t finish it. it was moving. medyo naluha ako. litsi. i hope they replay the whole thing.
First of all Angela Welcome!
Ang Angelang pangalan?
…your name reminds of someone sa bandang kidaps noong kapanahunan.
On the topic:
Roger on that!
@reynz, therefore i observed na pati ung batang nasa likod ngasab lang ng ngasab sa kanyang chewing gum, na para bang walang pakialam, pero nung si Paris ay matapos magsalita sa “love at first born, na syay isinilang sa bandang ka tatay-tatayan na si Michael Jackson ang Ama ng mga bata at syay umiyak, dito nakita na nakiiyak na rin si chewing boy na syang kinilumbitin sa may veranda.
Signum Crusis Michael Jackson…
Sorry kung ang Amerika sobrang protekta ng kanilang mga bata, kaya ganyan hanggang sa huli wala na tayong magawa. . .
salamat darbs
the chewing boy, haha, napansin ko din siya, si blanket pala…
it was when Paris spoke her love Michael when i had tears… litsi… very moving…
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/showbiz/2009/07/07/sot.paris.jackson.aeglive
hey reynz
luv the pics, thanks again! and yes, paris taking to the mic to tell us all what a wonderful dad michael was was easily the most touching moment of the memorial.
sorry, i have to add the headline pic hahaha and inserted the live memorial, that’s what i have been watching since kanina pa hahaha
as well as Usher’s song at ewan ko lang kung totoong nag-choke but the song was moving…
naiyak ako dun kay paris, yung smile ni andy williams peborit din ng brother ko
it was moving, at least pour moi. and just like the headline, it’s michael’s magic that brought all the world together, again, kahit isang araw.
agree ako dyan kamahalan, bagong bihis ang site huh, nanibago ako hahaha ok maganda sya kamahalan, pero parang mas madaling basahin yung mga post nung sa dati,dito kasi sa bago parang nakakalito basahin lahat nung comments di gaya dun sa dati ang daling basahin lahat nung mga comments…pero overall maganda sya, wala bang binyagan?hahaha
masasanay ka rin sa mga kalye dito. yaan mo. kami nga naka-plaslayt nung una. ganito talaga pag bungalow na ang bahay. dahil puro tayo sa dampa, hindi tayo sanay. hahaha
nyahaha tama ka nasanay sa kubo kaya ngayon pa untog untog sa sementadong bungalow lol
may coverage kagabi sa ABS-CBN, kaso sobrang late na! like 1 am nag start.and knowing that channel, tiyak mas mahaba ng commercial kesa sa mismong palabas!
dahil school night, di ako nanood. this morning once i went online, wala akong ginawa kundi panoorin ang hiwa-hiwalay na videos ng memorial service kagabi. anu pa, eh di baha ang luha ko like the river jordan!
lalo na nung nagsalita na si paris.
bad trip nga lang, sa laki ng hat ni La Toya eh di ko makita mukha nya. di ba at one time nung nagpapaputi na si MJ eh naging magkamukha sila ni La Toya? hehehe. wala lang naalala ko lang..
im so glad that the jackson family managed to have a very private burial. pati ang memorial service eh maayos at di magulo. pati ag fans eh behaved. walang nahihimatay na fans unlike sa mga concerts ni MJ dati.
and i love it too na malaman na naman ang katawan ni janet jackson.
angela: isa lang masasabi ko dito sa post mo —- Michael Jackson DEFIED GRAVITY!
ang tindi!
you’re right about La Toya na parehas na muka ni Michael! i remember La Toya! pumunta pa nang Pennsylvania! binitbit ako nang lecheng deretso kong barkada only panoorin magsayaw nang kasuka suka hahahaha nakalimutan ko na kung anong lugar yon
glo, malaman na si janet,nung nakaraan puro taba lol
reynz and lee: hahahaha!!!!
hay nako, ang luha na inilabas ko, puede na ibuhos sa toilet.
hahaha! i think it’s the kid! si Paris brought the whole world to tears! first time kong nakita ang mga anak nya. ang gaganda at pagkaka-gwapo pala. parang hindi nya anak!
Tip: para maiwasan ang iyakan blues habang pinapanood ang Remembering Michael Jackson sa inyong mga TiVo o recorded media… use the fast forward.
Watch Paris at the end… yong sinabi nya ang gusto kong image na manatili sa aking brain cells kung banggitin ang pangalang Michael Jackson.
twas interesting though! and i think when Paris spoke, parang she told the world that you’re wrong about Michael Jackson as a parent. wow! that was something!
exactly reynz! and i guess di totoo yung mga recent revelations ng former nanny ng mga bata. well she was fired, obviously sour-graping sya kaya kung ano ano ang sinabi na ang mga bata daw eh scared to death sa ama nila. she must have done something really bad for her to get fired.
when paris said what she said sa memorial, it proved to all what a good father michael was. well he must really be a good fathe because he is like a kid himself. mega-relate siguro sya sa mga anak nya.
i love too that he didn’t sell photos of his kids to the highest bidders. i love the way mj enclosed them away from the public’s eyes. kahit pa minsan mukhang sira silang mag-aama wearing those weird masks. since mj himself has been in the limelight since he was 5…maybe the very reason “tinago” nyang maigi ang mga anak nya.
big question now, who’s gonna protect them? Paris must have inherited that magic now, given his debut in the world with what she did. i think the world will soon adore that kid.
yeah, malambot ang puso ko pag bata ang nagsasalita. oo reynz good-looking ang mga anak ni MJ. maybe because mulato na sila. ang nanay eh white, and tatay black. like all mixed marriages, maganda ang combination sa features ng mga anak.
according sa will ni MJ na lumabas, he assigned his mom katherine as legal guardian of the kids.
kaso…according sa law eh when the other parent dies, the other one left takes care of the kids.
may balita na debbie rowe might fight for the custoday of her 2 kids. eh pano naman si super cute blanket na undisclosed ang surrogate mom?
well…natalo sa custody dati si debii rowe, so i doubt kung ang korte eh maging in favor sa kanya next time around. buti kung ordinary person si MJ, eh hindi naman. buong jackson family ngayon ang makakalaban ni debiie rowe pag nagkataon.
nakita nyo ba yung video na minumura ni debbie rowe ang mga press people? naku…point against her ang ginawa nya. baka sabihin ng korte she is not fit to be a mom.
ang ikinagulat ko about the kids is that hindi daw pala si michael ang biological father. all the time akala ko, kahit ano pang problema ni michael sa sexuality, at least he passed on his genes to his kids. yun pala hindi.
angela: i dont think that’s true. saan galing yan, kay debbie roww?
hehehe.
the 2 kids kay debbie rowe were all produced through artificial insemination. ibig sabihin wala talaga silang sexual act na dalawa. kelangan lang ni MJ mag-kaanak kasi.
i’m thinking yan ang reason bakit hindi nabigyan ng custody sa mga bata noon. hindi naman kasi sila totoong married. it was just a contract. debbie rowe was of course paid money para maging mother ng mga anak ni MJ.
tignan mo si blanket…undisclosed ang surrogate mom. natuto na si MJ. dapat noon pa sa 2 kids eh ganyan na ginawa nya. bakit mo pa pakasalan ang babae, just to divorce her later? then just pay a surrogate mom to carry your kid. that’s even better. wala pang controversy.
the very reason bakit nag-pa artificial insemination, kasi gusto lang i-replicate ni MJ ang genes nya. nothing more.
ang dami namang baby-maker sa mundo. sa klase ni MJ…he can pay any amount for the said purpose.
naku glo, sana totoo yan. di ko na maalala kung saan ko nabasa online, pero yun ang sabi, both with the first two kids, and with the third, anonymous ang sperm donor. kaya nga nagtaka ako, kung ganoon, bakit pa siya nag-anak kay debbie rowe, pwede namang umampon na lang kung talagang gusto niyang maging parent. teka hahanapin ko…
glo, tama ka, puro pala si debbie rowe ang source ng balitang yon. well, DNA testing lang ang katapat niyan.
angela, those are exactly the kinds of things that debbie rowe can say. kundi ba naman sya gaga eh matapos nyang pumayag sa “kontrata” nila ni MJ eh iiyak iyak sya na kesyo ginawa siyang parang kabayo na nilahian lang. isa pa di man lang nya naisip ang welfare ng mga bata. kundi ba naman siraulong babae talaga. no wonder she lost the custody of the 2 kids.
yes DNA test lang ang katapat nyan. but i dont think MJ will take care of those kids and fight the custoday over them if he isn’t sure they are not his.
i meat if MJ isn’t sure the kids are his, he wouldn;t have took care of them and fought for their custody. saka, eh di sana noon pa pina-DNA test ni MJ yung mga bata, kung meron syang doubt sa paternity ng mga yon.
that been said that those 3 are really his kids.
i dont believe what’s coming out of debbie rowe’s mouth. she is just one crazy woman. magdusa sya!
[...] of the Michael Jackson overload…he he [...]
[...] i’ve always been a huge fan of michael jackson, even when he turned white and sorta whacko, just because at his peak he was so f*cking sensational — the greatest entertainer yet that this planet has ever seen, bar none. when he died and his music videos were all over cable tv and the internet, i was only too happy to wallow and be dazzled anew by michael’s magic. [...]