RIP Michael Jackson

On the 25th of June 2009, Michael Jackson, the Grammy winning “King of Pop” passed away at his home in Los Angeles, California in the USA. The cause of death was cardiac arrest. This has caught fans by surprise. His death has also led to speculation about the cause of his cardiac arrest.

There have been reports of Michael Jackson being reliant on pain killers like Demerol, medication that is similar to morphine. Pain killers can cause cardiac arrest. Michael Jackson was 50 years old. He was also sceduled to do a comeback tour in the UK in a few weeks time. His appearance certainly changed over the years as you can see in the photo on the top right.

More info about Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson was one of 9 children. He was born on 29 August 1958 in Gary, Indiana in the US. He was part of the legendary Jackson Five which was formed in 1966. The Jackson Five consisted of Michael and 4 of his brothers. The group became very popular during their 6 yr spell at Motown records. In 1972 Michael Jackson released his first solo album entitled Got To Be There. He also released the Ben album in 1972. In 1973 he released Music and Me. In 1975 he released Forever, Michael. In 1979 he released Off the Wall. In 1982 Thriller was released at the apex of his career. The album has sold 109 million copies to date, making it the best selling album of all time. 7 singles including “Beat It” and “Wanna be startin’ something” were released off the album and hit the Billboard Top 10 concurrently.

The album was in Top 10 of the Billboard Top 200 for 80 consecutive weeks. In 1987, Michael Jackson released Bad. In 1991 Dangerous was released. In 1995 HIStory was released. He released his last album in 2001 entitled Invincible. He was one of a few artists to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. He holds the Guinness World Record for the world’s most successful entertainer. For his solo career he’s received 13 Grammy awards and has had 13 Number 1 singles. He was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1984, He had a notable impact on music and culture throughout the world. He attempted to break down racial barriers, transformed the art of the music video and paved the way for modern pop music in the USA. His work, distinctive musical sound and vocal style have influenced hip hop, pop and R&B artists including Mariah Carey, Usher, Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and R. Kelly. For much of his career, he had an huge level of worldwide influence over the younger generation through musical and humanitarian contributions.

In the course of his life, he was married twice. He tied the knot with Lisa Marie Presley (Elvis Presley’s daughther) in 1994. The marriage lasted 2 years. He got married in 1997 to Deborah Jeanne Rowe his dermatologist nurse. They got divorced in 1999.

In 1993 Michael Jackson was accused of sexual abuse by a 13 yr old name Jordan Chandler who did not want to testify in court. Michael was never charged criminally and the case was settled out of court. The Chandler family received $22 million in the settlement from the Jackson family. In 2005 Michael Jackson was accused by another child, Gavin Arvizo, of sexual abuse. Michael was indicted for 4 counts of molesting a minor, 4 counts of intoxicating a minor, 1 count of abduction, and 1 count of conspiring to hold the boy and his family captive at his 2700-acre Neverland Ranch compound. Michael Jackson denied all counts and asserted that he himself was the victim of a failed extortion attempt. On June 13, 2005, the jury found Jackson not guilty on all charges. Both these trials tarnished his image in the public eye.

I must admit that I’m not a huge fan of his musical style or genre, but he did have a huge influence on music style throughout the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s and for that one has to respect him. He will be missed by his fanatical following who has claimed his innocence in the child molestation debacles.

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