Le Roi est Mort. Vive Le Roi!

Michael Jackson is gone. I will admit that I am/ was never a big fan of his. This is due to the fact that I grew up in America when Thriller happened and as an 11 (going on 18)year old kid, it was simply uncool to be a fan of the same music as extra terrestrials, 5 year olds and geriatrics. However that's not to say I wasn't a fan of his music. Billie Jean, Don't Stop til you get Enough, I Just Can't Stop Loving You are songs I will never tire of.

But what must be said is that the guy fundamentally changed music, the music business and impacted culture at a worldwide level like nobody else did. And nobody else ever will. Tommy Motolla's quote -'he was the cornerstone of the music business' is absolutely bang on.

He took R&B and funk to the masses and made it pop. He paved the way for other Black (that was the term used in the 80s) singers and performers around the world. Nobody knew what to do with music videos in the early 80s. Only he had the vision to make pop music visual. Rightly so, MTV's ultimate honour for excellence in the field of music video is called the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award.

Thanks for the music MJ. Thanks for my livelihood.

No matter what.