My Michael, The King of Pop

Today, August 29th is Michael Jackson’s birthday. Anybody who knows me knows how hard I go for Micheal. He is one of the greatest treasures of my childhood memories and I absolutely adored him. Michael Jackson was an icon that broke racial barriers and united the world in love. Today I give tribute to him for sharing his gifts and making this world a better place.

I can remember when I first fell in love with Michael it was circa 1982 when the Thriller album was first released. I remember listening to the songs on the radio and watching all his smooth dance moves on TV. I can remember the exact day that my mother bought the Thriller album for me. I was so excited. I still have that original album; of course it is all scratched up from playing it so much back then, but I still hold onto it as one of my most prized possessions. I was such a big fan that I tried to get my hands on anything ever recorded by him and this includes every Michael Jackson solo project as well as many of the Jackson 5 and Jacksons Recordings. Many of these songs rotate in my playlist currently. Of course over the years I updated from the vinyl Thriller album and also have it on cassette, CD, etc. Whatever the latest form of listening to music evolves to Micheal will always find his way into my collection. I was such a big fan that I bought every book, magazine, poster that had Micheal’s image. At one point a whole wall in my room was dedicated to MJ posters. Michael was so popular during that time that there were Michael Jackson trading cards, stickers, bubble gum, earrings, The Michael Jackson Doll and I had them all. Some of the things I still have as part of my MJ memorabilia collection. Yes I am that big of a fan.

I have so many memories of Micheal, but of course I will condense it to a few for this post. Here are some of my most precious Michael memories.

• Every Micheal Jackson music video debut. There was always a big buildup for weeks leading up to the debut. There would be a specific date and time announced for the premiere of each video. I specially recall both the Thriller and Bad video releases had me so excited and anticipating what Micheal had in store for us. Of course, Beat It, Billie Jean and The Way You May be Feel are also on the top of the list for me.
• Michael Jackson’s videos were so iconic that they broke a color barrier on MTV. If my memory serves me correctly he was the first black entertainer to have a video to be played on MTV.
• When Michael first debuted the Moonwalk on the Motown 25th Anniversary Show. I can still remember sitting in front of the TV being in awe of that whole performance.
• Getting my very own Michael Jackson doll for Christmas one year (I still have it and he sits on top of my desk in my home office)
• Getting to see Michael Jackson in concert in 1988

That concert in 1988 is an amazing memory so I will elaborate on this one. This is the one and only time that I was able to see Michael Jackson in concert. I had plans to travel aboard to see the This is It concert but of course that one never happened due his untimely death. Prior to this concert coming to town there was a previous concert planned with Michael and his brothers for the Victory Tour around 1984. I was so excited for them to get St. Louis. I can’t quite remember the specifics, I believe there was an issue with ticket prices or something but either way the concert never made it to St. Louis.

So when Michael announced a concert here in 1988, I just knew I had to be there. So of course I pleaded to my parents on my behalf that I must be there. I knew I just had to see My Michael. I was in middle school at the time. This concert was a really big deal so there were very specific rules and guidelines around getting the tickets. I can remember them making announcements about the process on the evening news. Here are some of the rules that were in place: the tickets were only being sold at certain locations and there may have been only one location in our area, there was a limit on the number of tickets per household, and you had to be in line by a certain time to be able to get a ticket.

In order to make my dream come true my mother took off from work on the day of the ticket sales and stood in line all day to get me a ticket. Since was a limit on how many tickets you can buy a friend went with her to ensure we got enough tickets. We needed tickets for me, my sister, my cousin, my brother and sister-law and I think the limit was four. Michael was scheduled for two dates a Saturday and a Sunday. I begged my mother please get the Saturday tickets because I wanted to be one of the first to see him.

I could not concentrate on anything at school all day because I was thinking about those tickets. I rushed into the house asking my mother did she get the tickets. She said no. I immediately ran into my room burst into a storm of tears that went on all well into the night, even after my mother explained to me that she didn’t get the tickets for the Saturday show but we were going to the Sunday show. It was too late for all that… I had been traumatized thinking I was not going😥😂😅. All night my mother and my father came into the room to try to get me to stop crying but I couldn’t. I think at one point My Daddy may have said maybe they need to take me to the hospital or something cause he thought something may be seriously wrong with me. I acted a fool yall and I’m not even embarrassed about it🤣….this was a long running joke between my parents for years. Anytime I would mention Michael that would look at each other and start grinning. I knew then they one of them would bring up this incident.

Needless to say, we went to the concert and had an amazing time. I screamed for Micheal so much that night that I lost my voice. Now here is twist to story…the Saturday show that I originally wanted to attend was cancelled because Michael was ill. He rescheduled for Monday. We attended our show Sunday but he was ill again on Monday so that show never happened. So I was truly blessed to see him perform that night. The universe was aligned in my favor. It was truly a dream come true for me.

There are many people and events that will shape your life, for me Michael Joseph Jackson was a phenomenon that I feel so blessed to have witnessed in my lifetime. Music is a universal language that radiates love around the world. Micheal was an ambassador of love and a true treasure.

Happy Birthday Micheal. I will always love you♥.