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In the days, weeks and months ahead, Michael Jackson will be eulogized by an array of pop culture thinkers, talking heads, music writers, hangers-on, family and fans. There won't be a single moment, song or utterance of Jackson's that won't be turned inside out, scraped clean and picked apart for some hidden meaning. It's the sort of unifying cultural moment that happens once a generation and certainly, will dominate discussions for some time to come.
While Jackson's ultimate legacy will be a musical one (750 million albums sold worldwide, 13 number one hits in America alone), his was a career that devolved into tabloid spectacle near its conclusion, tarnished by legal entanglements and eccentric behavior. For most of my professional career, Jackson wasn't revered so much as treated like a living punchline. But there was just as much speculation that his impending 50-show run at London's O2 Arena could prove an ideal springboard for a comeback. Sadly, we'll never know.
Following this developing story on Twitter and watching the outpouring of reaction has been truly moving -- it's clear that Jackson played a key role in many people's lives, often forming some of their first musical memories. As MTV is also acknowledging, he played a crucial role in launching the then-nascent video music network into the stratosphere. (In a fitting tribute, the channel was playing Jackson videos more or less on a loop Thursday evening.) He was the first black artist to enjoy breakout success on the channel; Jackson is just as well-known for the Thriller, Bad and Black or White clips as he is any of his concerts or charity work.
I missed the Jackson explosion of the late '70s and mid '80s, as I was just a child at the time. While I was aware of his work and certainly appreciated his impact on pop music and the world, I didn't actually buy a Jackson album until 1991's Dangerous, a work that some critics mark as the beginning of his decline. I would make my way through his back catalog over the course of the ensuing years and in doing so, came to realize his utterly singular talent.
Jackson was an icon, a word that's all too readily thrown around in an era dominated by an ADD-afflicted populace and media. In recent weeks, I've had discussion with colleagues about which artists could still tour and fill giant arenas to the roof. There aren't a great many left -- the Jonas Brothers, for all their buzz right now, don't strike anyone as the kind of performers who will have a lasting, multi-generational appeal that Jackson could claim. It's been said countless times already today and it will doubtless be said many, many more: Jackson was one of a kind and we'll likely never see his sort of effortless, charismatic brilliance again.