Although the "King of Pop" died six years ago by an overdose of
propofol, his music and legacy live on and many artists credit him as
their source of inspiration.
Michael Jackson … Staying productive, even in death.(Rex Features )
Michael Jackson's premature death exactly 6 years ago certainly hardened his legend, almost to the point of brittleness.
Jackson
is referred to as the "King of Pop," and is recognized as the most
successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records. His
contributions to music, dance and fashion, along with his publicized
personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture for over four
decades.
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Michael Jackson influence began with the microphone...music was him.(Tumblr)
His 1982 album
"Thriller" is the best-selling album of all time. Michael's legacy
includes record sales of nearly 400 million records and 13 Grammy
Awards, among dozens of other awards. He was also been inducted into the
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame twice and the Dance Hall of Fame.
Although
the "King of Pop" died six years ago by an overdose of propofol, his
music and legacy live on and many artists credit him as their source of
inspiration.
As a result, we've put together six important legacies he left behind.
1. Sound
play
Michael Jackson in the studio, creating music(Fanpop)
When the world first knew Jackson, he was a lovable, pint-sized pre-teen with a puffy Afro and an electric voice.
Through
the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s, Jackson clutched the enthusiasm he
had as the frontman of the Jackson Five. Back then, it was impossible to
hate Jackson. He immensely likable. When he sang "We are the ones who make a brighter day / So let's start giving" in "We Are the World," you believed him.
In
the music, through multiple genres and fusions, Pop, rock, disco, jazz
- Jackson's tunes had a little bit of everything, all mixed together
and laced with plenty of high-pitched shrieks, squeals and "Hee-hees."
Pop
stars like the Spice Girls and Pussycat Dolls can sell millions of
albums but never be taken seriously for their music. Not so for Jackson.
His albums - Thriller especially - were embraced by fans and critics
alike. He didn't just have 13 No. 1 singles; he had 13 Grammys, too.
2. Fashion
Michael Jackson's fashion has influenced many fashion choices of today's celebrities.(E!)
The single, white, sequined glove. The red leather
jacket with so many zippers. The pegged pants. The fedora. The bedazzled
military coats.
Like everything Jackson, his look
was a precise exercise straddling desirability and eccentricity.
Everybody wanted that leather jacket he wore in the Beat It video, but
who, save Jackson, could pull off a solitary, spangled glove?
The Jheri curls? Maybe not. The mirrored sunglasses? Definitely.
He
outfitted himself to show off his moves. Black shoes with glittering
white socks? He knew no one could ignore feet turned out like that.
In regal coats with epaulets and rhinestone regalia, he was the King of Pop who dressed for the job.
3. Dance
No one moved like Michael Jackson. But everyone wanted to.
Music
might have made him a star, but from the blunt sexuality of the crotch
grabs, to the laser-sharp spins, snaps and pivots, to the mesmerizing
group choreography spotlighted in his videos, to, of course, the
otherworldly impossibility that was his moonwalk, dance launched Jackson
into the stratosphere.
He might not have invented
the moonwalk, but he might as well have. When the world watched him
gliding like that for the first time, black loafers moving across the
stage with liquid smoothness during a televised Motown Music special in
1983, no one had ever seen anything like it.
How
many teenagers spent how many hours dragging their stockinged feet
across carpeted bedroom floors, trying to master that illusion but
remaining, alas, hopelessly earthbound?
4. Videos
When Jackson's full-length Thriller video was set to
debut following an orgy of hype on MTV in late 1983, people wrote it on
their calendars. They stayed home just to see it. The most expensive
video ever made at the time, it was essentially a cinematic experience, a
nearly 15-minute long mini-movie, a happening.
Unlike
many artists who phone in videos with concert footage or pack them full
of scantily clad models, Jackson used his MTV time to tell stories (as
in Thriller and Smooth Criminal), push the boundaries of special effects
(as in Billie Jean), produce full, Broadway-choreography (as in Beat
It).
He single-handedly fortified the fledgling music television channel and turned the music video into an art form.
5. Influence
Like
Elvis and Bob Dylan before him, Jackson reshaped pop culture in ways
that are hard to comprehend. Jackson influenced just about every
musician who came after him in one way or another. He was unavoidable.
Baltimore-based
hip-hop performer MC Saleem Heggins can't point to one specific way
Jackson helped shape his music. That would almost be insulting, he said.
Jackson was much broader than that, and his legacy is almost impossible
to pin down.
"For me, he was the largest figure in music," Heggins said. "I
was inspired and entertained by his ability to reach all walks of life.
... It's a legacy of creating great music that appeals to people
without compromising yourself."
6. Celebrity
One of the many statues of Michael Jackson situated around the world.(BillboardA)
As
the world remembers Jackson today, commenters still wonder if there has
ever been anyone on the planet with a more recognized name.
Maybe not.
He
was a superstar, but a superstar whose eccentricities drove one tabloid
headline after another. His marriages. His monkey. His plastic
surgeries. The molestation trial.
For a generation, Jackson was an ever-present media image, selling millions of records, launching millions of rumors.
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