An Empty Throne, The King of Pop Dead.

Just recently I heard about the death of Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, as he was so rightfully titled. There is no doubt in my mind that for the longest time he was continually raising the bar for music videos, pop/dance culture, and music as a general divison. He really was the Elvis Presley of our time, the Christopher Columbus of dance and pop music, if you dared to go so far.

It upsets me that even after his death, many people still think of him as nothing but a joke. Okay, so you didn't like the guy. Maybe you never got over the allegations of sexual deviance. Thousands of people all over the world kicked him while he was down, and made him the butt of every joke possible. I watched a comedy show once, and now I can't remember the comedian's name, but one of the lines he said was, "If you forget the punchline of the joke, all you gotta say is Michael Jackson.' It seems incredibly profound now. Well, he's gone. So we can all do ourselves a favor and stop kicking him when he's down and out for good.

Being only sixteen, and I can't say that I grew up listening to him sky rocket to super stardom. I can't say that I've always absolutely loved every song he ever wrote and know all the words by heart. But what I can say, is that I know good music when I hear it. In my mind, Micheal Jackson is right up there with The Greats. I'm talking about The Beatles, Elvis Presley, Pink Floyd, the list goes on.

So Rest in Peace, Michael Jackson. You'll not soon be forgotten.