URBAN THOUGHT COLLECTIVE: The Way You Make Me Feel

Hello from Everyone at Urban Thought Collective!

     *I still loved him. I didn’t think of him often; he had confused and upset me, so I kept a distance from his regular comings and goings. I was hurt by the things he did to himself.

     His once beautiful, black face made into what seemed to be a facade of moveable parts and melanin challenged skin. It hurt to see him dissolve.

     So, out of love, I always felt it best to look away. I knew he had a lot of pain. That he was trapped in an unprecedented realm of fame that warped him and made him what can kindly be referred to as eccentric.

     But, when I played his music, I pictured him as he was in that moment. For most of my adolescence, he was ever present. His dancing, his voice and his aura laid the foundation for soundtrack of my life. I stayed with him until about ‘92. It just became emotionally Dangerous for me to be too attached after that. Besides, I kinda had a thing for his sister for a while, so I was getting my fix.

     As kids, his music got my sis and I Off the Wall, ready to Burn the Disco Out. His fashions and classic ad lib’s thrilled us. To borrow from Run DMC, he was not Bad, meaning bad but bad meaning good. Seeing him and his brothers on stage was the equivalent of being thrown in a blender and coming out smooth and full of flavor. An experience you could savor and relive with palpable sweetness and joy.

     Still, I’m surprised at how deeply his passing has affected me. I can remember watching his performances and seeing people faint at the very sight of him. It wasn’t a rare occurrence for folks to DIE at one of his concerts. Before social networking meant something you did on your computer keyboard, his music and unique style of expression spread across the globe in an unfathomable wave of adulation and worship not seen since, well, ever. He was simply the biggest star on the entire planet. Who can top that?

     The generation after me sees the young guys dancing and singing and thinks they invented it. I contend that every male (and some female) artist from at least 1979 to today owes a big part of his career to MJ. These self proclaimed (Hi Kanye) “dopest entertainers” (usually via artificial means) are just pulling off a great parody of the original. Even if by sheer osmosis, there is no performer today that has not been influenced him. If he had not introduced certain textures of unmatched innovation into the zeitgeist, they simply would not have...

TO FINISH THE THOUGHT, VISIT:  http://urbanthoughtcollective.com/2009/06/28/the-way-you-make-me-feel/  

Urban Thought Collective is a digital community exploring everything from pop culture to politics from an African-American perspective. Ellene V. Miles is the managing editor of www.urbanthoughtcollective.com and has worked as an entertainment publicist for many years. Her collection of rants is featured exclusively on UTC for the good of the people.