The World Says Goodbye to a Legend

A Final Farewell to MJ
by Conor Levis



I know what you're thinking. I'm sure most of you are tired of hearing about Michael Jackson 24/7. But come on, it's a special occasion. I promise we'll get back to the funny, happy stuff tomorrow but the world said goodbye to a legend yesterday. We have to do just one more Michael Jackson post before we say goodbye...

Watching the Michael Jackson memorial service today was like a roller coaster of emotions. There were points when I was really happy and pleased with the ceremony, times when I got really angry, and of course...times that nearly brought a tear to my eye. In the end though I found myself content. How could one thing bring out so many sides, you ask? Well, I guess I'll explain.

As you can imagine the event consisted of MJ's family and closest friends sharing their words and memories....oh wait, actually that never happened. This is the part that pissed me off. For all the stars who spoke of Michael at the ceremony, there were maybe 3 who actually had any semblance of a relationship with Michael, the person. Brooke Shields, Smokey Robinson, and then maybe Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown Records. Everything else seemed so contrived to me. Why was Kobe Bryant even there? I think Kobe was confused and thought we were mourning the other MJ. Really, Kobe? Did Michael Jackson the singer/entertainer inspire you to play basketball or something? What makes Kobe Bryant qualified to talk at Michael Jackson's memorial service? It was a joke. It wasn't just Kobe though. We also had to listen to Queen Latifah talk. We had to watch Usher pretend to cry after he performed "Gone Too Soon". Listen, if you didn't know Michael personally or have any memories to share, please don't speak at his funeral! Why were they allowed?










I'll tell you why. Because for whatever reason they felt the need to grab the biggest African-American stars for this event rather than Michael's actual friends, who are mostly white. This is what I can't understand. I understand Michael Jackson was black but why did the African-American community all of a sudden claim him as one of their most important figures once he died and then tried dominating his legacy with the race card? The funny thing is that Michael Jackson actually hated being black. That's why he eventually turned his skin white and made sure all of his adopted kids were white. The sad thing is that it was probably past experiences with discrimination, ridicule and the pressure of being black during that time that drove him to do it. Nonetheless, I found it funny that even knowing this they still tried to turn it into a black cultural event. I even joked when John Mayer performed that he was there representing white people. It's just a shame they turned it into a race thing when it should have been about the people as one because everybody loves Michael Jackson, it doesn't matter who you are. This is the aspect that felt totally contrived to me. Too many people there that didn't belong and only because of the color of their skin.

The rest of the Michael Jackson memorial service was saved by great performances of Jackson's songs from other artists including Mariah Carey, Stevie Wonder, Usher, John Mayer, and Lionel Richie. Also some heartfelt words from Magic Johnson, Smokey Robinson, Jackson's good friend, Brooke Shields, and his brothers Jermaine and Marlon Jackson. The Reverend Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III made nice speeches about Jackson's influence and cultural significance. An incredibly moving performance of Michael's favorite song "Smile" done by Jermaine Jackson. And toward the end of the ceremony, a rendition of MJ's "We Are the World" sang by everybody on the stage. These were the parts of the event that I enjoyed most and realistically, what the memorial was all about.











I thought it was cool how they kept cutting to live feeds of people watching the memorial all over the world including London, Moscow, Hong Kong and Berlin. People in different countries were holding hands and dancing in the streets... that's when you know you made an impact on the world.




A sobering moment came at the very end of the memorial when Jackson's eleven year old daughter, Paris, asked to say a few words. "I just wanted to say ever since I was born, Daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine", a sobbing Paris Jackson announced to the crowd. "And I just wanted to say I love him so much", she said as she burst out into tears while being consoled by the rest of the Jackson family. This is when I got sad. I have to admit, it got a little dusty in the Levis home after she said that. I just couldn't help but shed a tear. We know Michael Jackson as a lot things. A singer, a dancer; an icon, perhaps the greatest entertainer of all-time. But through little Paris Jackson, for the first time we saw Michael as a man. We saw through the fame and saw him for what he really was. After mourning one of the craziest lives we've ever known, we saw a little bit of normalcy. We saw a little girl crying as she said goodbye to her father. It was truly heartbreaking but at the same time, it was the most honest and genuine moment of the night. Only fitting that it should end that way.




So as you can see, the Michael Jackson memorial service brought out every emotion in me. It also taught me a thing or two. I learned that in a way, mourning a life is kind of like life itself. One minute you're happy, the next minute you're sad. There are times when you'll get angry, and others when you're filled with joy and excited for the moment you're in. But in the end, it all balances out. As long as you can achieve satisfaction and find peace within yourself, that's all that really matters. Although we say goodbye to a legend, we can take solace in the hope that somehow Michael found it in himself too.