Pop Music Died Yesterday

Remembering Michael Jackson
by Conor Levis

When I woke up yesterday morning, I had no idea what kind of day was ahead. You never think a typical day will turn into one you'll never forget. That's why I was so shocked, like the rest of the world, when I heard that Michael Jackson passed away at age 50. It's one of those rare instances when you'll always remember where you were and what you were doing when it happened. I was in my car, driving the highway when my friend called me. "Do you know what's going on right now?" she asked me. "You mean with Farrah Fawcett?" I replied. I love Farrah Fawcett as much as the next guy but I wasn't surprised at her passing. We've known for a while now that her days were numbered...so I pretty much came to terms with that a while back. I even blogged about it. "Well yeah, but Michael Jackson might have died too," she said. I was taken aback at first but really didn't believe it. I figured it had to be some kind of rumor. How many crazy Jacko rumors have we heard over the years? "Wait...yeah, I think he's definitely dead. I gotta go call more people though," she said before hanging up. Now interested, I called up another friend for confirmation. He hadn't heard it either but he said he'd let me know if he did. That's around the time my phone started blowing up with texts from friends reporting the same thing. I still attributed this to a rumor, almost like I was in denial. It wasn't until I got to a television that I became a believer. Every cable news outlet: Michael Jackson. Dead.

Millions and Millions of people around the world are mourning Jackson's death and with good reason. When you think of true music icons like Sinatra, Presley, and Lennon; Michael Jackson is right there with them. The man they call "The King of Pop" changed music forever. The first time I heard Michael Jackson was on his early Jackson 5 records and instantly fell in love with his music. It wasn't until the first time I listened to the Thriller album that I understood the significance of Michael Jackson as a music artist and he became one of my personal favorites. There's a reason it's the world's all-time best selling album. It's the record that has something to interest everyone...whether you're a rocker or a hip-hopper, a metal head or a punk fan. The music of Thriller had an appeal like no other album at the time, showcasing harder funk and hard rock while remaining "undeniably fun". Also showcasing some of Jackson's best and most popular tracks including "Beat It", "Billie Jean", and the title track "Thriller". Time magazine described Jackson's influence at that point as, "Star of records, radio, rock video. A one-man rescue team for the music business. A songwriter who sets the beat for a decade. A dancer with the fanciest feet on the street. A singer who cuts across all boundaries of taste and style and color too". In 2003, Thriller was ranked at number 20 on the Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, and was listed by the National Association of Recording Merchandisers at number three of the Definitive 200 Albums of All Time. Thriller became—and currently remains—the best-selling album of all time. Sales are estimated to be between 100–109 million copies sold worldwide. That was the beauty of Michael Jackson. He appealed to everybody. His generation, my generation, the younger generations and someday...my children's generation.

The thing that set Jackson apart from other singers at that time was his ability as a performer. His talent to dance and entertain made his music videos some of the greatest and well known videos of all-time. It wasn't pretty at first, however, as Jackson struggled with racial equality. Before the success of Thriller, many felt Jackson had struggled to get MTV airing because he was black. This caused CBS Records President Walter Yetnikoff to pressure MTV and declared, "I'm not going to give you any more videos and I'm going to go public and fucking tell them about the fact you don't want to play music by a black guy". His position persuaded MTV to begin airing "Billie Jean" and later "Beat It", which led to a long partnership and later helped other black music artists to gain mainstream recognition. Just another reason why he's one of the most influential music artists of all-time.

Whether you love him or hate him, you can't deny Michael Jackson as an artist. What happened to him later in his life was sad in so many ways. He became one of the most compelling public figures we've ever had...but not for good reasons. His bizarre antics and constant legal trouble tarnished what had always been a great reputation. Jackson really was a child trapped inside an adult's body but it seemed like no one could help him. I blame it on him having an enormous amount of success at an early age. He was only 11 years old when the Jackson 5 took off in the late 60's. Michael missed out on a very large portion of his childhood and that can never be a good thing. I think most people realize the psychological effects this must have had on him and maybe that's why he is so loved worldwide despite anything that happened. I don't know. But I do know this much, the world lost maybe the best entertainer it's ever had. That's how I'll remember him.

Jackson paved the way for an entire era and genre of pop music. I grew up in an era of pop music that was directly influenced by the man himself. How popular was MJ? Jackson's death caused an outpouring of grief among fans not seen since the deaths of Elvis Presley and John Lennon as fans gathered outside the UCLA Medical Center and his Holmby Hills home. Fans also gathered in New York City outside the Apollo Theater and in Detroit outside Hitsville U.S.A., the old Motown headquarters now the Motown Museum, where fans created a shrine. News of Jackson's death spread so quickly online, that many websites experienced technical difficulties. Google admitted to technical difficulties after a sudden swell in searches for "Michael Jackson" led the company to believe it was "under attack" from hackers and the social networking site Twitter also reported a crash after record numbers of users used the site to spread the news of Jackson's death. Facebook status update activity was reportedly three times the normal amount following the death. Ladies and Gentlemen, we're discovering how earth shattering news is spread here in the 21st century!

People are already ranking this as one of the most momentous celebrity deaths of our lifetime, right up there with Presley, Lennon, and Princess Di. We're in a time for people everywhere to get together and rejoice. Not just to celebrate the life of Michael and Farrah, but to celebrate life for what it is and how fragile it can be. We don't realize until we lose someone special...and yesterday, we all lost someone special. Maybe it goes back to what I mentioned at the top. An ordinary day can be your last, so live it for what it's worth. You never know what each day will bring. R.I.P. Michael Jackson
My Favorite MJ Song: "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)"
Favorite Music Video: "Smooth Criminal"
My Favorite MJ Performances: "Billie Jean" Motown 25 Live in 1983. The moonwalk is born.
"Heal The World" At the Superbowl 1993
" I Want You Back" on American Bandstand 1968



Off the Wall
by Rick

Michael Jackson is a topic of hot debate. He's loved and hated by thousands. Jacko, the man we've grown accustomed to this past decade, was ridiculed, mocked, poked fun at, and most of the time justly. Of recent, the eccentric escapades of Michael have been to much. Also the molestation accusations helped tarnish the brilliant career of this man. I'm not here to talk about these tho. I'm here to talk about one of my favorite albums of all time, Off the Wall. Released in 1979, Off the Wall was a triumph in funky dancing party music. It was the stepping stone to the title "King of Pop". Off the wall was produced by Quincy Jones, who Michael met while filming "The Wiz". The thing that I love about Off the Wall is its ability to be played from begining to end and entice the listener to groove. The big single, "Don't Stop Till You Get Enough" was written by Jackson(showing off his ability to not only preform but also to create) won a Grammy for Best R&B Male Vocal Performance. Michael was livid, saying that the album should have won for Best Album. I agree. I dare anyone to listen to this album and not get grooving. Also one is forced almost into being happy while listening to this. A friend brought this to my attention when telling me he dared anyone to listen to Don't Stop with a frown. "She's Out of My Life" slows things down from the party attitude evoked with the begining of the record, and "I Can't Help It" just smells of classic soul. Off the Wall was the first album ever to make four top ten hits in America. It was an instant classic. Its legacy continues today, with former band Death from Above 1979 using the year of its release to help in naming their band. Sebastian Grangier confirmed this through this comment:

1979 is the year of my birth,
1979 is the year of Off the Wall,
1979 is the year of Pleasure Principle,
1979 is the last year of the last cool decade,
1979 is scratched into my arm,
1979 is scratched into my arm,
1979 is scratched into my fucking arm.

Also the album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame last year. I hope this post inspires more people to take time and listen to what is really one of the most definative albums of all time. As much as I respect Justin Timberlake(and I really do this isnt a joke), Michael paved the way for him and so many others, and Off the Wall guided Michael into the world of Pop Superstar.

RIP Michael Jackson, 1958-2009.

Remember Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio

By Conor Levis

This is something I had planned to write about for a couple of weeks now. Those that know me best know that I'm kind of dorky at heart. I love history and reading about weird and obscure things that rarely hold any relevance today. This is not one of them. So when I happened to stumble across the date of the 1970 shootings at Kent State University a few weeks back, I knew I had to blog when the anniversary came.

On May 4, 1970...thirty-nine years ago today, the Ohio National Guard fired into a crowd of student protesters at Kent State University, killing four students and injuring nine other mostly bystanders (paralyzing one). It was an event that rocked our nation, garnering a significant national response that included a strike of eight million students and had a profound impact on the political-social division happening in the U.S. during the Vietnam War. In reaction to the massacre, the Report of the President's Commission on Campus Unrest concluded that the shootings were "unnecessary", "unwarranted", and "inexcusable".

I'm sure most of you have heard or are somewhat familiar with the events that transpired on this day. It's an often overlooked event in our history but holds such importance in the shaping of our society. What really happened at Kent State nearly forty years ago?

The iconic photograph by John Filo shows Mary Ann Vecchio, a fourteen-year-old runaway, kneeling over the dead body of Jeffrey Miller after he was shot by the National Guard.


I. The Quick History

The protests that occured at Kent State University began on Friday, May 1, 1970. This came a day after President Richard Nixon announced the launch of a U.S. invasion of Cambodia, remember historically as the Cambodian Campaign. It started as a 500 person demonstration on the Commons of campus until the students disbanded for 1 p.m. classes. Another rally had been planned for May 4th but angry about the new invasion and the Vietnam War itself, the students couldn't wait that long. Many students on campus demonstarted by burning their draft cards while another buried a copy of the U.S. Constitution. Things got out of hand in Kent that night around midnight when people leaving the bars began vandalising and looting. A group of about a 100 young people gathered in the street, lighting a bonfire and yelling obscenities at police until order was restored and the group finally dispersed.

By Saturday, May 2, Kent, OH Mayor Leroy Satrom declared a state of emergency. The National Guard arrived that night to a large protest on campus that led to the burning of the ROTC building. Firemen and police officers were hit with rocks and the fire hose being used to put out the fire was slashed by protestors. Tear gas was used and many arrests were made that night.

On Sunday, May 3, another rally was held on the campus Commons around 8 p.m. The National Guard used tear gas to quickly break up the crowd, and the students reassembled at a busy intersection in town, holding a sit-in with the hopes to gain the attention of and speak to the Mayor. A newly installed curfew went into effect at 11 p.m. and the Guard forced students back into their dorms.

Monday, May 4, 1970

On the fateful day, the rally that had been planned 3 days earlier was scheduled on campus for 12 p.m. The school attempted to ban the rally by handing out fake fliers that the event was canceled...but roughly 2,000 students still gathered. Just before noon, the National Guard returned to break up the rally. When students refused to leave, the Guards used tear gas. Students responded by throwing the tear gas canisters back at guardsmen, threw rocks, and yelled obscenities.

It became clear that this crowd was not going anywhere, so 77 National Guard troops began advancing on the protesters with bayonets attached to their weapons. This caused Students to retreat to Blanket Hill, up over the Commons area. The guardsmen pursued the students up the hill and most protesters scattered to the left and center of the guards in front of Taylor Hall. Others scattered between Taylor Hall and Prentice Hall, while others scattered to the nearby parking lot. After reaching the hill, the National Guard looked confused as to what to do next. They began to retrace their steps and students began to move in on them as the Guards headed back down to the Commons.Guards aim their rifles at a student waving a flag in protest

At approximately 12:22 p.m., a number of guardsmen on top of the hill began firing their M1 Garand rifles at the students. Their fire wasn't directed at the closest students but rather the ones on the grass and walkway below and at the ones in the parking lot. This resulted in the death and injury of innocent people. In all, 29 of the 77 guardsman claimed to have fired their weapons with a total of 67 bullets being sprayed. The shooting was determined to have lasted only 13 seconds.

Students running for their lives as shots are fired by guards

A map showing exactly where everything happened

II. The Aftermath

The question of why the shots were fired remains widely debated. The shooting killed four students and injured nine others, paralyzing one for the rest of his life. Two of the students killed, Allison Krause 343 ft (105 m) fatal left chest wound and Jeffrey Glen Miller 265 ft (81 m) shot through the mouth - killed instantly, participated in the protest and the other two killed, Sandra Lee Scheuer 390 ft (120 m) fatal neck wound and William Knox Schroeder 382 ft (116 m) fatal chest wound, were innocent people just trying to get to their next class. Most of the guardsmen who fired later claimed that they feared for their lives. I tend to disagree because of who was shot and where the people were when they were shot.The shootings led to protests on college campuses throughout the United States, and a student strike—causing more than 450 campuses across the country to close with both violent and non-violent demonstrations. A common sentiment was expressed by students at New York University with a banner hung out of a window which read "They Can't Kill Us All." Just five days after the shootings, 100,000 people demonstrated in Washington, D.C. against the war and the killing of unarmed student protesters. President Nixon was brought to Camp David for his own safety during this time.

The song "Ohio" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young (playing at the top of the page) was a protest song written by Neil Young in reaction to the Kent State Massacre.

Protests were held on campuses across the country

Some videos of interest:

• An interesting short documentary type video on the Kent State Massacre

• An audio recording of the command to fire at the students followed by gunshots

• A video tribute with images

My Final Word

This event holds more significance than people realize. It was a time in our history when our government went against everything it stands for. It went against the supreme law of the United States, the morals that this country was founded upon. We are all given certain rights the minute we are born a United States citizen. The First Amendment to the United States Consitution gives us the right to assemble, the right to protest, and the freedom of speech. Thirty-nine years ago today, a Monday, four people were killed and many others injured for exercising these very liberties. They died for no reason and at the hands of the people who are supposed to protect them. And this is your government. 1970 was a crazy time in this country. As a student, whether you agree with them or not, you have to appreciate what that generation did for us. They gave us our voice and showed us how to be heard, how to be proud, and how to stand up for our beliefs. I find it funny how many people in this day in age can be so willing to criticize but are so unwilling to act upon it. We currently live in a country where people claim to be outraged that American kids are being killed over in the Middle East but nobody will organize a legitimate protest unless we incorporate a draft lottery. I happen to support the current war effort and I would defend my country in a heartbeat if called upon...but I can't imagine living in a time where I didn't have a say and being forced to fight for a cause I don't believe in (like the Vietnam War). If you strongly oppose a cause, do something about it. We were given those rights for a reason. If you have any shred of pride or patriotism, you will remember the people affected by today's anniversary. You will take a moment at 12:22 p.m. to relfect. You might not agree with them, but you can't deny the power of standing up for what you believe in. Remember Kent State.