In a white suit and fedora, singing 'Smooth Criminal' in the 'Moonwalker' movie (click the pic to check out the whole 9 and a half minute sequence).
I loved this moment in the movie. It brought about my love for suits, a love I carried on till I was in my early twenties and arrived in Malaysia where wearing a suit everyday was not a viable option. I loved the moves, the coreography, the coolness of it all and the song. That song was a brilliant piece of pop music.
Right now I'm listening to 'The Way You Make Me Feel' and I think about how much we all ridiculed the King of Pop, how he was such an easy target for the press. But just listen to one of his songs and it makes you realize one inalienable truth -
This man knew how to do pop music, and pop music hasn't reached it's heights since.
We live in an age where everything is designed for maximum catchiness at the shortest span of time, we are bombarded with imagery of the latest hip new trends in music and everything sounds exactly the same as everything else. Hell, even so-called lo-fi garage rock has been put through the corporate-homogenizer, pre-packed and survey-tested.
Michael Jackson's music was pop music that everybody could appreciate it. And it was original, it was fresh and it was exciting. Why do people sick of the current radio-friendly pop trends search far and wide for obscure music for them to discover? Because pop music isn't as exciting as it was when MJ was at his peak.
Whatever his sins, whatever his eccentricities, he will be missed and he will be remembered.
No comments:
Post a Comment