Let the Posthumous Adulation Continue

Several months have passed since Michael Jackson suddenly passed away from a prescription drug overdose. At that time he was working on getting ready for a comeback tour that was meant to cap off his return to music but the end of his touring career. Having toured extensively with the Jackson 5 and then again as a solo artist Jackson's career had seemed to fizzle towards the mid-nineties when his medical conditions and allegations of sexual abuse against children plagued him. It seemed that perhaps Jackson's time had passed and so he decided to try for one last major concert series. Anticipation was running so high that tickets had been sold out virtually before they were even on sale. It seemed that there would be no stopping this excitement but once he passed away, fans of Michael Jackson were left with nothing but their memories. Or were they?

Expectedly, sales of almost anything and everything Michael Jackson shot up. Albums of Jackson's available on iTunes and at traditional stores sold so quickly after so long that stores had trouble stocking up enough to keep pace. Albums which were suddenly thrown together from rehearsal sessions or from demo tapes were being gobbled up like turkey at Thanksgiving. It seemed that death had suddenly erased all the stigma attached to 'liking' Michael Jackson and made it okay to enjoy his music and his videos again. I remember when he was still extremely popular in this country as well. His videos were eagerly anticipated and always pushed the boundaries (in a good way). These days it seems that that form of expression is reduced to something to run between reality shows on MTV.

Once he passed away it seemed that everyone was eager to show they still 'loved' Michael Jackson which strikes me as very hypocritical as he had more or less become the butt of everyone's jokes over here. Whether it was his numerous surgeries, his outlandish dressing up, his public disguises which never really disguised anything or his efforts to have children of his own, the jokes never seemed to stop. It was probably the low point in his life when he had to appear on television to reveal what indignities he was put through in the course of investigating the sexual abuse allegations against him. All of this meant that Michael Jackson was not ever really taken seriously anymore. His contributions to music were left to the curb like a load of trash and no one seemed to care.

Even news of his comeback tour were considered something of a joke. People were curious whether Jackson still had the moves considering he hadn't been on tour or performed publicly in years but still, it wasn't taken seriously. And now that he's gone and people are back to 'loving' him, we choose to make ourselves feel better by flocking to the theatres to see a film thrown together to 'celebrate' his last venture for entertainment. Combining concert footage and interviews the film "Michael Jackson: This is It" is a look at the preparations that had been going on in relation to his planned concerts. Some argue that it only shows the good side of the ordeal but nothing of the accusations that Jackson was abusing prescription drugs or that the promoters were working him too hard.

But then again that's not the point is it? It's not meant to look at the truth right now. We all want to remember why we liked him and not why we made fun of him. People want to see the film because they feel then that they'll have been back with him, enjoying his music before he passed away. And like little lemmings we'll flock to the theatre to see it because it's a 'tribute' to the artist. If that's a tribute or it's meant to reinforce the admiration someone has for the music then that's hypocritical too. If you like someone's music you should like it all the time and not just when the public says you should. I'm not going to go to see the movie. I have enjoyed Jackson's music for years and will continue to do so. I don't need to pay money to see a movie that celebrates his contributions to music. I will always listen to his music. It's too bad that some of us will shell out money just to make ourselves feel better.