I was never a huge Michael Jackson fan. I can't tell you what date is his birthday, the release dates for all of his albums, the tour dates for every tour that he did, etc., but like everyone else on the planet, I've heard all of his singles, and I like pretty much all of them. The man knew how to make a catchy song. I was born in 1987, but I have quite a few Michael Jackson-related memories from my childhood too. So, it's not just those who were alive when Thriller came out who can feel nostalgic when listening to Michael Jackson songs.
Out of all of his singles, "Human Nature" is probably my favourite of his. I'm not gonna lie. I got choked up when John Mayer played it yesterday at the Memorial. Really nice, underrated song. And it's been sampled by other artists for other great songs ("Right Here", "It Ain't Hard To Tell"). "Smooth Criminal" is really, really good too. And no, the Alien Ant Farm version is NOT better than MJ's original version.
And he made some classic music videos, obviously. He has the best record when it comes to more great music videos than any other artist ever. His music videos were events. I remember both "Black Or White" and "Remember The Time" having their world premieres on prime time simulcast on Fox, MTV, VH1 and BET. I don't think that has happened for any other artist. Oh, for the days when music video premieres were treated like a big deal, and not dumped onto MTV Hits or MTV2 in the middle of the afternoon.
You know what music video of his I've always liked? "Rock With You". I know that it's a cheap looking, low budget music video, made before MJ realized that he could do something different and special with his music videos, but I've always liked it BECAUSE of its cheapness. It's just MJ standing in front of a black background with a green light behind him wearing a silver shirt, pants and boots. It's so simple it's enjoyable. It's like the anti-Michael Jackson music video. That's why it's always been a favourite of mine.
