Micheal Jackson

It doesn’t matter baby if you are black or white ….

I first heard the name ‘Micheal Jackson’ in class V. The boys in the class were discussing abt his latest concert at Mumbai, his idiosyncrasies, his terrific dance moves … all this was being discussed in highly animated voices … expressions of sth ‘near to impossible’ … I did not pay much attention to what I heard coz pop, disco, western, break dance, were alien and absolutely not of my concern… I thought I could never identify with them or may be not worth identifying …

Boys had multiple versions to explain how MJ transformed himself from black to white … according to one he had peeled off his black skin … while according to others he slept in a gas chamber … according to third version, he underwent a skin treatment … each one was striving to prove his version to be the most correct and from the most authentic source…

I thought how atrociously irrational… how can someone do this to himself? Since that moment I switched myself off to anything abt MJ …

On eve of his death in June 2010 the media was full of MJ life, dance, songs, interviews and news … just to understand the MJ ‘craze’ and the enigma around him, I randomly searched youtube … fortunately the first song I saw was the earth song, and as I was watching it I knew this was an important moment in my life… His voice, the emotions, the video, the picturization, the lyrics and overall impact of the Earth song was so electric that for next 6 months I surfed every possible sight and devoured every word written on and by him… for next 6 months I read anything and everything abt him… I got hooked to MJ… I fell in his love and I became another crazy fan of his.

The lyrics of the songs were something that appealed me the most…I think being a sociologist by profession, I could not ignore, his voice of dissent, protest and social concerns expressed through his songs. MJ had used his art to address issues like the global warming, war, racial discrimination and many others. He used his songs to convey his beliefs to his fans and very few artists are able to successfully achieve this through their arts …

MJ was always alleged of undergoing treatment to become ‘white’… so even if he has had undergone skin treatment to make himself ‘white’… if thought critically, this itself is a comment on the racial system of the USA…an black artist cannot feel comfortable in his ‘black’ skin… so much so that someone as sensitive and immensely talented as MJ had to take this drastic step.

In an interview with Oprah Winfrey, Jackson stated, "I have a skin disorder that destroys the pigmentation of the skin. It's something I cannot help. When people make up stories that I don't like who I am, it hurts me." (cnn.com)

‘The reality’ I think is irrelevant … Its doesnt matter if you are black or white... don’t want know… whatever may be the reason of his becoming ‘white’ what is important is the message he conveys through his songs… MJ’s life has always been mysterious… there has been mystery around everything about him and that’s sth make him more enigmatic … RIP MJ.. I love you and will miss you always…