Michael Jackson’s legacy: Fifteen years after his death, his influence remains unbroken

By Stacy M. Brown |

(NNPA) – It was perhaps his greatest triumph when a very frail and emotionally shaken Michael Jackson walked out of a Santa Maria, California, courthouse on a sunny June day in 2005 after fending off 13 charges related to the alleged molestation of a young cancer patient. As he slowly walked toward a waiting caravan of black SUVs, the King of Pop seemed almost unfazed, even dazed, by what had just happened. Although vindicated, he still wore an almost bewildered expression as many cheering fans stood around him, one of whom had released white doves as a sign of his innocence. Joseph Jackson, the patriarch of the world-famous Jackson family, appeared to thrust his son’s arm up to help him greet the loyal fans from all over.

A reporter asked this journalist, “Where do you see Michael Jackson in five years?” The answer was “Dead.” Unfortunately, almost four years ago to the day, that prediction came true. Jackson had died of an overdose of the sedative propofol. He was 50, and a stunned world could not believe it had lost the greatest pop music entertainer of all time. When he died, he was rehearsing for a series of concerts in London aimed at reviving a career destroyed by accusations, wild spending habits and strange bedfellows. A Los Angeles court sentenced Dr. Conrad Murray, who was Michael Jackson’s personal physician at the time of the singer’s death in 2009, to four years in prison for manslaughter in 2011.

Triumphs and trials: a complex life

Michael Jackson’s rise to fame began early. He was the seventh of nine children. He was born on August 29, 1958 in Gary, Indiana. Along with his brothers Jackie, Tito, Jermaine and Marlon, he formed the Jackson Five, a group that quickly rose to stardom. Jackson’s solo career, which began in the 1970s, reached unprecedented heights with the release of Thriller in 1982. The album became the best-selling of all time, selling over 21 million copies in the United States and at least 27 million worldwide, cementing Jackson’s place as a global icon.