Is Michael Jackson the New Elvis Presley?
By now, you’ve no doubt heard the news of the tragic passing of the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. Pop music has not not seen this kind of loss since the death of the other King, Elvis Presley, in 1977. If Elvis is really dead, that is.
It’s no secret that Michael faced serious financial problems in recent years and given Michael’s penchant for wearing wigs, sunglasses, face masks and new faces altogether, is it just a matter of time until true fans of MJ insist he’s still alive? Is he in New Orleans with Tupac?
People often don’t want to let go when a cultural icon dies because the death leaves a terrible void in pop culture. Nobody was there to take over grunge music when Kurt Cobain died, and nobody is here to assume the Pop throne vacated by MJ.
Many will find comfort in his amazing music, but for some diehard fans, myself included, that may not be enough. For the latter group, the only way to grieve is to give Michael immortality as best as we mortals know how – by hoping against hope that he is still here somewhere, alive and moonwalking.
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Actually, pop music coped with a bigger loss than either MJ now or Elvis in 1977—the murder of John Lennon in 1980.
I loved Lennon and the Beatles as well, but globally and specifically in this country, amongst a variation of classes, races, and generations, he was without peer in terms of the size, and the length of his popularity.
In response to another comment. See in context »Not the new Elvis… He is bigger than Elivs!
Globally and across generations! You could argue as far as the United States is concerned, he is the king, within the bigger picture… not so much.
[...] extravagantes… Car elles vont naitre, c’est sur… c’est à lire sur le site d’information Trueslant. Son gout pour les masques et les déguisements vont faire fleurir comme pour Elvis les théories [...]
Why does anyone have to be the new anything? Elvis was Elvis and MJ was MJ. For 30 years plus Elvis has been the most successful “dead” performer. Time alone will tell how MJ is rated. An interesting statistic is that Patsy Cline who died in 1963 still sells over a million albums each year. To paraphrase the words of Truman Capote when Dashiel Hammett died…”Death is a Good Career Move.” In fact, the one performer who impacted the public psyche the most on his death was Buddy Holly.