Passionate fans of pop star Michael Jackson remembered him on his 13th death anniversary today.
Michael Jackson made a name for himself with all his hard work and dedication. Michael Joseph Jackson was born in Gary, Indiana, near Chicago, on August 29, 1958. The eighth of ten children in the Jackson family, Michael was born in a working-class African-American.
Michael Jackson was an American singer, songwriter and dancer. Dubbed as the “King of Pop”, he was one of the most popular entertainers in the world and was the best-selling music artist at the time of his death.
Jackson’s contributions to music, dance, and fashion along with his publicized personal life made him a global figure in popular culture for over four decades.
Jackson, famed for hits like “Bad” and “Beat It”, had been rehearsing for a series of comeback concerts scheduled in London before his sudden death in 2009 at the age of 50.
In 1969, the Jackson 5 was signed by Motown and the brothers moved to Los Angeles. After the single “I Want You Back” reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart following its release in 1969, Michael would go on to have multiple number one hits.
Almost 20 years after they were first signed, in 1983, Michael embarked on his last tour with his brothers and then solely pursued his solo career, which began in 1971. His first single as a solo artist to reach number one on the Billboard chart was “Ben.” The Jackson 5 and Michael as a solo artist would later be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1997 and 2001 respectively.
His debut solo album, released in 1979, sold more than 20 million copies. In 1982, Michael became the first artist to have a number one pop single, pop album, R&B single and R&B album on the charts at the same time. His album, Thriller, was his first number one album and stayed at the top of the charts for 37 weeks.
Throughout his career, Michael was nominated for 38 Grammy awards and won 13 of them. In 1993 he received the Grammy Legend Award and was posthumously awarded with the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010.
In 1984, Michael became the first artist to win eight Grammys in one night. In 2000, this record was tied by Santana.
The King of Pop married the daughter of the King of Rock and Roll, Lisa-Marie Presley, in 1994, but the two divorced in 1996. He had three children with an anonymous surrogate, Michael Jr. Paris and Blanket.
While he left the world on June 25, 2009, his legacy of music has been living on forever through his words and songs. From being a member of Jackson 5 to introducing the world to the famous moonwalk dance, Michael left the world at the age of 51.
