On Thursday, June 25th 2009, an event took place which caused the world to stop…

It was not such an event as a world war, or a terrorist attack, or even the complete crash of the stock-market and world economy. But yet still, this event brought people into the streets, it brought tears, recollections of memories of childhood and days gone by.

On Thursday, June 25th 2009, at 2:26pm the King of Pop, Michael Jackson died.

When we look at this “strange” and “awesome” man and performer, one has many opinions. For a long, stretched out minute in the grand scheme of the Universal time frame, Michael Jackson was the biggest celebrity on the planet. His Thriller album sold record numbers the year it came out, and it is still the highest selling album of all time… Of ALL time! There is no other Super-star who can make that claim.

Like most people, when I heard the news, I stopped what I was doing. I was in shock. I was stunned.

In this day of social media, the way we receive information has completely changed. I did not hear the news from a news break on TV or via radio; I did not receive a phone call or a knock on my door. No… to have heard the news in that manner would have deemed me a “dinosaur” in this fast-paced, high-tech age.

That morning I had been extremely busy with prospective client intakes, consultations, and the endless emails that had permeated my inbox; I did not have time to visit any of the various social media networks where I conduct a large part of my networking.

Finally, I answered the last email and headed over to check messages and updates on Facebook. I logged in, and there on my wall was an update from someone who had the simple words “RIP Michael Jackson”.

Not sure if it was a prank or not, I went over to my Twitter account, and sure enough the number one tweeted item was #Michael Jackson.

Immediately I turned on CNN International, and there was the yellow banner of “Breaking News” and the endless news of the Superstars passing.

The endless videos of his mega-hits brought back floods of memories.

I was still in primary school when Thriller came out. All over the radio, one could hear Beat It, and Billie Jean, and of course, Thriller. Music videos were just emerging in Hong Kong, and Solid Gold was a Sunday afternoon main-stay. We all learned the words to the songs, and Michael Jackson’s killer moves emerged on the streets and in our schools. Read the rest of this entry