I haven't commented on Michael Jackson's passing sooner because it finally hit me today how much of a reality it is. Earlier on the day of his death, I had made a comment on twitter along the lines of "First Ed now Farrah, only one more to go." Never did it cross my mind that only an hour or so later it would be MJ. The second the news broke my whole body had a chill. I'm not going to say that I was his #1 fan; to be honest I had put him on the back of the shelf for the past few years.  But the moment the radio said his death was official, all of the memories of him and his music crossed my mind.

Born in 1982 I was lucky to experience Thriller the first time around. And for the four decades that he has made music, I feel as though 90s Michael was "my" Michael. At that time I bought "my" MJ cassette and CDs, put up "my" MJ poster, and recorded "my" MJ music videos off of the TV.

But after watching his memorial today I saw more than just the man on stage that everyone loved-I saw the person. His humanitarian efforts were tremendous and the outpouring of love people had for him was large as well. Tonight I expressed on my facebook status that I "never knew I could feel so much for a man who didn't even know I existed...". How could one man make so many people feel the same way at the same time in the world?

When I was younger I would hear the song "Man In the Mirror" a lot in my house. Growing up it was never one of my favorite songs and as I child I always wondered, "What man is in a mirror?" Such an innocent question at that age, but now as an adult I know that "man" is me.

Thank you Michael for being the only artist in the world that my father, mother and myself could listen to. Thank you for making me want to make any effort that I can to make this world a better place. And I will continue to listen to your music and share it with others.

When history and music teachers are discussing his legacy in classes around the world, we can be blessed to say that we lived and experienced it in this life.

Meet you in paradise MJ.







"Man In The Mirror"

I'm Gonna Make A Change,
For Once In My Life
It's Gonna Feel Real Good,
Gonna Make A Difference
Gonna Make It Right . . .

As I, Turn Up The Collar On My
Favourite Winter Coat
This Wind Is Blowin' My Mind
I See The Kids In The Street,
With Not Enough To Eat
Who Am I, To Be Blind?
Pretending Not To See
Their Needs
A Summer's Disregard,
A Broken Bottle Top
And A One Man's Soul
They Follow Each Other On
The Wind Ya' Know
'Cause They Got Nowhere
To Go
That's Why I Want You To
Know

I'm Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
I'm Asking Him To Change
His Ways
And No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself, And
Then Make A Change
(Take A Look At Yourself, And
Then Make A Change)
(Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Na Na,
Na Nah)

I've Been A Victim Of A Selfish
Kind Of Love
It's Time That I Realize
That There Are Some With No
Home, Not A Nickel To Loan
Could It Be Really Me,
Pretending That They're Not
Alone?

A Willow Deeply Scarred,
Somebody's Broken Heart
And A Washed-Out Dream
(Washed-Out Dream)
They Follow The Pattern Of
The Wind, Ya' See
Cause They Got No Place
To Be
That's Why I'm Starting With
Me
(Starting With Me!)

I'm Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
(Ooh!)
I'm Asking Him To Change
His Ways
(Ooh!)
And No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change)

I'm Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
(Ooh!)
I'm Asking Him To Change His
Ways
(Change His Ways-Ooh!)
And No Message Could've
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make That . . .
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make That . . .)
Change!

I'm Starting With The Man In
The Mirror,
(Man In The Mirror-Oh
Yeah!)
I'm Asking Him To Change
His Ways
(Better Change!)
No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make The Change)
(You Gotta Get It Right, While
You Got The Time)
('Cause When You Close Your
Heart)
You Can't Close Your . . .Your
Mind!
(Then You Close Your . . .
Mind!)
That Man, That Man, That
Man, That Man
With That Man In The Mirror
(Man In The Mirror, Oh Yeah!)
That Man, That Man, That Man
I'm Asking Him To Change
His Ways
(Better Change!)
You Know . . .That Man
No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change
(Take A Look At Yourself And
Then Make A Change)
Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!
Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Na Na,
Na Nah
(Oh Yeah!)
Gonna Feel Real Good Now!
Yeah Yeah! Yeah Yeah!
Yeah Yeah!
Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Na Na,
Na Nah
(Ooooh . . .)
Oh No, No No . . .
I'm Gonna Make A Change
It's Gonna Feel Real Good!
Come On!
(Change . . .)
Just Lift Yourself
You Know
You've Got To Stop It.
Yourself!
(Yeah!-Make That Change!)
I've Got To Make That Change,
Today!
Hoo!
(Man In The Mirror)
You Got To
You Got To Not Let Yourself . . .
Brother . . .
Hoo!
(Yeah!-Make That Change!)
You Know-I've Got To Get
That Man, That Man . . .
(Man In The Mirror)
You've Got To
You've Got To Move! Come
On! Come On!
You Got To . . .
Stand Up! Stand Up!
Stand Up!
(Yeah-Make That Change)
Stand Up And Lift
Yourself, Now!
(Man In The Mirror)
Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!
Aaow!
(Yeah-Make That Change)
Gonna Make That Change . . .
Come On!
(Man In The Mirror)
You Know It!
You Know It!
You Know It!
You Know . . .
(Change . . .)
Make That Change.

ok sooo, i got an IM from my friend Jenine with a link to this video. my eyes and stomach couldn't manage to watch the whole thing so i will let you know if you haven't watched it already that it's pretty graphic. the rapper in this video is claiming that M.I.A. has been putting subliminal messages in her rhymes, shows, etc. that a pro terrorism. i'm not too sure how true all of this is, but i must say it's pretty damn hard to not listen to. as much of a fan as i am you can't help but wonder if the accusations are somewhat true. now i'm not going to google anything like the rapper says to, but i just wanted to put this out there and see what you all think. if you have or haven't seen this already, please comment with your thoughts.

ps.

i remember reading that "Paper Planes" was about not being granted a visa to stay in the US or something along those lines. *sigh* i just can't deal with this right now.

known for his worst dressed lists, the former designer/actor passed away on sunday from an intestinal infection.

... fashion crimes and faux pas will not be the same without this man and his wicked criticisms.

most recently known as the 2008 Mtv VMA music providers, the two were the only survivors of a plane crash that took place in Georgia at 11:53 p.m. last night. the other four passengers on the flight unfortunately were not as lucky. the two were taken to the Joseph Still Burn Center in Augusta. the jet that started to spark and then crashed onto a nearby road was on its way to Van Nuys, CA.

Kanye Attack Caught on Tape

kanYe was arrested at Los Angeles Int'l Airport after he and his crew got into an "altercation" with paparazzi. the innovative rapper is currently in custody.

Andre Young Jr., the son of hip-hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre, was found dead in his parents' home on saturday. Young Jr. was only 20 years old. an autopsy was done on monday however results will take weeks.

sorry to say, but simply great.

ps.
ain't my bf cute?? lol

It's another sad day in Hollywood.
E! News has confirmed that Grammy and Oscar-winning musician Isaac Hayes passed away early Sunday morning in Memphis, Tenn., at the age of 65. The cause of death was not immediately known.
Police were called to the Hayes' home when relatives found him unresponsive on the floor near a treadmill.
Hayes was taken to Baptist East Hospital in Memphis, where he was pronounced dead at 2:08 a.m.
Hayes composed the soundtrack to 1971's Shaft, co-wrote the hit song "Soul Man," and provided the voice of "Chef" on South Park. He also had a small role playing himself in the upcoming movie Soul Man starring Bernie Mac, who died yesterday at the age of 50 from pneumonia.

as i was in my room i glanced at the bottom of my tv screen just to catch this breaking E! news :

Actor-comedian and Peabody Award winner Bernie Mac has passed away.
"Actor/comedian Bernie Mac passed away this morning from complications due to pneumonia in a Chicago area hospital," his publicist, Danica Smith, said in a statement.
"No other details are available at this time. We ask that his family's privacy continues to be respected."
Mac was 50 years old.
The comedian was first hospitalized with the illness back on Aug. 1 and was initially said to be "responding well" to treatment.
A spokesman for the Cook County Medical Examiner's office confirmed to E! News that Mac had been a patient for "over a week" and that he died Saturday of "natural causes."
While Mac also suffered from sarcoidosis, an autoimmune disorder that causes inflammation in the lungs, his battle with pneumonia was not said to be connected with the disease.

for our generation he will be remembered for contributing his voice to kanYe west's first two albums, his 'Bernie Mac Show' which i used in a class to demonstrate how he broke the wall between the audience and the screen, and as one of the "Kings of Comedy'. he will truly be missed.

with classics like Dr. Dre's "the Chronic" and Snoop Dogg's "Doggystle", it was a major force on the west coast in the 90's. founded in 1989 by Suge Knight (Marion Knight is the name on the birth certificate) the label and its affiliates have come across a lot of drama even losing its veteran bad boy (pun intended) Tupac Shakur in a drive by shooting. the purchase of the label "includes current artist contracts and its complete back catalogue of music."