Diamonds are invincible, they can not be broken, they can not die off. Even in death, the King of Pop is still releasing music and is one of the most talked about artists. August 29th would have been Michael Jackson’s 60th birthday, his fans, friends, and family gathered in Las Vegas for one of the biggest birthday celebrations of our time. Anyone that knows me knows that I am Michael Jackson’s biggest fan, so his birthday is even more of a reason for me to talk about him. So, in celebration, lets take a look back at his life.

Our story begins in August of 1958, on the 29th a baby boy was born to Joseph and Katherine Jackson. Michael Jackson’s talent was apparent at a very young age. He and his brothers created one of the first boy bands, The Jackson 5.

These boys created music like you’ve never heard and quickly became noticed by record labels. By the time Michael was 10 years old he and his brothers signed with one of the biggest record labels, already having 4 years of stage performances under their belts. In 1978, after over 10 years of performing with his brothers, Michael Jackson truly begins his solo career. He starred in the movie The Wiz, began releasing his own solo albums, and scored his 1st Grammy.

Although this sounds like a major win for Michael, his family strongly disproved of him separating himself from his family boy band. Some of his brothers made it publicly known that they were unhappy with his solo career. This was all hard for Michael, but he tried to not let this get to him and kept moving forward leaving a trail of major success behind him.

In 1984 controversy began to arise over Michael’s appearance. His skin color was changing and, due to the times, everyone began to assume he was bleaching his skin due to insecurity. This wasn’t the case though, he struggled from an autoimmune disease called Vitiligo, a disease that makes the pigment-producing cells die off, or stop working. This was a very hard time for Michael, having to deal with the disease and deal with the media backlash.

Shortly after this, “We Are The World” released, having Michael Jackson as one of the pinned stars, it sold a record of 7 million copies. Michael Jackson goes through the next 7 years releasing albums, going on world tours, and creating mind blowing music videos. In 1993 Michael Jackson was accused in civil court of molestation of a child- these accusations were all purely based on suspicion. This absolutely broke Michael, he went through a year of court, and eventually settled.

On a happier note, in 1994, Michael Jackson married Lisa Marie Presley, and I am here for it. I think they were the prefect match, forever stan. But, unfortunately, this marriage would last less than two years. Fast forward a little bit into some more fun news- in 1997 Michael Jackson marries Debbie Rowe, the couple will only stay married for two years, but Debbie will bear his two oldest children, Prince and Paris. In 2002, his youngest child Blanket, aka Prince Michael, is born and Michael brings us the infamous “dangling a baby over a very high terrace,” 10/10 do not recommend doing that.

Blanket’s mother’s identity has never been released and people are still trying to figure out who she is to this day. One year later, in 2003,  Michael Jackson is once again charged with counts of child molestation and goes through 2 long, hard years of court. Media was scrutinizing Michael like it was judgement day, so many people wanted him to be brought down. But, in 2005 Michael Jackson was found not guilty! Three cheers for my man!

In 2009, after a decade long break from touring to raise his kids, Michael Jackson announces his This Is It tour. I remember watching the press announcement live with my mom and her saying “I’m finding a way to get to one of these shows.” For months he worked quietly on this tour in the O2 Arena in London, England.

Unbeknownst to all of us, this show would only be seen by the dancers, musicians, and technical engineers hired for this show because on July 25th, 2009, Michael Jackson passed away due to cardiac arrest.

Today, Michael Jackson is still collaborating with music artists and even released a new song in August! How? After his death, many recorded songs were found in his estate and now the Michael Jackson Estate is choosing to release them as singles and is allowing other artists to collaborate on these songs.

May the legacy of Michael Jackson live on forever.