Chapter 9
Too Little, Too Late
All through the late 1980s and early 1990s, Michael continued to record exciting music. His album Bad came out in 1987. It sold millions and millions of copies. One song on the album was called “Man in the Mirror.” It became one of Michael’s favorite songs, even though he hadn’t written it. The song talked about trying to change the world by changing yourself first. Michael donated all the money he earned from that song to a camp for children with cancer.
Michael’s next album, released four years later, was titled Dangerous. It included one of his most interesting songs—a song called “Black or White.” The words said that it didn’t matter whether people were black or white. The music video showed dozens of faces—people of all colors—morphing or blending into one another. Almost every top-forty radio station in America played the song the first day it came out.
Michael was still a huge star and a brilliant, creative performer. But his personal life remained troubled. He started using prescription drugs again.
By 2005, he hadn’t recorded a big hit album in years. He hadn’t gone on tour. Some of his managers thought he was afraid his show wouldn’t be good enough. If his show wasn’t fabulous, Michael thought he’d be disappointing his fans.
For several years, Michael and his children lived in countries overseas. They lived in Bahrain in the Middle East for a long time. Then they moved to Ireland. Finally they moved back to the United States, to Las Vegas, Nevada. The whole time, Michael kept spending like a superstar. Every year, he spent twice as much money as he earned!
By 2007, Michael was in terrible money trouble. He had borrowed a lot so that he could keep up his expensive lifestyle. But he had to pay his debts soon, and that might mean losing everything—including the Beatles’ songs and Neverland.
Michael had to start working again. He needed to do big concerts and record a big album. So he agreed to do a concert series called “This Is It.” Fifty concerts would be held in London, starting in 2009.
In the weeks leading up to the first concert, Michael rehearsed nonstop. Sometimes he felt good and enjoyed it. He was still a great singer and dancer. The backup singers would often watch and applaud. But Michael was worried sick. He still wanted to be perfect. What if he couldn’t deliver great shows for his fans? He couldn’t sleep at night from all the worry.
Once again, he turned to drugs. To help him sleep, Michael hired a doctor named Conrad Murray. Doctors are only supposed to do what is good for a patient. But Dr. Murray did not do that. He injected Michael with the kind of drugs that are used in hospitals for people having surgery. The drugs were very dangerous. They knocked Michael out for the night. That was what Michael wanted.
On June 25, 2009, Michael Jackson died from an overdose of those drugs. Dr. Murray was charged with killing him accidentally. For his crime, he went to jail for two years.
When the world heard that Michael Jackson had died, millions of fans everywhere were shocked and sad. A huge memorial service was held in Los Angeles. It was broadcast on TV. At the funeral, many famous people spoke, including Berry Gordy. Diana Ross sent a message to be read aloud. Michael’s daughter, Paris, spoke, too. She talked about how much she loved her father and missed him. Superstar singers performed songs in memory of Michael. Each of Michael’s brothers wore a single white glove with sequins on it, to honor their brother. They sat in the front row with the rest of the family, including Michael’s parents.
As part of the service, Jermaine Jackson sang Michael’s favorite song, “Smile.” The lyrics probably said a lot about how Michael Jackson felt much of the time. They said: “Smile, though your heart is aching. Smile, even though it’s breaking.”
Now that Michael was gone, people wanted to remember the good things about Michael. His talent was so huge. It had been a gift to millions all over the world. His singing and dancing had brought so much happiness to others. Sadly, though, performing seems to have been the only way he found any happiness himself.
He was only fifty years old when he died, but he was already a legend. In fact, at the funeral, Berry Gordy said that “King of Pop” wasn’t a big enough title for Michael. He said Michael Jackson had simply been the greatest entertainer who ever lived.
