For Jacko fans, the blood is on the dance floor

Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone, Michael Jackson is no more. The blood was on the dance floor as the world awoke to the news that the legend, the ultimate thriller, the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, had died of cardiac arrest.

Fans were left shocked. Google's servers temporarily crashed after being flooded by traffic for "Michael Jackson" searches. Others gathered outside his rented house in Los Angeles and mourned. In New York, fans thronged the streets and danced his trademark moves to pay tribute. 

Like most celebrities, Jackson's iconic rise to success was never bereft of controversy. In an interview with Oprah Winfrey, he alleged that as a child, he was beaten and ill treated by his father. Later, his pet chimpanzee, Bubbles, his gigantic Neverland mansion, rumours that he'd tried to purchase the "Elephant Man" bones, serious allegations of child molestation, plastic surgery to change the colour of his skin from black to white, numerous nose jobs - all became targets for intense media scrutiny.

It has been a decade since he released his greatest hits compilation, HIStory (1999), and 2008 marked the 25th anniversary of the release of his album Thriller, considered one of the highest-selling albums of all time.

Jackson's contribution to dance and music is culturally significant. He was scheduled to make a comeback with a multi-city, already sold-out concert tour this July. Fans will no longer have the chance to see the legend in person, but his legacy will live on. 

What made Michael Jackson the pop icon he was, matched in stature by Elvis Presley, Madonna and The Beatles? His dance moves - the moonwalk and the dancing skeleton? Or the kisscurl on his forhead? His flamboyant style of dressing, with gold-plated military-style jackets and hats, or his falsetto vocals? All these contributed, but his persona was larger than that.

Read some of his lyrics and you might have your answer. "There's a time when you're right and you know you must fight. Leave me alone", he sang, in response to a tabloid portrayal of his life as an amusement park. "I'm not gonna spend my life being a colour," he said, to promote racial harmony.

And never mind the scandals, his ability to stay afloat and firmly on top of the charts regardless of media-bashing came from within. Jackson fans will always remain Jackson fans. They might have discarded the other pop music they once listened to, content with new rock, metal, hip hop, trance and techno.

But for the generation born in the early 80s, Michael Jackson means roots, something you can never discard. They may deny ever having listened to The Backstreet Boys and The Spice Girls, but when it comes to Jacko, there can be no denial. His contribution to world music is monumental, and rap, hip hop and break beat music would not have been possible without his ground-breaking innovations.

Michael Jackson got his iconic quality from his ability to unify fans across genres. He's the man who taught you the mirror dance; the man whose videos are almost imprinted on your brain; the man you can never take off your playlist; the man who got off the wall; the man who wanted to be bad, dangerous, a thriller; the man who wanted to heal the world. The man who made history.