4Music

It was a terrible and tragic day when we heard the rumours but didn’t want to believe the news – King of Pop, Michael Jackson, had died of a heart attack at a shockingly young 51.

Rather than dwell on that, or his oft’ talked about odd appearance and extremely bizarre ways, let’s remember just why MJ was loved so much by so many adoring fans.

One of the most commercially-successful performers of all time, Michael rocked our worlds with a unique style, incredible dance moves, squeaky lyrics, dazzling videos and, oh, four decades worth of the most thrilling pop singles ever made.

Making his debut in 1964 as teeny-bopper popper with the Jackson 5, he went solo in 1971 (before all of you were even born!). Stand out albums included Off the Wall (1979), Thriller (1982), Bad (1987), Dangerous (1991) and HIStory (1995) – all amongst some of the best-selling albums ever, in the universe.

We’re not going list his many hits here – you’ll know them already – but needless to say it’s unlikely we’ll ever see such a performer again.

In the meantime, let’s hope he’s moonwalking up there with the Big Guy.