But let’s not overlook the fact, and I say this because I grew up in the era when Jackson’s music was becoming popular, that it did boil down to the music.

His marketing was surely important, but his brilliant music and performance drove his fame. Marketing was just a sideline.

White kids in the suburbs like me weren’t grooving to Michael Jackson because he was a brilliant marketer.

His music and dancing thrilled us, no pun intended.