What effect has Michael Jackson and his music had on you as a person?

[Vincent]

He has a very loyal fan base, so I'd enjoy hearing some fan testimonials as to his influence (:

[FatGuy]

not a damn thing

[anonymous]

He has made me a nicer person and he has made me realize that we should pay attention to the problems of the world and try to fix them. Plus he has made me musically and artistically inspired.

[Michelle]

Well when I was little there weren't many black people on TV and as a white kid he was one of the first that I saw, and he didn't have a divided fan base. He made color sorta irrelevant, first person I can think of who did that.

Would've been nice if he kept going like that but his problems caught up with him. I was a fan when I was a kid, I don't listen to him now, and I don't think he was a positive role model after the 1980s. A lot of it was his own fault, you can't blame others forever and he was stubborn, he wouldn't listen to better advice like stop letting kids in your bedroom, asking for trouble, etc. He was a grown man and should've known a lot better.

When I think of the dude I think of two very different images and it's still very difficult for me to reconcile them with each other but I don't think about him that much anyhow.

[Taint Wrangler]

he made me understand the importance of, keeping kids away from a creepy guy with a dam kiddie park in his back yard.

[Ann]

He means the world to me and not a day goes by that I don't think about him.

[L.O.V.E.]

Like him I like to be different, an individual and not part of the herd.
I also take time out and just have fun, let my inner child come out and enjoy life.
"Always appreciate the gift of life. Be happy and have fun." - Michael Jackson

I watched that BAD25 documentary on Twitter with a host of other people and it was amazing. After watching that doc, people were tweeting that they have to re-evaluate their lives and he had inspired them to strive to become great.

I was also really touched by the speech he gave in 2001 at Oxford. He spoke of forgiveness in a way that struck a chord with me. Forgiving people is a major thing in my life that I struggle with. After hearing that speech, I have improved in that area. I always remember his words.

[Ellie]

Michael an amazing guy. He had a tough life as a celebrity (as most celebrities would do) but his story was genuine and not a way to get media attention but people would never give him a break. His music taught me about equality, love, real life situations and problems we could all relate to. He's the type of artist you can listen to his music no matter how old it is because it's so original. but it didn't stop from there. he was a great choreographer and dancer. Current artists/filmographers/dancers today get their inspirations from him too.