Michael Jackson

Inspiration and leadership are two key points in being a leader. Think of Superman and Spiderman, every single little kid wishes they could be them. Michael Jackson was born in Gary, Indiana, on August 29, 1958, the fifth of nine children. Michael Jackson was widely recognized as one of the world's top musical entertainers. He showed leadership and influenced so many people through his passion for music and inspiration. A hero must possess inspiration and leadership. To have inspiration means that the person changes the way other people would do one thing and do it another. Leadership means to give a pathway for other people. Michael Jackson possess inspiration and leadership, therefore, he is a hero.

Michael Jackson signing autographshttps://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Michael_Jackson_gives_autograph_-_supercropped.jpgMichael inspired so many people through his passion for music. Through his life, he experienced many different things, such as family problems and great times. “The group won its first talent competition in 1963, gave its first paid performance in 1964, and had proven itself as a popular local act by 1967. Although primarily imitative at this stage, with their work rooted in the tradition of such musical greats as the Temptations, Smokey Robinson, and James Brown, the Jacksons were good enough to cut a couple of singles for Steeltown Records, an Indiana label” (Michael Jackson). For someone to be influential to many people is saying something. Michael Jackson was a lifesaver to some, and also just made people feel good inside. His music pushed people to do their best and stay in a good mood while doing it. It’s one thing to influence one person, but Michael was very widely known as a great singer and performer and showed many people his own type of music and gave them a different point of view. Throughout Jackson’s life, he formed a band and they started making some of their own music. They thought of the idea of creating something nobody else would think of, so, they created a new genre of music. “Between 1982 and 1984 Jackson's acclaimed album Thriller (1982) shattered all music industry records by selling more than forty million copies; in the late 1980s Jackson again established new standards with his album Bad and its accompanying worldwide concert tour” (Michael Jackson). At this point of Jackson’s life, he had formed a band including his five brothers all by himself. They started playing and their music eventually skyrocketed and really gave them their big hit. Once they started playing more and more, they became more well known and got recognized as making a new style of music. To start a new genre of music is inspiring to millions of people and impacts them exponentially.

Jackson, at such a young age, was taking on responsibilities that a grown man would do while on stage. He showed much leadership in his life by leading many people through a new generation of music. “By the time he was five years old, Michael, together with his four older brothers (Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, and Marlon), had formed a rhythm-and-blues act called the Jackson 5. Initially enlisted to play the bongos, Michael revealed himself as such a little dynamo that he soon became the group's leader, able to mesmerize audiences with his singing and dancing” (Michael Jackson). Leadership in someone is a huge key to being a hero. It resembles how that person can take action without anyone else telling them to do so. In this quote, Michael Jackson shows just this. Many people don’t realize how tough it is to lead a group, especially a really big group of people, through their life and really contribute to theirs. And this is exactly what The Jackson 5 did. Michael was the lead singer in the Jackson 5, and was the youngest out of all of the brothers in it. “The Jackson Five were comprised of Jackie Jackson, Tito Jackson, Marlon Jackson, Jermaine Jackson and Michael Jackson—all of whom sang” (McLeod, Kembrew). At this age, you don’t expect many people to have as much leadership as him. He was singing many songs and many people were impressed, so they supported him and the band. There is nobody who could’ve told Michael to do otherwise what he wanted to do. So, this led him to the idea of the new genre of music. He showed so much leadership at such a young age and never let anyone stand in his way. He proved many people wrong and showed everyone nothing is impossible through his leadership.

Michael Jackson waving to his fanshttps://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Michael_Jackson_1984(2).jpgMichael Jackson expressed leadership and inspiration to many. Through his hardships and moments of greatness, he strove to create new music and lead his own path. He inspired many people from doing this, and this makes him a hero. Michael Jackson inspires me because I play guitar and sing, and I would like to create my own type of music one day, and so do many other people as well. So, a hero doesn’t have to have superpowers, or the ability to be super in any way, shape, or form. As long as they are willing to put their life on the line and strive for what they believe in and inspire other people, they can be a hero.

Work Cited

"Michael Joseph Jackson." Encyclopedia of World Biography Online, Gale, 1998. Student Resources In Context, https://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/K1631003308/SUIC?u=powa9245&sid=SUIC&xid=9a2a2469. Accessed 13 May 2019.

"Michael Jackson." UXL Biographies, UXL, 2011. Student Resources In Context, https://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/EJ2108101154/SUIC?u=powa9245&sid=SUIC&xid=77022458. Accessed 13 May 2019.

"Michael Jackson." St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture Online, Gale, 2013. Student Resources In Context, https://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/K2419200590/SUIC?u=powa9245&sid=SUIC&xid=7f066a16. Accessed 13 May 2019.

McLeod, Kembrew. "The Jackson Five." St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture, edited by Sara Pendergast and Tom Pendergast, vol. 2, St. James Press, 2000, pp. 513-514. Student Resources In Context, https://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/CX3409001243/SUIC?u=powa9245&sid=SUIC&xid=648b36b9. Accessed 13 May 2019.