Alisa Hayashida

The exhilarating numbers come fast and furious, from iconic moments like The Jackson Five on The Ed Sullivan Show and Soul Train – when young Michael (Josiah Benson/Ethan Joseph) puts on that iconic 70’s purple hat for their Soul Train debut, it’s a moment – the paradigm shift that occurred when he moonwalked across the stage during the live broadcast of Motown 25, to his record and groundbreaking Thriller, Beat It, and Smooth Criminal videos. A heart and show-stopping, mid-show standing ovation came after the culmination of Thriller ends in Jackson winning 9 Grammys in one night. I have never seen this in my life and it certainly felt like the minutes long ovation was just as much for Jackson himself as for the performers on stage. Even 15 years after his death, it’s clear he still has super fans with people actually screaming “We love you, Michael!” from the audience as if they were indeed at a concert.