Michael Jackson died suddenly Thursday, and the world began mourning. Every network scurried to put together packages. The 24-hour cable news networks found anyone and everyone to put on camera.
But, for me, right now at 2:39 a.m and home for only a half-hour after putting all the Michael Jackson content on our site, there is only one option for me: MTV.
Why? Let me explain.
I grew up with Michael Jackson, much the same way MTV did. He made MTV as much as MTV made him. Prior to "Billie Jean," MTV didn't play music videos from black artists. Then Columbia Records stepped in and threatened to pull all their other videos from the then-fledgling network.
The rest, as they say, is history. The world changed.
When Michael Jackson debuted a new video, it was an event. It was done in primetime, and you made damn sure to be in front of a television 20 minutes before the world premiere was set to air on MTV. Missing the premiere of a Michael Jackson video was akin to buying a suit at Wal-Mart. Why would you ever do that?
This is the reason there will never be another Michael Jackson. Not just because he made good music and was popular. Plenty of artists did that already.
Michael Jackson's videos told stories. They supported his music. If you put the television on mute, his videos would still make sense. That's illegal today. Now, every music video rotates from car to skimpy clothed girl to cash money to a boobed-out girl to a bottle of champagne to a booty shorts girl and then back to a car. And try to find a video that stays on a shot for more than four seconds before cutting away.
Jackson existed in a time when premiering a video on MTV was how people were introduced to new music. We didn't have iTunes or MySpace or tinyurls to put on a Twitter feed back then.
I remember when "Thriller" debuted. I remember my friends and I trying to tie our hands together and have a knife fight like in "Beat It." I used to dream the floor would light up when I walked on it. The bad-ass quality of the "Bad" video still holds true now. "Remember the Time" when Michael Jackson turned into gold dust and set Iman's heart aflutter?
Oh wait, we forgot about "Scream." Off the chain. "Black and White?" Ahead of its time. Of course, nothing will ever belong in the same conversation as "Thriller," and that's fine. It was that good. Still is.
These are moments we don't forget. They are not hard-news moments that affect the world like a Vietnam or a World War II or a Sept. 11, but they're memorable nonetheless. They make up a part of the fabric of our lives.
And while I fully recognize the craziness that made up Jackson's life in the latter part of his life, that shouldn't be his lasting legacy. It's fine to bring up in the conversation, though, since it's part of his history. We'll remember it because of its recency when compared with, say, the "Off the Wall" album from 1979, and because of its high drama.
But, Michael Jackson isn't the first celebrity to face a disgraceful plummet from the top of the world, and he won't be the last.
See, the celebrity cycle goes like this: When a famous person blazes a trail, everyone to follow suit is "The next [insert famous name here]." When that famous person dies, "there will never be another [insert famous name here]."
Michael Jackson's lasting legacy rests with his music and his music videos. You will never see another like him.
Just watch this video tribute below from -- where else? -- MTV and you'll understand.
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