His sudden and startling June 25th death marked the “where were you?” celebrity moment of the century for anyone with basic pop-cultural awareness. Admittedly, I am not of the “Michael Jackson Generation.” I did not learn the Thriller dance when the video originally aired on MTV. In fact, when I first saw the Thriller video (sometime around 2000 during an MTV countdown of the greatest music videos of all time), it seemed campy and technologically passé.

Regardless, when I checked my email during a trip to Barcelona and read the words “Michael Jackson, Dead at 50,” I gasped and alerted my friend that Michael Jackson, the enigmatic and iconic King of Pop, had died. And for the first few days after his death, I paid close attention to each side of the developing story, from Jackson’s speculated drug addiction, to the involved discussion over the custody of his biologically unrelated children.

Every journalist who had fleeting contact with Jackson re-told his/her experience, no matter how brief. TV interviews with Jackson from each point in his life ran again and again. Moments from his turbulent childhood, record-breaking success, damaging legal battles, highly scrutinized relationships, fanciful life at Neverland Ranch, and finally his days of reclusive fatherhood reminded the public that his legacy is everything but an objective matter.

His fans have valorized his musical and societal contributions. Talented as a singer, dancer and overall performer, Jackson captivated audiences with his infectious pop beats, liquid movements, and lavish accessories. Dormant fans resurfaced after his death, causing sluggish album sales to surge. They held vigil in Harlem, and flocked to his publicly funded (and controversial) funeral. They’ve lauded his ability to blur gender and race lines, use his fame altruistically, and embrace fatherhood despite the pain his own father caused him. For Jackson’s massive following, public transgressions mean little or nothing next to the single, sequined glove that dazzled the world.

Others remember Jackson as the quintessence of tragic fame rather than as a perseverant American treasure. Jackson’s fans may see Neverland Ranch as they saw Jackson—fantastically over-the-top. From other perspectives, Neverland signifies the actualized dreams of a pitiable, emotionally stunted man, or even (to the extreme assailant) a pedophile’s grandiose lair. The media closely monitored Jackson’s drastic physical transformation, deeming it anywhere from inexplicably odd, to a sick manifestation of degenerative mental illness. His romantic relationships and unconventional path to fatherhood garnered overwhelming skepticism regarding his sexuality and motives for parenthood.

For much of his adult life, Jackson’s public blunders and odd behavior outshined the artistry that made him famous. During the few interviews that Jackson permitted, his almost naively earnest demeanor cemented his journey from fame to infamy, worshipped headliner to the subject of damning headlines.

While the precise impact of Jackson’s career is up for debate, its sheer magnitude is not. Jackson’s death marked the death of true pop-star royalty. During his heyday, Jackson dominated the few, major sources of new music—radio and television. From records to tapes to compact disks, Jackson’s fame grew and peaked when people had to purchase entire albums from actual stores. Before file sharing and downloading, music lovers had to be music buyers, and the American public loved Jackson best of all.

Current artists both benefit and suffer from the Internet’s decentralizing impact on music. Cheaper, quicker and easier than securing a record deal, musicians can use the Internet as their platform, their virtual record label that sometimes requires little more than spreading the word and uploading free songs. While the Internet has accelerated the road to fame, it has also reduced fame’s shelf life and modified the concept of stardom. Artists will continue to incorporate Jackson’s musical influence into their work, but they will never closely match Thriller’s sales or pioneer a dance to rival the moonwalk. The King of Pop died and took the kingdom with him. Love him, loath him, or pity him, Michael Jackson has left a permanent cultural legacy that will never, and could never, “beat it.”