Michael Jackson

On June 25, 2009, the singer Michael Jackson died of acute propofol and benzodiazepine intoxication at the age of 50.

What Happened?
Michael was rehearsing for a show the Staples Center in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles. According to magician Ed Alonzo, Jackson jokingly complained about laryngitis, but "looked great".

The next morning, Jackson did not leave his bedroom and was later found unconscious by his physician Conrad Murray. Murray tried to revive Jackson for five to ten minutes, at which point he decided to call for help. Jackson was rushed to the UCLA Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 1:14 pm.

Aftermath
News of Jackson's death triggered an outpouring of grief around the world. The circumstances and timing of his death were compared to those of Elvis Presley and John Lennon. Fans gathered outside the UCLA Medical Center, Neverland Ranch, his Holmby Hills home, the Hayvenhurst Jackson family home in Encino, the Apollo Theater in New York, and at Hitsville U.S.A., the old Motown headquarters in Detroit where Jackson's career began, now the Motown Museum. Streets around the hospital were blocked off, and across America people left offices and factories to watch the breaking news on television. A small crowd, including the city's mayor, gathered outside his childhood home in Gary, where the flag on city hall was flown at half staff in his honor. Fans in Hollywood initially gathered around the Walk of Fame star of another Michael Jackson, as they were unable to access Jackson's star, which had been temporarily covered by equipment in place for the Brüno film premiere. Grieving fans and memorial tributes relocated from the talk radio host's star the next day.

From Odessa to Brussels, and beyond, fans held their own memorial gatherings. U.S. President Barack Obama sent a letter of condolence to the Jackson family, and the House of Representatives observed a moment of silence. Obama later stated that Jackson "will go down in history as one of our greatest entertainers". Former South African President Nelson Mandela issued a message through his foundation saying Jackson's loss would be felt worldwide.

On June 30, 2009, U2 while performing their first show of the U2 360 tour in Barcelona dedicated the song "Angel of Harlem" to Jackson. U2 vocalist Bono sang verses from "Man In The Mirror" and "Don't Stop Till You Get Enough" at the end of the song. On July 10, 2009, six thousand fans attended a musical tribute in Jackson's hometown of Gary, Indiana. Local performers staged a medley of his songs, and mayor Rudy Clay unveiled a seven-foot memorial to him. Jesse Jackson addressed the crowd, stating, "This is where Michael learned to dance, where he learned to sing, where he learned to sacrifice." The day after Jackson's death, rapper the Game release a tribute song, "Better on the Other Side", produced by DJ Khalil and featuring vocals by Diddy, Chris Brown, Polow da Don, Mario Winans, Usher, and Boyz II Men. A variety of other artists recorded tributes, including rappers 50 Cent and LL Cool J, singers Robbie Williams and Akon and guitarist Buckethead.

On June 26, artists including Pharrell Williams and Lily Allen paid tribute to Jackson at the UK Glastonbury Festival. Allen wore a single white glove (a signature look for Jackson), while the Streets performed a cover of "Billie Jean". Tributes to Jackson at the festival continued over the weekend. On July 5, 2009, American singer Madonna performed a medley of Jackson's songs during her Sticky & Sweet Tour, while a Jackson impersonator performed Jackson's signature dances and photos of Jackson were displayed behind them.

Metal and hard rock acts who performed Jackson songs in tribute include Metallica, Chris Cornell, Steve Vai and Andy Timmons, Extreme, and CKY. Buckethead wrote a song entitled "The Homing Beacon", inspired by Jackson's film Captain EO. Statements of tribute came from rock musicians including Judas Priest bassist Ian Hill, Queen guitarist Brian May, members of Black Sabbath, former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach, Alice Cooper, Geoff Tate of Queensrÿche, Eddie Van Halen (who worked with Jackson during the recording of Thriller) and Slash (who played guitar on Jackson's single "Give In to Me"). In October 2013, a tribute album was released featuring current and former members of Iron Maiden, Kiss, Motörhead, Testament, Guns N' Roses, Fozzy, Quiet Riot, Dio, Whitesnake, Mr. Big, among others.

Jackson's sister La Toya released her song "Home" on July 28 as a charity single in her brother's honor. All proceeds were donated to one of Michael's favorite charities. BET's annual 2009 Awards Ceremony aired three days after Jackson's death, on June 28, 2009, and included a tribute to him. Host Jamie Foxx said, "We want to celebrate this black man. He belongs to us and we shared him with everybody else." The ceremony featured performances of several of Jackson's songs, including pieces from his time with The Jackson Five and those from his solo career. Joe Jackson and Al Sharpton were in the audience, and Janet Jackson spoke briefly on behalf of the family. The show was the most watched BET annual awards show in the awards shows history.

The day after Jackson's death, the mayor of Rio de Janeiro announced that the city would erect a statue of him in the favela of Dona Marta. Jackson visited the community in 1996 and filmed a music video for "They Don't Care About Us" there. The mayor said that Jackson had helped make the community into "a model for social development." Memorials were held in locations as diverse as Tokyo, Bucharest, and Baku, Azerbaijan. In Midyat, Turkey, a Salat al-Janazah (Islamic funeral prayer) was performed, and traditional funeral helva distributed.

The music video for "Do the Bartman", a Simpsons song co-written by Jackson, was broadcast ahead of an episode rerun of The Simpsons on June 28. It featured a title card paying tribute to Jackson. The 1991 Simpsons episode "Stark Raving Dad", which Jackson guest-starred in, was broadcast on Fox on July 5. The episode had been broadcast on the Dutch Comedy Central the day after his death, and was dedicated to Jackson's memory. His 1978 film The Wiz (in which he co-starred alongside Diana Rossand Richard Pryor) was briefly rereleased in a rare 35mm format and was shown at the Hollywood Theater in his honor. It was also re-released a week prior to the release of Michael Jackson's This Is It in select cities. Madonna opened the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards with a speech about Michael Jackson. Janet Jackson made an appearance at the VMAs to pay a musical tribute to her brother and honor his career. He was honored with a posthumous lifetime achievement award during the 52nd Grammy Awards on January 31, 2010. Jackson was featured in the 82nd annual Academy Awards ceremony's "In Memoriam" tribute.

Following his death, Jackson's catalogue had sold nine million albums worldwide in the three weeks after his death.